My dad's friend isn't the best to wild snakes

I lived in the North-Western part of Florida I used to hunt deer with some of his friends

where we were at wasn't a popular area for hunters and was far off from trails

we came across a BEAUTIFUL diamond back rattler and my dad's friend pulled out his pocket knife and killed it as I begged for him to leave it alone

it was out in the middle of the woods minding it's own business
my dad said it was for public safety but we were in the middle of nowhere

was it really appropriate for him to kill it? :/

i dont think so, but my grandpa (in AZ) recently killed a mojove green rattler that was stuck in his garden fence, which i think is a more verifiable reason to kill one, and (dont ream me please) he sent me the skin for it to go with my others

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Originally Posted by cmack91

i dont think so, but my grandpa (in AZ) recently killed a mojove green rattler that was stuck in his garden fence, which i think is a more verifiable reason to kill one, and (dont ream me please) he sent me the skin for it to go with my others

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it's better than allowing his death to go to a waste
I buried him by digging a hole with my bare hands because he just thew him to the side like trash

Personally I believe killing an animal for no good reason is wrong period:colbert:, there was no public safety issue..especially if you were in the woods hunting, it's simple enough to just walk on and leave it alone. Unfortunately for the snake this person is uneducated and chooses to maul it to death. And as for the snake in the fence, ive been in that situation with snakes and large lizards. I just cut the fence around the lizard's but as for snakes it's easy enough to pin or put there head in a small tube while you cut the fence to free the animal so even then there is no real justifiable reason to kill the animal.:colbert:

except maybe that my grandparents are in their 70's, and the mojove green is the deadliest snake in the western US, and i highly doubt they have any kind of tube to put the head in, plus, when your in that situation, all you think about is how to keep it away from you or your wife or grandkids, and making sure it never comes back. plus, one other thing about the mojove, unlike how most snakes will run to get away once your 5-6ft away from them, these guys will stay there, and even chase after you just to bite you in the a**, there an extremly dangerous animal, VERY aggressive, and very territorial so even if he did let it go, it wouldve come back. and, you really dont know my grandpa, he's fought in two wars, and has probably killed as many people as he has snakes, so i really dont think he gives a crap

and i think i should add that the snake already had some pretty serious lacerations in the neck/belly area, so he probably wouldnt have made it regardless of what happened

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Originally Posted by yayforhanna

I lived in the North-Western part of Florida I used to hunt deer with some of his friends

where we were at wasn't a popular area for hunters and was far off from trails

we came across a BEAUTIFUL diamond back rattler and my dad's friend pulled out his pocket knife and killed it as I begged for him to leave it alone

it was out in the middle of the woods minding it's own business
my dad said it was for public safety but we were in the middle of nowhere

was it really appropriate for him to kill it? :/

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Wow. Where do I even start.
So you were on a hunting trip and your friends dad somehow without getting bit, killed an eastern diamond back with his pocket knife. Seems an odd choice of weapon since I would assume do to the fact that you were hunting you would have a rifle or at least a bow I would think. Also I thought you just moved to Florida and that’s why you didn’t know that it was illegal to keep your 15’ burm that you so kindly donated to Ben Siegel. You may also be interested to know that Ben Siegel denies receiving any such animal so I hope you weren’t scammed into giving up your loved giant constrictor to some huckster LOL.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ere-in-Florida)

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Originally Posted by yayforhanna

Was it really appropriate for him to kill it? :/

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Absolutely not...The guy's a douchebag and probably has a small, crooked penis. No other catalyst for going out and killing wild animals, for ANY reason.

How's your 15 foot burm doing?

Seriously though, I'd be surprised if Florida didn't have laws that would make the situation the OP described illegal.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6234/...5861a42329.jpg

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Originally Posted by jason_ladouceur

Wow. Where do I even start.
So you were on a hunting trip and your friends dad somehow without getting bit, killed an eastern diamond back with his pocket knife. Seems an odd choice of weapon since I would assume do to the fact that you were hunting you would have a rifle or at least a bow I would think. Also I thought you just moved to Florida and that’s why you didn’t know that it was illegal to keep your 15’ burm that you so kindly donated to Ben Siegel. You may also be interested to know that Ben Siegel denies receiving any such animal so I hope you weren’t scammed into giving up your loved giant constrictor to some huckster LOL.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ere-in-Florida)

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I currently live with my aunt and uncle, my parents live in north florida
whenever I go to see them do I bring my reptiles? no.
I used to live in NJ
they said they were relocating her when I asked if I could still come to see her but now I'm paranoid..
I don't think this is the appropriate thread to be mentioning that either way

anyway
my dad was distracting it while his friend stepped on the back of it's head to cut it off
people who live in the deep south are taught how to "deal" with snakes

I live in Fl as wel.

My family hates snakes(I'm like the odd ball out :/)

I don't let them kill snakes while I'm around.

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Originally Posted by yayforhanna

people who live in the deep south are taught how to "deal" with snakes

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I spent the majority of the first 18 years of my life living in Texas and Louisiana.

I was taught that the best way to "deal" with snakes is to take a quick picture and shoo them off of foot trails.

Well the answer you question. No. But you friend's dad is lucky. In my experience Eastern Diamondbacks are pretty pissy snakes. They are thick bodied and mean. They have a big strike range too. And most EDB's don't back down. But no he should not have killed the snake. He is just an uninformed person. Also, I seriously hope he buried the head of the snake. If he didn't he is risking other people walking in the woods.

People don't kill animals in my presence unless they plan on eating them or it's a mercy kill.. I woulda had them hunters distracted looking for rattler eggs til the snake moved along.

I dont understand. You post saying your dad isn't the nicest to animals or his friend or whoever, and was it wrong for him to kill the snake. Then when people offer their insight, you immediately run into a defensive argument as to how your grandparents are elderly, didn't have a tube to secure the snake to relocate it properly, and how the snake was already injured.

??? I DON'T think killing an animal is justified in hardly any situations, let alone this one, but it seems like you answered your own question. You're going to think what you're going to think, why post here, get people emotional, and then respond with the opinion you already had when you posted but acted like you lacked? :/
Dont get it. Sorry.

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Originally Posted by RyanT

Absolutely not...The guy's a douchebag and probably has a small, crooked penis. No other catalyst for going out and killing wild animals, for ANY reason.

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??? hurrrhhuh?


Yeah he was in the wrong. First of all I wouldn't be going anywhere near a venomous snake, never mind with a knife. I don't believe in pointless killing. I'm not 100% against killing animals, hell we all feed rats to our reptiles. I get upset when people kill or torture animals for their own sick and twisted reasoning..

Just like it bugs me when people enjoy feeding live. I feed live because my BP's wont take F/T.. But I don't enjoy it. I feel bad for every rat that I have to kill, or that I send to its death. It's not the best part of owning a snake, and I hate when people say that it is.

Are there places and time when it is necessary to kill animals. It is unfortunate and should be done out of necessity. This described situation doesn't sound like it was, you were there I was not only you can really answer that.

Snakes have been demonized for many many years there are very few good snake storys around fictional or non fictional that are being reported by popular media. That means that people whom have no experience with and no education about snakes rely on the information they have, the media tells us all snakes are dangerous and are a threat to public safety. How many times have you been told that your Royal will escape and kill you in your sleep. That is the media talking. It is not really your friends fathers fault completely,he was doing what he thought best. Education on the public is often the real answer, changing the idea that snakes are valuable and need to be respected and left alone.

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Originally Posted by shelliebear

I dont understand. You post saying your dad isn't the nicest to animals or his friend or whoever, and was it wrong for him to kill the snake. Then when people offer their insight, you immediately run into a defensive argument as to how your grandparents are elderly, didn't have a tube to secure the snake to relocate it properly, and how the snake was already injured.

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Those were responses by two different posters. So quick to snap a response you didn't even pay attention to any detail.

OP: Everyone will say what they would have done if in that situation.... What happened - happened and there is nothing that will change that. Nearly everyone will agree that killing a defenseless animal is cruel.

Well us people here in the South huh hum Florida, us Hunters if you will. We don't kill for the sake of killing. If it's there where it's not supposed to be we let it go on it's way, if we kill it we eat it! Now there was one time my friend was up in a tree stand and a hawk dropped a water moccasin on him and well he had no choice but to kill it, it was him or the snake. He didn't really have a choice at that point, after all he was 20 feet up a tree in a hunting stand.

I was raised not to kill for the sake of killing, I have snakes and I kill my rats for the snakes because they have to eat. I eat food that has been killed for me. I don't go around randomly killing stuff just cause well oh my it's a poisonous snake and it's there. Not hardly! If people stopped and thought about it before they did something like that, like hey this snake keeps the rodent population down. Then some of us could actually be considered smarter than the rodents.

Ya feel me :P Just say'n

Hows that burm doing?

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Xeh0rc0zPR.../troll-web.jpg