Now Im effin' pissed.

Some moron who was drunk picked up a rattlesnake and because of his stupidity the snake was killed. I saw this on the T.V. at the deli where I was getting lunch. They showed the man in the ambulance crying, and I'm sorry, it makes me sick they would do this. Here's what was said on the T.V. stations website:


Inglewood Man Recovers From Rattlesnake Bite
LOS ANGELES A 22-year-old man was hospitalized in fair condition on Wednesday as he was being treated for a bite inflicted by a rattle snake that he picked up off the ground at an Inglewood park following an apparent bout of drinking, authorities said.

The man discovered the reptile at Edward Vincent Park, at 700 Warren Lane, late Tuesday night, said Inglewood police Sgt. Juan Ferreira.

"He picked up the snake, and got bit on the hand," he said.

The victim then placed the reptile in a bucket, the bucket in a bag, and the bag in the trunk of his car, Ferreira said, adding that he tried to drive
himself to a hospital but pulled over on the side of the road and called 911. Los Angeles County Fire paramedics and Inglewood police reached him at 161 North La Brea Avenue around 10:20 p.m. Tuesday, a Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatch supervisor said.

The man was placed on a stretcher in the back of an ambulance and
initially appeared to be doing well, it was reported. But less than five minutes later, he became visibly ill and nauseated and could be seen shaking, gagging, shedding tears and kissing a cross hanging from his neck.

Paramedics took him to Centinela Hospital Medical Center, Inglewood police Sgt. Matthew Hart told reporters.

In telephone conversations, animal control officials and hospital staff asked Inglewood police officers at the scene to determine what kind of snake bit the man.

The officers then took the bucket into which the reptile had been placed out of the victim's trunk and, while one officer held down the snake with a
crowbar-type tool, another one used a pocket knife to cut off its head, it was reported.

Police then took the dead snake to the hospital, where the victim was receiving anti-venom treatment this morning and listed in stable condition,
Hart said.

Ferreira said a rattlesnake surfacing at the park was novel.

"It's extremely uncommon. I've been here for 10 years, and have never heard of a rattlesnake being found at one of our parks," he said.

The victim, whose name was not immediately released, had apparently been drinking before coming across the reptile, Hart said.

that's absolutely terrible.

Both because the snake suffered a terrible death, and because there are childish people in the world, stupid enough to find pleasure out of being drunk, and to think it a good idea to torment innocent animals while in such a state. (Or otherwise)

...oh yeah, and the guy got bit. :rolleyes:

I'm very sick right now. I'm sorry if that was confusing.

i think he learned his lesson...

"But less than five minutes later, he became visibly ill and nauseated and could be seen shaking, gagging, shedding tears and kissing a cross hanging from his neck."

with how painful and embarassing being envenomated is, hopefully he and all his family and friends will learn from this.

I hate animal cruelty, but I prolly would have killed the snake too.


what if your kids were at that park........playing, then got bit by this snake.

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Originally Posted by Patrick Long

I hate animal cruelty, but I prolly would have killed the snake too.


what if your kids were at that park........playing, then got bit by this snake.

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They easily could have relocated it. But I suppose it was easier to just get rid of it.

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Originally Posted by Patrick Long

I hate animal cruelty, but I prolly would have killed the snake too.


what if your kids were at that park........playing, then got bit by this snake.

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That is still NO reason to kill the snake. It's an education issue. Educate your children to NOT pick up ANY reptile, just like you would in teaching them how to not approach a strange dog.

Humans are way to quick to kill anything that they feel "invades" their space, be it snakes, coyotes, cougars, etc. When you move into their habitat, it's your responsibility to live with them, not eradicate them because it's inconvenient.

I'll definitely be writing to the city and expressing my thoughts about educating their people in proper handling of a situation like this if it happens again. There was no need to kill the snake so that it could be identified. It could have easily been transported to the hospital. If not, then animal control or the proper wildlife agency could have been called in to deal with the snake. All options would have been safe and the snake would still be alive today.

Here's the plan...

Man goes to hospital.
Snake is taken to hospital.
Snake milked for venom.
Man gets anti-venom.
Man gets better.
Man goes home.
Snake goes home to the wild.

Damn, I'm crazy aren't I? :)

All of us are only looking at it like this because we love snakes.

Inglewood is a very populated place. The city, county, state whatever wont take that chance.

Dont get me wrong, I see the side that you guys are representing, but you have to put yourself in their shoes.

They killed a cougar here.

there was a lady that got attacked on her bike here by a cougar, and we went out hunting for it. Then killed it.

but large cats go back mainly because of territory...

and wtf did they need to bring a RATTLESNAKE to the hospital for......

sorry but everybody in the world knows what a rattlesnake looks like. absolutely unnecessary to kill the snake. it could have been given to the animal control that the officers were speaking with on the phone.

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Originally Posted by crusher

and wtf did they need to bring a RATTLESNAKE to the hospital for......

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standard practice... if you don't know the species you're supposed to collect it, if possible, so they can give you the right antivenom. i believe the wrong stuff can put you into anaphylactic shock with a quickness...

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Originally Posted by kzooherpetoculturist

standard practice... if you don't know the species you're supposed to collect it, if possible, so they can give you the right antivenom. i believe the wrong stuff can put you into anaphylactic shock with a quickness...

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....he got it...it IS standard procedure....:cool:

I was over at my parents house the other day riding the quads (they have 4.5 acres) with my kids - I also brought both my dogs. After a bit of riding I noticed both my dogs are on the driveway barking like crazy so my Dad and I go over to check it out... There were 3 baby (very small so Im only assuming) copperheads soaking up some sun and hissing like crazy at the dogs. My Dad and I got a bucket and and a long stick and put the pissed off babys in the bucket and relocated them to the field across the street. My Mom wanted them killed of coarse, but I just didn't see the need for that. She HATES snakes. I'm just glad no one got bit (My dogs or my kids) I'm not even sure if they could do any damage at the size/age they were. Either way... snakes got relocated & no one got hurt. Both my kids are well aware of what cottonmouths & copperheads look like and know NEVER to pick one up or mess with them. Blah, blah, blah... thought I'd share that :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by lenastorms

I was over at my parents house the other day riding the quads (they have 4.5 acres) with my kids - I also brought both my dogs. After a bit of riding I noticed both my dogs are on the driveway barking like crazy so my Dad and I go over to check it out... There were 3 baby (very small so Im only assuming) copperheads soaking up some sun and hissing like crazy at the dogs. My Dad and I got a bucket and and a long stick and put the pissed off babys in the bucket and relocated them to the field across the street. My Mom wanted them killed of coarse, but I just didn't see the need for that. She HATES snakes. I'm just glad no one got bit (My dogs or my kids) I'm not even sure if they could do any damage at the size/age they were. Either way... snakes got relocated & no one got hurt. Both my kids are well aware of what cottonmouths & copperheads look like and know NEVER to pick one up or mess with them. Blah, blah, blah... thought I'd share that :rolleyes:

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Is St.Charles in Southern Il?
Because if there's copperheads up here:please:

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Originally Posted by _Venom_

Is St.Charles in Southern Il?
Because if there's copperheads up here:please:

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Northwest IL. 30(ish) minutes west of Chicago

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Originally Posted by Patrick Long

All of us are only looking at it like this because we love snakes.

Inglewood is a very populated place. The city, county, state whatever wont take that chance.

Dont get me wrong, I see the side that you guys are representing, but you have to put yourself in their shoes.

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that's why she said RELOCATE. Then the animal in question is nowhere near the general population. It's not a cougar, it doesn't have a set territory to come back to. Once out of populated areas that animal won't cause a threat.

Why did cops handle the snake, why wasn't animal control called to deal with it? I would bet dollars they didn't know how to handle it, which could have lead to more envenomations.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lenastorms

Northwest IL. 30(ish) minutes west of Chicago

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Wow, I didn't even know they could survive up here.
I am surprised.

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Originally Posted by _Venom_

Wow, I didn't even know they could survive up here.
I am surprised.

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It shocks me every time we come across one. Which is probably 3-4 each summer. This was a first for babies tho. And 3 all at once! I see way more garters than copperheads and it's been years since I've come across a cottonmouth. You would figure they would NEVER make it through the winter, but somehow they manage - tough little buggers!

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Originally Posted by lenastorms

I'm not even sure if they could do any damage at the size/age they were.

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Actually I've heard that the babies are more dangerous because they haven't learned to control their venom yet. They just give it all to you!

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Originally Posted by python.princess

Actually I've heard that the babies are more dangerous because they haven't learned to control their venom yet. They just give it all to you!

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this is true ^^

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Originally Posted by Hotshot

this is true ^^

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REALLY???:confused:WOW! :O I can honestly say I did not know that! Glad I used a slick to move the little buggars! :weirdface

I dont see this any different then a farmer killing a snake. We are preditors and that snake screwed up by showing itself to the higher food chain witch happen to be a stupid drunk guy. The guy got bit and could have died and the snake died both got what came to them for being stupid.

Its nature at its best come on now I know most of us dont live off egg plants and daisys in our sunflower seed salads. Both got caught slipping snake would have gotten eatin if this was few hundred years ago or if that man happen to be an eagle. So eagles dont drink who cares.

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Originally Posted by qiksilver

that's why she said RELOCATE. Then the animal in question is nowhere near the general population. It's not a cougar, it doesn't have a set territory to come back to. Once out of populated areas that animal won't cause a threat.

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well it's actually just as detrimental to relocate a reptile... google 'genetic diversity in reptile populations'.

This reminds me of something actually - I was watch COPS one day (not normal for me, just nothing on) and some officers somewhere got a call from someone who reported a snake on their front porch.. It was a harmless rat snake and the officers called backup - backup was a big guy with a knight stick that whacked the snake in the head and killed it, it was leaving the property too, didn't make any sense to me!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Patrick Long

I hate animal cruelty, but I prolly would have killed the snake too.


what if your kids were at that park........playing, then got bit by this snake.

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Well, the thing is his kids were not at the park, he was stupid and drunk and because of his actions the snake was killed for a terrible reason. I did a report on rattlesnakes for my ENG102 class and a lot of information I found had said that the main reason people are bitten by a rattlesnake is because they try to either harass or kill the snake. For the most part, if you leave them alone and walk away or call someone to relocate the snake (within a mile of where it was found) then there will be no problems.

And if you have kids that are playing at the park keep an eye on them ;) people don't watch their kids around pools and they end up drowning (no one cuts the head off a swimming pool!), ultimately it is the adults responsibility to watch their children and not try to blame unfortunate events on things that they could have avoided if they had paid attention.

I live in AZ (so we see tons of rattlers around here) and am friends with a couple of people who know a lot about rattle snakes and relocate them for the AZ Herpetological Association - if someone comes across a snake on their property they can usually find someone who will remove the animal for free, theres really no reason to kill something just because you are afraid of it, its a shame people think that way!

This could be a pointless post and these topics might have already been brought up, I only read the first page and am really tired - sorry if I'm being redundant!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by qiksilver

that's why she said RELOCATE. Then the animal in question is nowhere near the general population. It's not a cougar, it doesn't have a set territory to come back to. Once out of populated areas that animal won't cause a threat.

Why did cops handle the snake, why wasn't animal control called to deal with it? I would bet dollars they didn't know how to handle it, which could have lead to more envenomations.

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kzooherpetoculturist got it.. You cannot relocate a rattlesnake farther than within a mile of where it was found - they will stop eating and they will die - it does have a set territory it stays in and if placed out of that territory then it will usually die (read some about this on the AHA forum and on online articles when doing a ENG102 paper).

If the snake cannot be relocated near where it was found, then sometimes experienced "hot" keepers in the area may be able to take it in a care for it for the remainder of its life - I do not know a whole lot about this, but am on the AHA forum a lot and this seems to be common practice - AZ has tons of rattlers!

Okay, done for tonight, heres just some information about relocation for anyone that was confused:

""Nuisance rattlesnakes" are those found near dwellings or on private property where the residents consider them a threat and want them removed. Long-distance translocation (LDT) refers to the relocation management of rattlesnakes well beyond their usual home range distance which for blacktailed rattlesnakes and western diamondback rattlesnakes is more than 8 km (5 mi). Short-distance translocation (SDT) refers to relocation of snakes within the known or estimated home range for that species and sex, usually less than 1 mile (1.6 km).

"Recent studies indicate rattlesnakes released well beyond their home range (LDT) become confused and tend to wander long distances. They apparently attempt to return to their home range where they grew up and knew their surroundings. Many snakes managed with LDT die within a year, unable to adapt to their new environment (Johnson et al. 2000 [massasaugas, Ontario], Hare and McNally 1997 [diamondbacks, Tucson], Reinert 1999 [timber rattlesnakes, Pennsylvania). Other studies indicate translocated snakes' aberrant activity patterns (Nowak 1998 [diamondback and blacktailed rattlesnakes, Montezuma Castle National Monument, Arizona], Sealy 1997 [timber rattlesnakes, North Carolina]). Our own long term studies (11 years) using radiotelemetry near Portal, Arizona, indicate blacktailed rattlesnakes know their home range intimately, seldom range out of it, and frequent the same refuges, hunting sites, and opposite sex meeting locations year after year (Hardy and Greene 1999).

There are other reasons why LDT is not in the best interests of rattlesnakes. If LDT snakes are released in suitable habitat, they will overload that population. If there are no resident snakes, the habitat is not suitable. The genetic composition of the resident population could be changed. Finally, LDT rattlesnakes held before translocation may transmit disease to the wild population

Short distance translocation (SDT) allows a snake to remain within its home range and avoid the problems above. "

Quoted from:
http://webspinners.com/coloherp/cb-n...elocation.html

There are probably some better sites with more clear information on this, but I'm going to bed now.

its unfortunate that this snake was killed. the guy harrassed it and got what he asked for.

i dont think copperheads are in chicagoland.

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Originally Posted by dalvers63

That is still NO reason to kill the snake. It's an education issue. Educate your children to NOT pick up ANY reptile, just like you would in teaching them how to not approach a strange dog.

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Exactly. If you teach your children then they should be fine in these situations. I'm living proof. When I was 3 (yes, 3) my parents took me to visit with a friend of the family who owns a farm in the country. The season just started turning to fall, and I was outside with my dad in my over-sized rubber boots. I noticed what looked like a gray branch moving on the ground, but I knew not to touch it because it was something strange and I knew better (from repeated warnings) not to touch things I was unsure of. So, I backed up and I called my dad over to see the 'moving stick'. It turned out to be a rattle snake.

Dad picked me up and we went back inside for the rest of the day. No need to harm the snake. :D

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Originally Posted by edie

And if you have kids that are playing at the park keep an eye on them ;) people don't watch their kids around pools and they end up drowning (no one cuts the head off a swimming pool!), ultimately it is the adults responsibility to watch their children and not try to blame unfortunate events on things that they could have avoided if they had paid attention.

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not to start an argument, but i'm going to take a guess by that statement that you do not have any kids! i don't see how it'd be feasible to watch a child so closely that you can keep really them from getting bit by a rattlesnake at a park... or at a home for that matter.

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Originally Posted by allmote

I dont see this any different then a farmer killing a snake. We are preditors and that snake screwed up by showing itself to the higher food chain witch happen to be a stupid drunk guy. The guy got bit and could have died and the snake died both got what came to them for being stupid.

Its nature at its best come on now I know most of us dont live off egg plants and daisys in our sunflower seed salads. Both got caught slipping snake would have gotten eatin if this was few hundred years ago or if that man happen to be an eagle. So eagles dont drink who cares.

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Ok...so let's say someone puts a big wall up around your house. You can't get out to go to the grocery store, so you're surviving off the food in your kitchen. Then let's say those same people decide to claim the kitchen for their own, without telling you. Next time you go into the kitchen to get some food they pull a shotgun out and kill you. Do you think this is fair? Someone intrudes on your space and your feeding grounds and then when you dare come out of hiding to feed yourself or otherwise relocate you are killed without question or warning. Yes, quite fair. Don't be so narrow minded.

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Originally Posted by kzooherpetoculturist

not to start an argument, but i'm going to take a guess by that statement that you do not have any kids! i don't see how it'd be feasible to watch a child so closely that you can keep really them from getting bit by a rattlesnake at a park... or at a home for that matter.

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Don't have them and can't have them. I think with the stories I hear - at least in AZ - it seems like people could pay a little more attention. I remember a baby died in a bathtub because the mom left it in there and had a phone conversation in the other room, just seems like common sense. And if the kids are old enough to understand things then they should be educated about the local wildlife and to be careful in certain situations - just like they should be taught not to get in a strangers car.

I'm just saying, the snake does not understand what it is doing, this article wasn't about a child - it was about a drunk guy that probably shouldn't have been out doing what he was doing. I just don't think you can blame the snake for a situation like this, its not like it was out to get anyone, it was just trying to defend itself and lost

Has anyone else noticed this guy was to "drunk" to be smart enough to not play with a rattlesnake. But he drove towards the hospital. Okay at least give the guy a stupidity DUI.

And as far as the your stupid people arguements, this world needs one thing and thats survival of the fittest for about 5 years and many of lifes little problems will go away. Cuz all the people that are to stupid to raise there kids and let them drown in the bath tub will be the same ones that dont realize they shouldnt use the hair dryer in the tub either. Take off all the little warning stickers that say dont use this electrical product near water and just see how many people are eliminated. All of the people that are absolutely sickened by this persons stupidity can eliminate her from this earth.

Same reason seatbelts shouldn't be a law cuz if you dont wear one you can die, if you dont want to then take your chances.

Some stated earlier that the snake was at fault for not hiding or doing what it needed to do to survive and deserved its death. People should really be held a little more on that level of thinking too. And this way the world would balance out a bit cuz read thru the news a couple times a week and you will realize that this country is full of morons and these morons reproduce and make more morons.

Done with my ranting and raving, but for the most part the statement people are stupid isnt so far from fiction.

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Originally Posted by Fearless

Same reason seatbelts shouldn't be a law cuz if you dont wear one you can die, if you dont want to then take your chances.

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well i think it's a law simply because of the number of people that would survive an accident but collect disability the rest of their lives... thus further draining the government.

Probably right, way to many people live there life with the government holding there hand the entire time.

I shamefully admit that when two rattle snakes showed up on our property they were destoryed. BUT, that was before we got our BP and knew jack about snakes. I guarantee you that the next time I see a snake on our property I won't take the same route. In fact, my dad who FEARS snakes, found what I think was a garter snake a few weeks ago and he helped it escape. I think it boils down to people not being educated in snakes...that is what our fault was at the time.

We killed the rattle snakes because our house is the hangout for all the neighborhood kids, and because of our 4 dogs. We just could not take a chance.

As for the drunk...he got what he had coming to him!

Stupid ass people !
Why they did not relocate the snake ?