lol, I just reread the chapter, and the use of serpent is in the context that the serpent is satan. I can see where people would misconstrue the serpent part meaning God was actually talking to a snake. I think the context of the chapter is denoting that God was (again) talking to satan and referring to him as a "serpent".
I agree with this. I think that God is actually talking to Satan who is in the form of a serpent, not the serpent itself. After all, God made snakes. Why would he make something evil?