This article is about LIZARD and SNAKE control.
It will explain why they are a pest and what
needs to be done for controlling infestations.
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There are many nuisance animals which
invade manmade structures. Some of these you
would not consider a "pest" until you find them in
your kitchen late at night. However, their presence
is both unnerving and unacceptable. Given the
chance, they will readily move into any structure
man builds. And removing them can be tricky.
These unwanted creatures are snakes and lizards!
Snakes and lizards are abundant in most
southern sections of North America. Our warm
summers and mild winters allow these cold blooded
animals to prosper. Our weather conditions produce
large insect populations which feed them. And our
love of nature has created environments they need.
Small ponds, gardens and bird feeders are typical
manmade micro environments which provide
shelter, water and food. The more we "get back to
nature" the more we'll encounter these slimy reptiles
and amphibians.
Snakes exist in every state throughout the
country. If left alone, they prefer not to conflict
with man. But we continue to invade their domain.
This displacement leads to confrontation and such
confrontations are on the rise. Snakes are drawn to
our yards, homes and buildings because we
unintentionally create environments they like. Most
snakes encountered are nonpoisonous. People tend
to believe any snake they see is venomous when in
fact the opposite is probably true. And one of the
most common snakes thought to be poisonous is the
common brown snake. This video shows one and how
harmless they are.
If a family member reports seeing a snake, make an
effort to determine if there really is a snake and
where it might be living. The most common snakes eat
small rodents such as rats, mice or frogs. Look
for snakes to nest where there is such food. This
may be in a crawl space, an attic or around water.
CLICK HERE TO SEE A PHOTO OF A BLACK RAT SNAKE
CLICK HERE TO SEE A PHOTO OF A COPPERHEAD SNAKE
We also have this great clip of two large black
snakes found mating in someones front yard!
Bird feeders attract rodents which will definitely
attract snakes. If these rodents have invaded your
attic, the snakes will soon follow. Closely inspect
all creeks around your property. These are likely
feeding areas for a variety of water snakes living on
frogs and small fish. These frogs are food for many
types of snakes. If you have frogs around your pool
then snakes will come to take advantage of this food
supply.
Once you have identified where the snake is active,
you must identify why it has chosen this location. If
it is feeding on rodents, implementing a good rodent
control program will cause most snakes to relocate. If
you need information on how to do such work, go to
our RAT CONTROL ARTICLE where you will find help. If
there is some type of wood pile, rock pile or
general debris which is serving as a nest sight,
remove it. This will also cause them to relocate.
If there are too many snakes or if conditions
are such that you expect to have some coming in
from time to time, you may have to set up
some type of snake control program. There is no
spray for snakes. There is a repellent, however,
called SNAKE REPELLENT which does a wonderful
job of keeping snakes away from designated areas.
This material is simply sprinkled onto grass and acts
as a fumigant. The odor repels snakes and may last
for several months. It is safe around children and
pets and is ideal for creating a barrier between
suspected snake nests and play areas in the yard.
This barrier is created by sprinkling the small
granules out along the border of where the snakes
would be coming from and where you don't want
the snakes to go. Such locations can be along
fences, between a wooded area and your grass, along
the back part of your property where a stream or
creek is flowing or just around your house.
Applications will generally last 2 months but
you can get a longer residual with the use of
our GRANULE GUARDS. These are plastic holding
containers which blend into nicely to your
landscape. They are able to hold about 1 lb
of granules which will be protected from both
the sun and the rain. This protection will allow
the granules to last at least an extra month.
The Granule Guards come with stakes so you are
able to secure them to the ground. This also
allows you to remove them for parties or
get togethers. Try to space your guards no
more than 10 feet apart when setting them
out in the yard.
If the snakes are already living in your
building, you may have to employ Live Traps or
use our Snake Guard Snake Trap. LIVE TRAPS are
easy to use and will work for many years. This is
helpful if you have an outside environment which is
likely to attract snakes on a regular basis.
CLICK HERE TO SEE A PHOTO OF LIVE TRAP SET
Live traps can be used along a fence line, against the
structure or along a stream or shore line. It will
catch snakes before they have a chance to move
into your home. If they have already taken up
residence in your house, you should use a
SNAKE GUARD TRAP for removal. This trap is
made of lightweight cardboard and has glue
inside it which is strong enough to hold a large
snake. The trap has a low profile and can be
placed under furniture where snakes are
suspected to be nesting. Once caught, you
can release the animal by pouring vegetable
oil on it. Do this at least 3 miles away from
your home where the snake will be able to
establish itself. To get your targeted snake to
either of the traps, be sure to use some our specialSNAKE LURE. This lure is basically a highly
concentrated paste comprised of rodents - mostly
mice - along with preservatives and other
ingredients which snakes like. Any snake
foraging for food in close proximity to your
set will find it that much faster with Snake
Lure.
If you have a lot of snake activity throughout
the year and are consistently coming face to
face with this unwanted guest, you may consider
getting a pair of SNAKE TONGS. These "grippers"
CLICK HERE TO SEE A PHOTO OF SNAKE TONGS WITH A SNAKE
allow you to grab snakes as they move through
grass, weeds, shoreline or in your home.
Here is a short video which describes and shows
most all of our snake handling equipment. All
this equipment is highlighted and further explained
down below in the article if you have further
questions.
Here is a rather "funny" video of us trying to use
our Snake Tong on a very large Black Rat Snake all
the while trying to film it. I don't suggest attempting
to both film and use Snake Tongs but we are able to
show it can be done...
Once caught, you can relocate accordingly. If
you want to make sure you don't hurt the snake
by grabbing too hard, use a SNAKE TONG COVER.
This special tubing fits over the top part of the
tong and will give some cushion when gripping so
that you are less likely to squeeze the life out
of the animal. On a special note, only use the
Cover on the TOP part of the gripper. Covers which
are placed on the bottom will provide excellent
traction for the snakes and will make it more
difficult to hold. If you absolutely don't want
to hurt the snake, invest your money with any
of the GENTLE TONGS. These have been designed to
provide the least risk of injuring snakes. They
have a flat upper jaw which has been triple covered
with rubber and a polished bottom jaw which greatly
diminishes the snakes ability to get any traction.
By not being able to "move in the jaws" of the
Gently Tong, injury is greatly reduced. Used
primarily by professional snake handlers, zoo
keepers and pet stores, the Gentle Tong should
be considered by anyone who wants to reduce the
risk of snake injury. Another tool you may find to
be helpful is a Snake Hook. They come in three
sizes: SMALL HOOKS, REGULAR HOOKS and COMMERCIAL HOOKS.
The Small is really only designed for baby snakes
or small animals or insects. It is telescopic and
will fit neatly in your pocket. The Regular Hooks
are the easiest to use. It's a rigid design that
measures three feet in length and is ready to go
with no moving parts or configuration. If you intend
to use it a lot and with bigger snakes, consider the
Commercial Hooks. These are designed thicker so
they can handle the extra weight of a larger
animal and since they are telescopic, they're easy
to store. However, if you are dealing with Boas
or other really large snakes, you will need
our PYTHON HOOK. This pole is designed to pick
up the largest of snakes and with it's large
hook you should be able to hold just about any
size snake. Lastly, for anyone who is into grabbing
snakes on a regular basis, the PINNING HOOK is
an essential tool. It features a cushioned
pressure point 1 1/2" wide which is sure to
hold any snake without injury.
Two other products we have which you may find
to be of interest is our SNAKE BITE EXTRACTOR KIT
and our guide to SNAKE IDENTIFICATION. The kit is
great to bring out in the field for hiking, hunting
or camping trips when you know you will be in close
proximity to poisonous snakes. The Snake Book gets
into great detail about snakes of Georgia and the
southeast in general.
LIZARD CONTROL........
Lizards, like snakes, are opportunistic.
Gardens, ponds and streams allow populations to
prosper. Sprinkler systems will deliver enough
water to keep any lizard happy and this leads to
many taking up residence along outside foundation
walls. Most species of lizards in North America are
harmless and eat small insects. Vegetation such as
shrubs and flowers are excellent nesting areas for
many types. These same plants can become a target
for lizards that will find them to be a great source
of water during dry spells or in arid regions
when water is sparse. Here is a short clip of the
common Chameleon found in many regions of the world.
Here is another Chameleon but this one turns brown.
Controlling lizards is easy. Like snakes,
there is no "spray" for them. To keep lizard
populations down, simply keep insect populations
down. By treating the foundation and landscape
around your buildings, you will keep insect
populations in check. Use a product like CYPERMETHRIN
for quick knockdown and control of outdoor roaches,
ants and crickets. If you allow these insects to
thrive around your home, lizards and other undesirable
creatures will move in for the free food. By treating
around your home on a regular basis, these populations
will be kept in check. Use a good PUMP SPRAYER for
doing the work and by keeping these insects in check
you will be keeping lizards away. You can also use
an aerosol treatment like BAYGON which comes with
a crack and crevice tip for getting the treatment
deep into voids where insects and lizards hide.
The treatment will kill off unwanted insects which
serve as food and the treatment will also irritate
lizards so they won't live in treated areas.
If you have the lizards living in the home,
you will definitely need to use the Aerosol along
with setting out some Lizard Traps. Since most
lizards are insect eating, use a Glue Trap which
has insect odor in the glue or that can be added.
Roach scented LIZARD GLUE TRAPS placed out along
baseboards, under furniture, on countertops or
any place where you have seen lizards are very
effective at catching and holding most common
nuisance lizards. The roach pheromones are in the
form of small pills which are simply dropped onto
the glue trap. Undetectable by people but quickly
found by foraging lizards, these boards can be
used to trap out local populations. If you have a
lot of larger lizards, you might have to make your
own glue traps. BULK GLUE is basically nothing
but the glue in a pail which can be removed and
placed on cardboard, wood, plastic sheets, thin
metal or any hard non-porous material. These
custom made Glue Traps should be made large enough
to insure you will be able to trap out whatever
sized lizards are currently being seen. It is not
uncommon for these traps to reach sizes of 2 feet
wide by 4 feet long! By custom making your trap
you can insure you have a large enough "catch area"
for the job at hand. Also, by applying the glue
directly to surfaces on which you note activity, you
will be able to catch your target in a place where the
pre made traps could not be applied. Trapped lizards
can then be released by pouring vegetable oil where
it has attached itself to the glue. They can also
be destroyed if numbers are excessive and over
abundant. If releasing, be sure to do so at least
1 mile away to insure they won't return.
If you are having a problem with lizards that
are either feeding on or extracting water from
plants growing in the yard, you can try spraying
them with the Cypermethrin listed above. It won't
hurt the plant and by reducing the insects which
are active on the plant, you may be able to force
the lizard to look elsewhere for food. Since the
Cypermethrin has a sour taste, it can sometimes
chase them away by bad taste alone. However,
lizards will readily feed on succulent plants - like
cacti - from which they can derive their need for
water. This is a common problem in arid or dessert
regions where water can become hard to find. If
you have some type of plant that lizards are targeting
as a water supply, there are two ways you can
attempt to stop the damage they do. For some species
of lizard, treating the plant with some ROPEL LIQUID
will force them elsewhere. This bad tasting liquid
won't hurt the plant but is detectable by some species
of lizard. The ones that can taste won't like it
and will leave alone any plant that is sprayed.
Expect to retreat the plant once a week till all
damage stops. Lizards will learn to go elsewhere
to get their need for water fulfilled and once
they move on you can usually reduce applications
to once a month. If the species of lizard active
on your property does not seem to have a sense of
taste, the Ropel won't work. To stop these lizards,
you will have to protect the targeted plants with
some ANIMAL/LIZARD NETTING. This fine mesh plastic
is annoying to lizards when they try to chew through
it. The plastic will get in their teeth and though
it won't present any hazard to them, it will prevent
them from being able to properly chew. This annoyance
is more than enough to get them to forage elsewhere.
The netting is easy to apply and install and will
last a long time. Be sure to place it around any
plant you want to protect and replace it annually
or as needed. Since the need for water can become
a matter of survival, most any plant can become
a target of thirsty lizards. Animal/Lizard Netting
can prove to be well worth the time and cost when
trying to save precious plants from these foraging
pests.
Snakes and lizards are two pests which may
find their way into your home. Most people will not
share their home willingly with either, so you are
not alone in wanting to control such an invasion.
Removing the food supply will cause snakes or
lizards to relocate. If snakes persist, use live traps
both inside and out. Snake repellent will help reduce
future infestations. For lizards, treat foundations
and landscape with Cypermethrin to take away their
food. The aerosol treatment may be better suited
for cracks and crevices where lizards and their
food may be hiding. Lizards are quick to migrate
and are certain to find food elsewhere. Once
evicted, keep glue traps by points of entry to
prevent future infestations. This will keep their
inside migration under control.
If you have any questions about reptile control or
any other pest control question, please give us a call.
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above, then click on their name where it appears
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