For three years now I've had an Eastern Ribbon Snake living on/near my patio at the rear of my house. We use the patio to entertain and often have dinner or lunch there. The first year he/she/it lived in a flower bed and I left it alone thinking he'd eat the slugs and other garden pests. Last year it lived in/near my fountain on the patio and knowing it was there, I didn't stick my hands down in the fountain . This year I did not put the fountain back up (maintenance is tough when a snake lives in the water), but to my dismay, the snake is back. I almost picked it up when I was weeding the flower bed by the privacy fence and then discovered it sunning itself on a flower pedestal. Today when I went to get some pots and potting soil, it was laying on my pot collection in the sun. I am faced now with a dilemma -- he's invading MY turf and struck at my foot I saw him first and moved before he did. I am averse to killing a harmless creature, but . . . he's beginning to REALLY take over my patio. Should I kill him, or just watch where I step???????

 

Wellllll, since he's harmless, put him in a sack, put the sack in the trunk of your S, go for a long drive, release him and let him live somewhere far away from your house.

 

I agree with Grannyrod. If you don't want to do it yourself perhaps there is a wildlife rescue around. What do Ribbon snakes eat? Maybe it's helping control a mouse population around your house.

 

Ugh. I can live with spiders, but I draw the line at snakes.

Edit: Ribbon snakes eat tadpoles, frogs, insects, and worms according to the website I found.

 

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Here's another vote for not killing it. Transplant it to a habitat where it would be happy (the neighbour's fountain perhaps ) And hey, problem solved! We had Salamanders living in our decorative pond, and year after year, I'm certain it was the same pair that would come back. Eventually, I bagged 'em up, drove them to a slew a few KM from my house and released them. Haven't seen them in two years now!

Asif

 

^ Yep, gotta vote for release elsewhere. Assuming you can bag him yourself or contact someone who will.

 

 

Another vote for relocation.

 

Thanks, guys -- I checked at the local garden shop for some kind of repellant (would very much like to keep him from entering my back door) and discovered that none of the repellants are very effective, much to my surprise. Tomorrow morning I'm calling our wildlife control authority to see if maybe they'll come fetch the rascal. He is now full grown (about 3 feet) and quite robust. I think he's been eating the slugs and maybe a few lizards. I'm really surprised some of the neighborhood cats haven't gotten him. Hate to cause him any harm, but he's gotten a little too aggressive for my taste. On a lighter note, glad to see you all pretty much agree that we shouldn't just kill a living thing because it is distasteful to us. I, too, take spiders outside and release them -- they kill harmful insects, but I really am not fond of snakes. We occasionally see black snakes slithering around the woods and creek area at the back of our property, but this little guy seems to be tooooo close for comfort.