Serpent Surprise

“Snake!”  Sue McDonald’s 7-year-old daughter, Sapphire, still sat in the car in their garage when she spotted the snake and cried out.

Sue had just run into the house to store perishables in the fridge.  But upon hearing Sapphire’s shriek, she dashed back to the garage to find her daughter in tears.  “Try to remain calm,” Sue told her.  “Where’s the snake?”

The Intruder

Sapphire pointed to a corner of the garage.  Sue discovered the snake behind a box.  “I knew it wasn’t a venomous snake because the eyes were round,” she later said.  “I didn’t want to hurt the snake, but I was by myself with a crying daughter in the car.”

Seeking Help

Then, looking up, Sue spotted a neighbor in his yard across the street.  “Dave!” she called.  “There’s a snake in my garage!  Do you have any experience with snakes?”

“No,” Dave said, gesturing as if shooting a gun.

“I don’t want to kill it,” Sue said.  Dave walked over to offer help.

Picking up a shovel as Dave retrieved a nearby stake, Sue eased the box aside and allowed the snake to slither out of the garage.  “Back up and give the snake room,” Sue cautioned the others.

Observing the Snake

Taking pictures and observing its motions, the neighbors watched the snake slither onto Sue’s front entry.  Then, after putting groceries away, Sue watched from the front door as the snake settled in.

“I probably would have left it there,” said Sue, “except I worried about Sapphire startling it going out the front door.”  Sue moved toward the snake to convince it to leave, but when it slithered toward the neighbor’s yard, she knew she had to relocate it away from the houses.

Meeting Sue

When we met Sue McDonald five years ago during our first year volunteering at Imperial National Wildlife Refuge north of Yuma, Arizona, she was the Outdoor Recreation Planner/Volunteer Coordinator – our supervisor.  Since we had brought our snakes with us, Sue asked if we would take our snake program to Yuma schools.  She accompanied us for our first presentation.

Sue McDonald

As I held Spike, the kingsnake, and Chuck held Hatch, the bullsnake, during our program at school, Chuck needed me to help with his demonstration.  I turned to Sue.  “Here,” I said, “hold Spike.”  And I handed her the snake, sure that after all we’d learned from Sue about desert flora and fauna, she would be comfortable handling a four-foot kingsnake.

But even as she instinctively put her hands out to accept the snake, Sue’s eyes widened.  “I’ve never even touched a snake before!” she said.  Soon, however, she was soothed by the gentle undulations of Spike’s soft body.  And by the end of our volunteer stint four months later, she had become attached to the serpent.  “I think I’m bonding with Spike!” she revealed one day.

Relocation

Now, at her home near her new position at McNary National Wildlife Refuge in Washington State, Sue faced a wild bullsnake on her front porch.  As it slithered toward another neighbor’s home, Sue and her neighbor, Chris, seized a wheelbarrow and a shovel.

“We tried to pick it up with a shovel,” said Sue, “but the snake was so squirmy, it got away.”  Chris then fetched a large plastic bin.  Together, they coaxed the snake from the side of the house.  “It was very stubborn!”

Near the House

Chris wanted to pick the snake up, but Sue convinced him to use the tools instead.  “Somehow we cornered it into the bin and then into the wheelbarrow,” said Sue.  “It squirmed out of the wheelbarrow once, and we got it back again, making sure to cover it better so it couldn’t get out.”

They wheeled the critter to a nearby empty lot and released it.

“I’ll call you in the future if I need help with snakes!” Dave said, impressed by how Sue handled the situation.

Great Adventure

“It was a great adventure,” Sue later told us.  “I’m so proud of how calm and focused I remained through it all.  Thanks to you, I was able to do this.  You have taught me so much about snakes – their behavior, what to look for, and how to take care of these critters in the world.”

We’re proud of you, too, Sue!  Not only did you save the snake’s life, but you educated your neighbors about the importance of all wildlife.  And thank you, too, for all you’ve done for us and for all you’ve meant to us!

Sue helping us with snake program using Hatch, the bullsnake

4 thoughts on “Serpent Surprise”

  1. Excellent! Thanks you for taking my words and making it into a story. It captured the experience. Very nicely done!

    Reply
    • That’s why we’re here on the blog……to help folks realize that snakes do have a purpose in the grand scheme of things. Not all life on the planet fits into our perception of “how it should be”, so it’s important to accept and attempt to understand nature’s diversity. Thanks for your comments!

      Reply

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