I have had many such encounters but each one is always a BIG surprise.
The other night was no exception.
My dog, otherwise known as Dog, jumped off the bed in a frantic need to go outside. It was 4 am and I did not appreciate the sudden movement. However, I had to jump up too or suffer the consequences.
I turned on the porch light, opened the screen door and stepped outside with Dog. When I turned around to close the door, there HE was. He was hugging the door frame, half way between passing the door and half way between going back into the grass.
The snake was coiled back, his head and neck a distinctive S shape. The tongue flicked in and out in demonic overtones.
Normally, I like to see what stage of danger a snake might be but I didn't have my glasses on. I usually get close enough to see if they have a slit or a round eye/iris. Without my glasses, it was impossible to tell. There was no rattle and it was not a rattle snake. I have never seen one on the ranch. I have seen snakes imitate a rattle snake by vigorously shaking their tails among leaves or grass. We do have water moccasins and copper heads. Both can deliver a wicked bite.
This snake was neither. It was about 2 feet long, of a grayish color with a yellow stripe running the length of it's body. No poisonous snake that I knew of. I noticed that it had a thin neck with wide jaws on the head. That IS a concern. Possible venom glands.
We stood there looking at each other.
The snake was thinking and I was looking for something to shoo it away. I only had a short rebar of about 18". That was way too short. There were decorative rocks but the snake was next to the brick wall and door. There was no way to hit the snake without doing major damage to the house.
Our stand off seemed endless. I was barefoot and couldn't go across the grass to the back door. This season of the year, we have wicked grass burs in the lawn. Must I stay here all night while one of us figures out what to do?
I raised my arms and yelled "Shoo!"
I know that snakes don't have ears or can't hear but it made me feel good.
The snake only pulled his head further back, looking at me all the time. He appeared to be rather underweight which was probably why he was hunting. When a snake is underweight, his millions of ribs protrude against the skin and he has a drawn appearance.
I could reach the door and open it but I ran the chance of the snake going inside the house which was a definite NO.
Dog was no help at all. He ignored the snake completely and almost stepped on it several times.
Finally, the snake abandoned his travel and turned away from the door. Although he was no where out of the possibility of getting into the house, I had to chance it.
I got Dog near the door, opened it and quickly stepped over the snake and hurled myself into the house. With an anxious look backward, I saw that the snake wasn't following me.
After a long hot cup of coffee, I passed the rest of the night sitting up.
Dog, of course, went right back to sleep. So much for our furry protective friends.
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