Even dead, rattlers are dangerous

Houston Chronicle ^ | Sept. 28, 2005, | No byline

[girlangler]

Sept. 28, 2005, 10:48PM

Even dead, rattlers are dangerous Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

Even a dead rattlesnake can hurt you. Just ask Trey Hanover of College Station.

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On Labor Day weekend, Hanover and his father, Tommy Hanover, were working on their deer lease when they killed a big rattler. They shot the snake's head off with a shotgun and loaded the carcass in the truck to show other hunters on their lease that they needed to be careful.

"We hung the snake on the fence at the camphouse," Tommy Hanover said. "When we got ready to leave, Trey picked up the snake and threw it out in the pasture for the buzzards to eat."

By the time he'd driven to College Station, Trey Hanover's eyes were very irritated. By the next morning, his eyes were swollen shut. The doctor who examined Hanover said it looked like he'd suffered a chemical burn.

It took them a while to figure out that the shotgun load that vaporized the rattlesnake's head splattered the snake's venom over its body.

When Hanover handled the snake, he got the venom on his hands and later rubbed it in his eyes, made itchy by dust and ragweed. Sixteen days later, the vision in his right eye was back to normal. His left eye was still a little cloudy, but the doctor thought it would return to normal as well.

"We learned a valuable lesson about handling rattlesnakes — even dead ones," said Tommy Hanover.

[calrighty]

Helluva story!

[caver]

I think he rolled "snake eyes".

[sit-rep]

A little FYI here...

[KarlInOhio]

A word of warning to whoever dry cleans Hillary's pantsuits.

[cbkaty]

Living in Texas and hunting all my life, I still do not understand the desire to kill snakes....especially one slithering away... I can understand killing one that is an immediate threat....

OK...flame on!

[krb]

I bet somewhere in snake heaven the critter is giving a Nelson-like "Ha! Ha!"

[Sthitch]

Kind of reminds me of the time I chopped-up a punch of dried chilies, rinsed my hands, and then headed for the bathroom. Well, there was still a bunch of capsicum on my hands that transfered to... well my wife still laughs about it.

[Americanwolf]

Wait for it......





******GROAN

---

[RIGHT IN LAS VEGAS]

When you kill a rattler cut off the head and bury it.

Even when it is dead reflexes will cause it to bite/inject.

The fangs from a dead dried rattler contain dried, crystallized venom.

[muleskinner]

Hold Muh Snake Alert

[mad puppy]

Now THAT was not PC.

Funny? Yes, very.

Just not PC.

[sit-rep]

I'ma city dweller, and I'd pop one just because it could kill a kid.

I guess a lot of farmers do it cause the snake kill livestock...

[Americanwolf]

I have experienced that unique pain...

I feel your pain...as it were...

[null and void]

No such person...

[girlangler]

I don't kill them unless they are an immediate threat.

In fact, in Tennessee it's illegal to kill a rattler, unless you are threatened. However this is rarely enforced.

[Ol' Sox]

When I lived in Wyoming, we used to bury the heads in a coffee can.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Living in Texas and hunting all my life, I still do not understand the desire to kill snakes...

Me either.

Especially the self-styled green-types who don't hesitate killing a harmless water snake when they go on a canoe trip.

I saw one last summer who thought he had just saved the world by killing a little two-foot common water snake. All the other greenies nodded and grinned in approval.

[fizziwig]

"Well, there was still a bunch of capsicum on my hands that transfered to... well my wife still laughs about it."

And she nicknamed you Puff Daddy? :)

[cbkaty]

I guess a lot of farmers do it cause the snake kill livestock...

Urban legend.....

We raised beef, pork, and lamb....never last a one to a rattler.... Rattlers tend to avoid the hoves of a 1,000 pound steer, or a 500 pound hog....a hog will kill a snake...and fast (maybe I should have learned from the hogs)....