Rural Texas is a living NIGHTMARE - snakes and spiders! (Houston: houses, neighborhoods)

[bmw335xi]

This thread reminds me of the Animal Planet show, "Infested"

Ahhh, the OP should contact them. I think Animal Planet would do an episode on them. I've seen episodes less intense than what the OP described.

[BobTex]

Originally Posted by 124c41

My wife has to have an explanation for everything, so she asked me once what purpose Love Bugs serve? I told her someone at A&M must have had a big financial investment in some car washes, and created them to boost business.

https://insects.tamu.edu/extension/p.../eee_00025.cfm


lovebug - Plecia nearctica Hardy

rather recent invader from Central America. Their larvae feast on and help break down leaf matter.

[BobTex]

OK ... I live pretty darn rural ... in the woods. No snake problems other than Texas rat snakes eating my chicken eggs.. Never been snake bit, scorpion bit, or spider bit. I see an occasional black widow and never see a brown recluse that I know of. Scorpions are kinda rare here but where I lived as a teen about 10 miles from here we had a bit more significant issue with frequent sightings but only 2 stings in our family and extended family.

Snakes .. saw a few as a teen (I lived even more rural than I do now). Copperheads were the most frequent ... a few up on the patio in 10 years. Dogs would get bit 1-2 times a year, usually on the face but never had one die. this is from small 8-10 lb dog up to mid-size the smaller large dogs. Had one 25lb curr jump on a 6' timber rattler when he felt we were threatened ... took a good load of poison from a couple of strikes. He was sick for about 3 days but finally weathered the poison and was good to go after 4 days. (Greatest hunting dog I ever had).

Now where I live I'll kill a copperhead or 2 a year and a rattlesnake every year or 2. Just keep my eyes open and never a close call.

Other pests ... ripped a yellow jacket nest out of the ground last fall on the tractor and took over 200 stings but I initiated that encounter. Haven't had a wasp sting in a couple of years ... we have the big red wasp and the little guinea wasps. They build under the eaves and in shed AND under picnic tables.

I have had NOTHING like the OP has related or ha never heard of such and truthfully it sounds far-fetched . . . but I like a stretcher if it's a good one!

Junebugs and love bugs are the 2 most aggravating harmless bugs . The other thing that gets me is these no seeum biting knats

[UTHORNS96]

If you lived on another continent you could invest in a mongoose.

[UTHORNS96]

Originally Posted by BobTex

OK ... I live pretty darn rural ... in the woods. No snake problems other than Texas rat snakes eating my chicken eggs.. Never been snake bit, scorpion bit, or spider bit. I see an occasional black widow and never see a brown recluse that I know of. Scorpions are kinda rare here but where I lived as a teen about 10 miles from here we had a bit more significant issue with frequent sightings but only 2 stings in our family and extended family.

Snakes .. saw a few as a teen (I lived even more rural than I do now). Copperheads were the most frequent ... a few up on the patio in 10 years. Dogs would get bit 1-2 times a year, usually on the face but never had one die. this is from small 8-10 lb dog up to mid-size the smaller large dogs. Had one 25lb curr jump on a 6' timber rattler when he felt we were threatened ... took a good load of poison from a couple of strikes. He was sick for about 3 days but finally weathered the poison and was good to go after 4 days. (Greatest hunting dog I ever had).

Now where I live I'll kill a copperhead or 2 a year and a rattlesnake every year or 2. Just keep my eyes open and never a close call.

Other pests ... ripped a yellow jacket nest out of the ground last fall on the tractor and took over 200 stings but I initiated that encounter. Haven't had a wasp sting in a couple of years ... we have the big red wasp and the little guinea wasps. They build under the eaves and in shed AND under picnic tables.

I have had NOTHING like the OP has related or ha never heard of such and truthfully it sounds far-fetched . . . but I like a stretcher if it's a good one!

Junebugs and love bugs are the 2 most aggravating harmless bugs . The other thing that gets me is these no seeum biting knats

I always assumed that a dog that get's bit by a rattler without medical attention is pretty much a goner. I hear they have a pretty low tolerance to the venom compared to other animals like cats.

[BobTex]

Originally Posted by UTHORNS96

I always assumed that a dog that get's bit by a rattler without medical attention is pretty much a goner. I hear they have a pretty low tolerance to the venom compared to other animals like cats.

The particular animal that I speak of was taken to a vet ... took about an hour to get there. That veteran veterinarian said that if a dog makes it 45 minutes they'll usually survive. I think the more a dog get bit the higher their resistance. That was a big snake too. Like I said, I have never seen a dog die from snake bite and I've seen dozens get bit.

I've never seen diamondbacks around here.

I knew an old Cajun fellow that caught crawfish by hand feeling underwater around the root structures of cypress trees and had been bitten many times by water moccasins. It just barely bothered him although his son said it had hurt his heart muscle according to the old Cajun's physician.

Also for what it's worth, anti-venom can be just as dangerous as venom itself. Reactions to it are common. Most snake bite victims(human) are just monitored/observed in the healthcare setting with periodic blood coagulation studies.

[hellpaso]

Check out the OP's previous posts.

[KathrynAragon]

Wow! I am really sorry your family has gone through this experience, which seems VERY excessive. Please know that your family's experience is definitely NOT the norm.

I am not from Texas. I moved here about twenty years ago after being a military brat and wife for thirty years, living everywhere but mostly in the American South.

I lived in rural Georgia for ten years and snake for snake, and spider for spider, and scorpion for scorpion for that matter, Georgia is at LEAST as bad as Texas. In fact, I saw a lot more scorpions in west Georgia than I have seen in twenty years in northeast Texas.

I lived way out in the country in rural northeast Texas for about ten years. We had a pond on our rural property and ran across snakes pretty regularly. I am an animal lover and I will absolutely not kill a non poisonous snake, so in all those years we only killed one snake (a cotton mouth).

I was also bitten by a brown recluse (in a well maintained, "pest controlled" residential neighborhood house in fact) once in all these years. I did have to go to the doctor and get that nasty bite lanced, and did a round of antibiotics, and I was fine. That's the only experience I've had with brown recluses. But still - it got my attention, because I got pretty sick with it and my leg was sore for weeks, though the scar finally went away. So I still always check my shoes and garden gloves, that sort of thing.

I've found a few black widow spiders over the years - maybe 4 or 5. Never been bitten by one. I have NEVER found one in the house.

It sounds like your house is seriously and abnormally infested, as others have mentioned. To repeat myself and others, your experience is NOT the norm in Texas.

Now fire ants...they're the norm. But they are fairly easily controlled.

[SVTRay]

I'm really sorry for your misfortunes but all of the above mentioned critters can be found in Kansas.


Anyhow, having lived in Rural Texas most of my life I can offer some advice. One is I agree with the others in that your home/property is infested. So I highly recommend setting up a monthly service with Orkin exterminators. As for the snakes, exterminate any and ALL food sources with EXTREME Predijucise!! I'm talking about things like field mice. Don't let barn swallows nest on any of your structures...we found a Rattle snake on the front porch scoping out a Barn Swallow nest. The next thing will be very difficult for you but not all snakes are created equal! King Snakes, Bull Snakes, and Racers will eat other snakes but are other wise harmless and non venomous. These snakes get a free pass by me since they will eat Rattle Snakes...We used to play with King Snakes as kids. Just don't handle a King Snake after handling another snake...especially a Rattle snake...he may think you fingers are food lol.

[gguerra]

Originally Posted by Cathy4017

California? That's a surprise!

If you've ever traveled by car to California on I-10 as you enter the state from Arizona you will see quite a few Saguaro cactus (at least I did).. So extreme south east California is where they are in that state. There may be other areas.