Unwanted Workshop Visitor!

[Dodge]

Ok I have had the odd mouse in my workshop but today was one to remember.

As many of you know my workshop is on a farm in a very rural area of Norfolk, anyway sitting at my lads bench having a sarnie at lunch time and talking to a client I spied a tail protruding from under my bench and moving slowly.

On finishing my conversation I quietly moved across the workshop towards the black tail assuming it was a very large field mouse or even a small rat, having picked up a piece of oak off the bench grabbed the tail and pulled quickly knowing a mouse or rat cannot turn back on the tip of its tail having done this before.

this was where it all went pear shaped, the tail was about 30" long and had a head on the other end - it was the biggest grass snake I have ever seen! :shock: :shock:

Having dropped it on the floor in complete shock it sat there looking at me, me in turn looking at it wondering what to do next - before I had a chance to move it then disappeared under my bench and hasn't been seen since!!!

I have hunted high and low and cannot find any trace of where it went - I just wonder when and where it will re-appear :duno: :duno:

 

[mtr1]

When you least expect it, I would imagine.

As a side note I am often at a timber yard I assume you use, Mick Gorrods? Can't be that far from you?

 

[Blister]

Hissss not disssssss apeared up you trouser leg hasssssssss he :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

 

[Harbo]

At least it wasn't a Burmese Python!!

Rod

 

[MickCheese]

Grass snakes are protected I think.

They mainly eat frogs and things so no good as a mouser. (hammer)

Won't do any harm.

Mick

 

[Jensmith]

Wow! Yeah, harmless until you catch sight of it in your peripheral vision when using a bit of machinery.... ouch!

On a serious note though, I'm sure, after the shock, it was great to see and a good story.

 

[Dodge]

When you least expect it, I would imagine.

As a side note I am often at a timber yard I assume you use, Mick Gorrods? Can't be that far from you?

Yes I know Mick very well - Down on the Heywood.

I'm about a mile from his - Pop in next time you are down - You can help me look from Hissing Sid!

 

[Jonzjob]

Dodge, that gave me the best laugh I've had for an age!! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Yes they do eat frogs and they will take mice or any small rodent they can catch. Totolly harmless to the larger rodents like mankind though. Just beautiful animals, but I can imagine the shock when the mose didn't appear at the other end :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

Unfortunately sometimes they bite off more than they can chew!

This one was about the size of your friend, but the frog was quite big!! It was on the side of the Canal du Midi near where we live..

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

I love snakes and have one as a pet (not a grass one). He would be as scared as you and a bite from a grass snake would do little harm nor hurt a man of your stature.

If you do ever decide its tenancy is up (when you see it mind) and wish not to be bitten try not to approach it from above and front. Snakes only hiss properly when there under treat and you will know its a hiss rather then think was that a hiss or not. The S shape with a slight hover of the head or neck and head upright are the 2 poses they normally take before striking.

Show fear and it will not respect you.

Must say I wasn't expecting you to say snake but rather the mouse shown its face at the wrong time, while parceling something up .

 

[lanemaux]

Roger, while I can appreciate the shock value of your tale , I have to step over 30 inchers just to reach the trash bin in the yard of our house. Largest one I met in my yard was 1.8 m or more. That one in Jonz pic is not like ours at all! Ours are a jet black with dorsal parallel stripes in yellow or red , quite handsome really. The big one mentioned above gave me quite a start when I ended up eye to eye with her on the day I moved in. From 3 inches away she looked far larger til perspective replaced shock I can tell you! As we live in Ontarios most snake filled swamp I get a mating ball in the front yard most every spring and 20 or more sitings a day all through the summer. As mentioned by others they are harmless to us large mammals and as a side benefit they keep sales folk to a minimum. My advice would be to just leave him be and possibly name him. I called that big one Gertrude.

 

[devonwoody]

Oddly enough I spied a slow worm Sunday, first one I have seen for ages.

I think summer is on its way at last.

 

[MickCheese]

Roger, while I can appreciate the shock value of your tale , I have to step over 30 inchers just to reach the trash bin in the yard of our house. Largest one I met in my yard was 1.8 m or more. That one in Jonz pic is not like ours at all! Ours are a jet black with dorsal parallel stripes in yellow or red , quite handsome really. The big one mentioned above gave me quite a start when I ended up eye to eye with her on the day I moved in. From 3 inches away she looked far larger til perspective replaced shock I can tell you! As we live in Ontarios most snake filled swamp I get a mating ball in the front yard most every spring and 20 or more sitings a day all through the summer. As mentioned by others they are harmless to us large mammals and as a side benefit they keep sales folk to a minimum. My advice would be to just leave him be and possibly name him. I called that big one Gertrude.

My wife loves snakes, whenever we go on holiday she can be found poking around in the undergrowth looking for creepy crawlies or snakes.

She would be in her element at your place. Me, I'm not so keen! :shock:

Mick

 

[Dodge]

Well hissing Sid hasn't shown himself today!

 

[Mike Wingate]

Daughters boyfriends sister found a rat in the toilet in Ealing last night. She shut the lid, that must be why bogs have lids, and put a wait on it. She has not been since.

 

[Losos]

Well hissing Sid hasn't shown himself today!

He's probably found a nice dark cubby hole to curl up in :lol: I must admit that, like you, I do get the odd mouse in my workshop and up in the loft I once saw a pole cat disappearing through a hole in the roof :roll: but have never had a snake take up residence :!: you should be OK just as long as he doesn't come out when you are doing a tricky bit of curved moulding on the spindle moulder :wink:

 

[Lee Brubaker]

Why would a harmless to man but mice eating snake be unwanted in a shop located on a farm ? A built in rodent eliminator.

Lee

 

[Tony Spear]

I was once walking through wet grass in a field out the back of where we lived when I was a kid and I stepped on what I thought was a bit of old rope that somebody had left lying about. Then thare was a "whack" on my wellie and I looked back to see the "rope" departing the scene at quite a rate of knots! :shock:

Didn't arf make I jump!

P.S. They're damn good swimmers as well - used to see them a lot at one of the lakes I used to fish.

 

[Jonzjob]

Another common name for them is the water snake.

I have just got rid of my second unwanted visitor, a mouse for definate :twisted: :twisted: And it didn't get the cheese (hammer) (hammer) (hammer)

 

[Harbo]

I've managed to stop my unwanted visitors (wood mice) by fitting some rubber draught excluder to the bottom of my workshop door - the problem now is that it makes opening it very difficult!

Rod

 

[Jensmith]

Funnily enough I had a bit of a surprise myself yesterday. We have a slatted wood compost heap with a cover over the top and I went to dump in some shredder paper, lifted the lid and found a field mouse sitting there looking at me! We looked at each other, I went to get my iphone to take a picture, but by the time I got the app loaded it had moved to the back and then leapt out. Would have made a great photo.

I'm not too bothered about it being in there as long as they don't venture into the house