How to Get Rid of Snakes

Do Initial Inspection

When trying to protect your home from snakes, it is best to first perform an inspection of the house and check what kind of snake is bothering you. You can identify the snake you have seen in your yard and whether it is poisonous or not by searching for snake photos online or consulting your state extension office. Usually a venomous snake has elliptical pupils and an additional opening near its nostrils. The inspection should also include a survey of the whole house looking for any openings, holes or crawl-spaces in the foundation from where snakes can enter.

Modify Habitat

If snakes are a common sighting in your yard, then there is a high chance that snakes are finding the area around your property suitable for making their home. In such cases, you must make certain changes in those habitats to make it unattractive for the snakes. For instance, cutting off any standing vegetation, covering up any rodent burrows, having better control on the rodent population, removing any accumulated debris and constructing a snake fence around your house or garden can help you in keeping the snakes far away from your home.

Remove the Snake With Broom & Trashcan

You are mostly going to encounter a non-venomous snake in your yard or home. Thus, if you find the courage, then you can remove such a snake on your own using a broom and a trashcan.

First, use the broom to place the snake on a flat surface like a plastic sheet and then put the trashcan over the snake. Now, slide your hand under the surface on which the snake is present and flip the trashcan, trapping the snake in the trashcan. Cover the trashcan and take the snake far away from your home.

Lead the Snake Out

If the snake is present in the garage or in a room that leads to your home, then the best way to get rid of it is to lead it out. Simply close the inside door and open the outside door, signaling the snake to crawl out of the room through the open space.

Use Glue Board

A glue trap can be used for catching any snakes that might be present in your basement, garage or any other part of your home. All you have to do is to simply place the glue trap along the walls of rooms. When a snake passes over these traps, it will be caught. Make sure that you checkout the traps everyday so that if a snake is caught, you can take it out and let it go by putting vegetable oil on it. Otherwise, the snake might die of suffocation or starvation and begin to smell.

Set Up Snake Traps

For catching snakes around your home, a snake trap can prove to be very useful. These traps have a shape similar to a plastic box and are difficult for the snakes to get out of. You can place them in places where the snakes are usually seen. These snake traps usually have bait in them to lure the snake inside. Once the snake is in the box, it gets trapped. If you find a snake trapped in one of these traps, then drive it away and set it free in a wooded area.

Block the Snakes' Ways

Non-venomous snakes lurking around your house can be stopped from entering by simply pushing them away. You could simply spray them with the garden hose until they budge from their hiding place, or pick them up with a pool skimmer and drop them off in an area far away from your home. When using the pool skimmer to hold the snake, be sure to apply less pressure on their ribs and let them free quickly. This is very useful when you are dealing with garter snakes and other small snakes.

Try Snake Repellant

Snake repellants can also be used for keeping the snakes away from your property. However, only some of them available in the market work. So, it’s best to choose wisely. For instance, snake repellants containing fox urine can prove to be very useful for repelling the snakes since foxes hunt snakes and their presence can deter them. Moreover, spreading human hair and rags soaked in ammonia around your home can repel the snakes away from your property as well.

More Ways to Get Rid of Snakes

Watch the following video to learn another 2 ways of getting rid of snake: