Winter Snake Surprise

Aw! What a cutie. And guess where I found it... in the kitchen.

This is what happens when you have a mighty hunter of a cat... you get to encounter more wildlife than you would ever imagine inside the comfort of your own home!

Walking in the door from a long day at work I was greeted in the kitchen by the cat who seemed to be communicating that she wanted to be fed. As I bent down to inspect to level of food I found this poor little garter snake coiled up right next to the bowl (which was full mind you). At least she understands we all eat in the kitchen.

We are fairly sure that there must be some snakes in the basement. Now and then you will find them down there... mostly just little tiny babies and sometimes shed skins. Knowing the cat, she probably played with it for a while before bringing it inside... to play with it more of course. Seeing that it was bleeding a little, I felt pretty bad for it and gently picked him up- shooed the cat away and returned it to a safe (cat-free) zone in the basement. A while later I returned to check on its progress- it was alert and aware of me, but rather lethargic (which is understandable), but had slithered back into the danger zone of the prowler. Dutifully I hid it again. Which I repeated again the next day after the cat brought it back into the kitchen. Ugh. At that point I placed it in a safe (I think) place in the garage where (though colder) it should find better hiding places.

If you are squeamish about snakes, I apologize, I happen to deeply appreciate reptiles (legged and non-legged alike)... don't be a hater! Garter snakes are as harmless as a toad and as helpful as one. When I went to check the garage today the snake was gone. Do I really know what happened to it... no, but I hope that we will meet again in the garden.