Shiva,

The article about adopting snakes to deal with voles was in Saturday's News
& Observer (Raleigh, NC) but it was actually from the Daily Press in Hampton
Roads, VA.

I found the Daily Press website http://www.dailypress.com/, but I wasn't
able to access that article.

Anne Lurie
Raleigh, NC


"Shiva" wrote in message
news:aHlwYXRpYQ==.afeae1d42f69faa3e365300732542a6b @1060496949.cotse.net...
Shiva wrote:

Wow, this never ocurred to me! This was in today's paper.
Remember, I have tried every thing else.

http://newsobserver.com/features/hom...-2561854c.html

What do you all think??

Hmmm. Wrong article, but I swear I saw the one I was referring to
in today's gardening section, hardcopy. (For those of you who missed it, I
have lost many beloved plants, esp. roses, to voles this year, and in the
past three years.)

Here is the New Weapon:

Black ratsnakes! One guy who had tried the sonic things, the traps, the
chicken wire, the Permatil and the Rozol ordered a couple pair of black
rat
snakes and they wiped out his vole infestation!

Here is the scenario: very woodsy, mulchy yards, about half an acre,
in the city of Raleigh, NC but this city is very green and lush. We have
bats, owls,
hawks, and some stray cats, but not many of the latter due to a leash
law and lots of animal lovers. (In other words, we keep them inside and
safe.) We have lots of little brown snakes in the yards, and tons of bugs.

If you all think this might work, how might I get some of these snakes?
I love reptiles and have kept snakes and lizards and frogs and salamanders
and toads as pets. You herp folks, how old should the snakes be before I
let
them live in the yard? Do I need to get wild ones, or could those born in
captivity adapt? TIA!