Sorry I had to post again as a new one to answer Arwen Long of Durham. My
email wouldn't allow me to respond for some reason.

Anyway, the answer is no, I don't have a woodpile nearby. The snake was in
the grass about 10 feet from my house, and the only reason we saw it was
because my cat was playing/hunting it. There is about 250 feet of mowed
lawn behind his location that backs up to a huge grove of wild plum trees.
I believe that this grove is the perfect haven for snakes and small animals
because it is very dense (you can't walk between the trees) and there is
deep grass under them.

In about 3 weeks, a tree company will be removing the whole grove and
clearing the area. Won't it be interesting to see what comes out of there?
The trees are full of fungus and not worth trying to save. I love growing
fruits and veggies, but I don't bother with things that require too much
maintenance to keep them alive.

Ironically, I was speaking with someone a few days ago about his dog (15
lbs) being bitten by a copperhead on the nose. He said that they saw his
face swell up after a few hours and had to take him to the emergency animal
hospital. 5 days in intensive care and he was back to normal. They didn't
initially realize that a copperhead had bitten him. He had his nose in a
hole in the ground and jumped back from something. Hopefully, my cats
won't get bitten. I also think they are more prevalent in the spring with
new babies venturing out. We moved in last fall and didn't encounter any.
I think my cat found one small garden snake the whole season. We moved in
late August.

I'm not trying to scare people, just make them aware of what is possibly out
there.

Penny

More about the copperheads...my dog was onl 6 months old when he got his first
cooperhead bite. I had let him out and he was back in the house in about 10
minutes. About 45 minutes later, I noted that his neck had doubled in size and
was stretching his collar. Luckily, it was only 5:30 pm so I called our vet and
asked if I could rush him over. The vet took one look, commented "first
cooperhead bite for this season", gave the dog a shot and some other meds.
Luckily, he was fine the next day.

Later that summer, I saw him with a black snake wiggling in his mouth. Seems
dog thinks snakes are just wiggly sticks. FWIW, we haven't had another
cooperhead event.

My advice...snakes are out so pay attention.