LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — As desert temperatures rise, so do the chances of running into snakes — and one local family recently got a scare when a rattlesnake turned up in their backyard.
Michelle Hartman said the encounter happened shortly after she and her family got home, when her children asked to go outside to play.
“Yeah, so we had actually just gotten home. My kids had asked to go outside and play in the backyard, and I let them go out first, and I said, okay, I’ll be there in a couple of minutes,” Hartman said. “I go out, and I see them kind of huddling over our table outside, and I was like, hey, what are you guys doing? And I got closer, and I could see it was a snake, and I didn’t want to startle it.”
Hartman said she quickly moved her children away from the snake, got them and the family dog inside, and watched the snake from inside the house.
“And so I kind of grabbed my kids, pulled them back, ran them inside, made sure the dog was inside. And at that point, you know, I kind of just tried to keep an eye on it from our window,” she said.
Hartman said she first tried calling rescues or others who relocate snakes, but no one answered. She then called animal control.
“So then I decided to call animal control, and they were out here within about 30 minutes, and they relocated it,” Hartman said.
Hartman said her children were 2 and 4 at the time, and she worried their curiosity could put them in danger.
“Right, yeah. I mean, with them just being so curious and we’ve never really had a talk of, you know, don’t touch snakes or scorpions or anything like that. I was kind of worried about them either being bit or them trying to touch it, mess with it,” she said.
She said the family later had a conversation about what to do if they see a snake.
“So, you know, it’s later that day we had the conversation of don’t touch. If you see one, tell an adult, walk away, and that they’re dangerous,” Hartman said.
Hartman said the snake was identified as a sidewinder, a type of rattlesnake.
“So what type of snake was it? It ended up being a sidewinder. It was a rattlesnake. That’s about all I know about them,” she said.
Hartman said she believes animal control or trained professionals are the best option for handling a snake encounter.
“I mean, I did call my husband and some family members, but I don’t think they would have even touched it. So I would say Animal Control or someone that knows how to actually relocate it for you,” she said.
Since the incident, Hartman said she’s more cautious when going outside.
“Now that we go outside, I do tend to look around and make sure that I don’t see anything. So it’s always in the back of my mind now that we had one,” she said.
Hartman said she was told the snake would be relocated.
“She just said relocate,” Hartman said.