|
|
| |
This gopher snake was found at a business in Martinez stuck to a sticky trap that had been placed in order to trap rodents. When the presenter found the snake, he used warm water to try to loosen the glue, but when that didn’t work, it was fortunate he didn’t try to pull the snake off the trap. This would have resulted in tearing or removing large areas of skin. Instead the presenter brought the trap with attached snake to our wildlife hospital.
Once at the hospital, our staff was able to use special non-toxic solutions to gently and safely remove the glue. We had to be careful not to get any of the solutions in the snake’s mouth or on its nose or eyes. Once the glue was removed, the snake needed a bath to remove leftover debris and chemicals. After the snake was dry from his bath, we were able to perform a complete physical examination. This snake was lucky. There were no skin tears that required surgery. However, the snake had suffered some bruising on its ventrum (belly), so we treated it with a pain medication and antibiotics. A few days later the snake was fully recovered. It was released at the same address where it was found where it could provide natural rodent control.
Lindsay Wildlife Museum strongly discourages use of sticky traps to control rodents. They are generally ineffective at controlling rats and mice, while frequently trapping non-target animals such as songbirds and small reptiles. Every year we remove dozens of birds and lizards from sticky traps. If the finder has not tried to remove the animal from the trap, we can almost always save these patients and quickly release them back to the wild. However, if finders try to remove trapped animals themselves, they almost always cause severe damage. With surgery and hospitalization, we can usually save patients with skin lacerations. However, we cannot reverse cases where ends of wings, feet or even eyes have been accidentally removed. The wildlife hospital staff asks you to help save wildlife by not using sticky traps or rat poisons.
|
|
|
|
