Am I an idiot.... considering .410 ga for anti-snake purposes

[DD130]

Am I an idiot? Maybe. Probably? Regardless, I pose this question for a specific reason.

Would it be a good / bad / other idea to consider a .410 shotty to potentially deal with snakes? We recently purchased a little less than 2 acres of wooded land on a ton of limestone. We have rock... everywhere.. and trees... rocks and trees. Seems like good snake habitat. We're currently cleaning up the land, setting up some small recreation areas for horseshoes, cornhole, and an airgun range. My concern is encountering some venomous interlopers while out and about the our little plot of Hill Country heaven.

Maybe a 9mm or perhaps a revolver with snake-shot would be sufficient should I encounter something while clearing trees or moving stones.

I'm guessing there are some opinions on this.

 

[ZX9RCAM]

No.

 

[FireInTheWire]

Yeah your an idiot. I use .22 rat shot for snakes.

 

[Axxe55]

410 has always been a good option for the purposes you describe. Several gun manufacturers over the years have marketed 410 shotguns for that purpose.

For several years, I have wrestled with the idea of buying a Taurus Judge for that purpose as well, but have resisted for the reason of having to keep another shotgun shell stocked, and that 410 shells are really expensive compared to 12 ga.

 

[unicom]

Nothing wrong with the .410 shotgun for snakes.


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[baboon]

Snakes like coyotes serve a purpose in nature. I'm not one for killing venomous snakes unless absolutely necessary. More skake have been killed with shovels & hoes then guns.

 

[Moonpie]

You’re a daisy if you do.

 

[satx78247]

Snakes like coyotes serve a purpose in nature. I'm not one for killing venomous snakes unless absolutely necessary. More skake have been killed with shovels & hoes then guns.

baboon,

I'm with you on this opinion, as years ago i was the Camp Manager & Camp Ranger for a BSA camp in Arkansas. - A "nervous Nellie" on the Council Executive Committee DEMANDED that we "remove all the poisonous snakes" from the camp property "to protect the children".
(FYI, in over 60 years, we had never had a single snakebite BUT needing the job to finish grad school, I got a group of adult leaders together to catch & remove every copperhead & rattler that we could find. = We relocated over 100 snakes "across the river" & OFF the property. The next Summer the camp was COVERED UP WITH RATS.)

DON'T MESS WITH MOTHER NATURE is my advice.

yours, satx

 

[studenygreg]

I dont normally shoot snakes or critters when I come up on them. I usually just walk around them. If I do need to remove a snake from my path, I just shoo them away with a big stick, shovel etc. I wouldn't buy a gun specifically for snakes. I have .22lr ratchet and .357mag rat shot if need.

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[etmo]

Seems like discharging a firearm just to kill a snake is probably fun but overkill.

Why not just get a 6' piece of narrow mild steel rod from Home Depot, bend the last 6 inches 90 degrees, and you use it to pin any snake to the ground from behind it's head, then relocate it or kill it based on your judgement and perhaps the type of snake (might want to keep rat eaters....).

The steel rod will never run out of ammo, there's no risk of a ricochet, hearing damage, frightening the neighbors, negligent discharge, etc. Ammo costs a lot of money these days, too.

 

[Coop45]

And then there is the commercially available snake sticks. They are even good for picking up stuff in tiny places.

 

[MacZC7]

Kill it with a shovel like a real man. They don’t ricochet.

 

[PeoplePhobic]

I've used 9mm cci snake shot on multiple occasions. It works pretty well. When I lived in the Blue Ridge mountains I would keep a mag of it in my pocket. It might not cycle in every gun but you can just run the slide. They cycled in my G19 and G26. The only problem with it is you need sort of a rigid pouch for the magazine because the plastic capsule thing that the shot is in can break and fill the mag and your pocket with the little BBs.

I've found that snakes aren't as aggressive as they're made out to be and I have had the time to swap to the shotshells. Or when you're working outside go out with that in your gun. I don't think it's necessary to have a dedicated gun just to deal with them.

When you're working leave any engines on. Lawn mowers or string trimmer or chainsaws. Leave them running and set them on the ground and the vibrations will help to scare the snakes away.

After you've cleared them out get some Ortho Snake B Gone and also get rid of things that mice like. If you're feeding birds you're probably feeding rodents too and they're attracting snakes.

I think with all the rock you mentioned you might be in a "less is more" situation. I think you may want to use something with as few shells or as little velocity as possible to reduce the likelihood of BBs ricocheting all over the place.

If you can find them try the cci shot shells for whatever you already carry. They rip up a snake pretty good and if they cycle you'll be good to go.

 

[Coop45]

When I was a little kid, my Grandmother would reach into a box of rattles and tell me a story about how that snake met it's end. When I was mid 20's I realized she could not have possibly known the story about each rattle. Miss you Granny!

 

[Axxe55]

For the most part, with snakes, I have a live and let live attitude towards them. Now venomous snakes near the house, are dispatched pronto. They are a danger to us and the dogs. More than a few of my dogs have been bitten.

 

[FireInTheWire]

This was 6ft from myscreen door last weekend. Let's just say .22 rat shot disabled him till I got my 6ft sharp shooter

 

[Axxe55]

This was 6ft from myscreen door last weekend. Let's just say .22 rat shot disabled him till I got my 6ft sharp shooter
View attachment 228744

I would have needed to change my drawers!

 

[PeoplePhobic]

This was 6ft from myscreen door last weekend. Let's just say .22 rat shot disabled him till I got my 6ft sharp shooter
View attachment 228744

I would have gone back inside for the 12 gauge for him. Sometimes overkill is the best kill.

 

[FireInTheWire]

I would have needed to change my drawers!

He was kranky... most rattle bugs I encounter usually don't wanna fight. If they are not close to me house, I let them walk. This dude had a bad attitude. I adjusted it for him.

 

[Axxe55]

He was kranky... most rattle bugs I encounter usually don't wanna fight. If they are not close to me house, I let them walk. This dude had a bad attitude. I adjusted it for him.

Did you keep his rattle?