Snake Tongs - Snake Catching Tool

01.02.2004 - I'm seen in the above photo holding a snake that I caught with my trusty snake tongs. This is basically a snake catching and handling tool that consists of a gripping end on a pole, and a lever handle. The one in the above photo is actually an earlier model of tong, and I've replaced it with the much better Gentle Giant by Midwest Tongs. A good set of snake tongs should be strong and lightweight, and the most important part is the gripping end. It should be broad, so as to distribute the grip across a wider area and thus hold the snake more gently. Also, it should be coated with rubber to provide more grip. I've seen a very bad snake tong design that consists of a thin scissor-style pinching end that would surely injure the snake's spine and ribs and cause the snake to thrash. The tongs I like are gentle, and the snakes tend to relax.

Tongs are useful for moving venomous snakes at a distance, perhaps from a customer's pool to a snake sack. They are also useful for grabbing snakes from hard-to-reach areas, such as up in trees or down in crevices. I even use them for non-snake tasks, such as grabbing a dead rat from down a wall, or a baby opossum in the corner of an attic. But to be honest, for me and pretty much every wildlife operator I know, the primary use of these snake tongs is to grab traps and tools from the far back reaches of the service truck!

Do it yourself: Visit my How To Get Rid of Snakes page for tips and advice.
Get professional help: Visit my Nationwide Pro Directory of snake removal experts.

How to get a snake out of a house, garage, or shed - Getting a snake out of a building can be simple as long as you aren’t terrified of the creature. If you are, or if the snake is venomous, keep your distance and call a professional for help. Some sheds do not have a real floor, and have opening to the outside through cracks in the wall. If this describes the building you are worried about, give the snake some space and see if it moves on in a day or so. Snakes generally like to be outside rather than inside, so the serpent may have just been there by mistake. If you want to be safe about snake removal from a distance, without handling the snake, use a quality pair of snake tongs.

The real issue at hand is that a snake got inside in the first place. So that this situation doesn’t happen again, you need to fix the building, closing up any openings near the ground. A nonvenomous snake can be removed by picking it up and placing it into a pillowcase for transport. You should always wear thick gloves when doing this. Snakes or any species can bite, but they also have salmonella on their skin. You only need to touch the animal long enough to get it into the pillowcase. Do not kill the snake just to get it out of the shed. Snakes eat a lot of rodents and insects, two animals that will bother in more serious ways than the reptile.

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