Rattlesnakes on Arizona family’s porch were mating and did not want to be disturbed
One rattlesnake on the porch is bad, but an Arizona family recently found two and it quickly became clear the venomous reptiles were mating.
That meant they intended to stay for awhile — and did not want to be disturbed.
It happened at a home in Scottsdale, Arizona, and the family resorted to calling a professional rattlesnake catching service, Rattlesnake Solutions.
The service sent snake wrangler Marissa Maki, who says it was a first for everyone, including her.
Video posted by Rattlesnake Solutions shows she arrived to find two western diamondback rattlesnakes inches from the door — with their tails entwined.
The pair immediately went on the defensive, slithering and rattling as they scrambled into a corner.
Letting them finish was not a safe option, Maki told McClatchy News.
“They can be locked up for hours, so we don’t wait,” she said.
“But we hope by making the process of capture and release as fast and smooth as possible, they will continue mating.”
Both were over 3 feet long and formidable, she said. Western diamondback rattlesnakes average 3 to 5 feet, with some growing to 7 feet, according to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
The video shows she quickly scooped up both with a very long pair of snake tongs, and lowered them into the same bucket (with a tight-fitting lid) for transport to a wilderness area.
Maki later released them — alive and unharmed — in “a sweet cave.”
“Hopefully, they can get back to it and make some cute little babies,” she says in the video.
It marked the third time the family encountered rattlesnakes on their property, including another instance of one being on the porch, according to the video.
“They weren’t scared, (but) they were not thrilled the snakes were blocking the door,” Maki said.
“Depending on the time of year, people only tend to have one rattlesnake in their yard. And if they do have more than one, usually they don’t know about it until we search around and find it.”
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