Unwelcome Visitors

The guy you see on the right is a black rat snake. These creatures are non-poisonous and fairly docile, unless disturbed. In fact, they are beneficial to have at the farm to the extent that they help keep the rodent population down. On Monday, I found one of these snakes languidly stretched out in the back of the peacocks' coop. Our birds were pretty wound up by his presence and so, with the help of a rake, I managed to get him out of the aviary. The next day one of our visitors (of the non-reptilian variety) told me there was another huge snake in the aviary. By the time I was able to go out to check on the situation he had vanished. Why are we now seeing these snakes? Most likely it's because one of our hens is laying eggs and, for a snake, a peacock egg is like filet mignon. If anyone out there knows how we might ward off these unwelcome visitors, we'd love to hear from you. This is a good time to remind our guests about the presence of snakes at Andalusia. In the unlikely event you should happen to come across one, quietly walk away and leave it alone since the snake is going to be more frightened of you than you are of him. Also, when you're here we encourage you to stay on the mown areas of the property. You will be less likely to have a close encounter with one of our slithery friends.

- Mark