Residents cautioned that hot weather brings rattlesnakes to town

Warm weather may bring rattlesnakes out of hiding and into populated areas, meaning encounters with humans are inevitable.

While local authorities have said they have not received any complaints this year about rattlesnakes, several Havre residents have reported seeing them within city limits. The hospital typically treats at least one person a year for rattlesnake bites.

"People just need to keep it in the back of their minds, so that if they do see one crawling across the road, they have an idea of what's going on," said Hill County Sanitarian Clay Vincent.

Havre resident Ron Miller has seen two rattlesnakes near his home in the last several weeks. Miller, who lives in Smithville in Highland Park, said he saw a small rattlesnake outside his house three weeks ago and killed it. The snake was obviously young and was only about 12 inches long, Miller said.

On Tuesday evening, he encountered a second rattlesnake, which was nearly three feet long. The snake was lying in the street in front of Miller's house.

"I saw a lady in a car looking at something. There were a couple kids in the car and they were all looking at something in the road," Miller said. "After a couple of minutes they drove off and I could see it was a snake. I could see from a long way away that it wasn't a garter snake."

The rattler had been run over but was still alive Miller said. He used a shovel to kill the snake, then measured it using a yardstick. The snake was 33 inches long and had six rattles.

Miller said he was surprised to encounter two rattlesnakes so close to his neighborhood, where he has lived for more than a decade.

"I've lived here for 12 years, and these are the first rattlesnakes I've seen here," he said.

Miller said he is concerned about the snakes because children in his neighborhood often play outdoors.

"There are four or five little children just across the street. People need to be aware that a rattlesnake can hurt a child badly, or even kill them," he said.

Vincent said he has not heard any complaints about rattlesnakes this year, but that sightings in town are not uncommon.

"I know there are bull snakes and garter snakes and I guess that's pretty normal. I'm sure every year we go through the hot period of time when we do see a few rattlesnakes here in town," he said.

If people encounter a rattlesnake, the best course of action is to leave it alone, according to an information pamphlet distributed by the Montana State University Extension Service.

Of the 10 species of snakes found in Montana, only the rattlesnake is poisonous. In addition to the rattle on it's tail, a rattlesnake can also be identified by its triangular head, blunt nose and stout body.

When a rattlesnake feels threatened by a human, it may coil and hiss loudly while rattling its tail. The snake will often open its mouth in a threatening manner and bluff by advancing toward the person, according to the guide.

"These behaviors, intended to scare off the intruder, lead to a common misconception that snakes charge or attack people. In most cases, a snake only advances if it feels threatened," the guide said.

Northern Montana Hospital typically treats about one person a year for a rattlesnake bite, hospital spokeswoman Kathie Newell said this morning.

Rattlesnake victims are given Crofab, an antivenin drug administered intravenously, Newell said.

"If somebody shows up with a snakebite, we are ready and prepared to treat them," she said. "Crofab is basically is a new and improved antivenin, which is a bioengineered antibody, so it easier on people than the old antivenin used to be," she said.