At least that guy's outside. My husband once found a (harmless) snake in our basement and unleashed it on me while I was in the bathroom—opened the door a crack, let him in—that was unpleasant.

The fact that he's not referred to as an "ex" is commendable.

So first of all, snakes are venomous not poisonous. The difference is that venom is injected into the body (via fangs or stingers) while poison is consumed (eaten, drunk, inhaled). You can eat a snake and not be poisoned.

But secondly, that really is just a harmless black rat snake. They're all black with a little bit of white on their bellies. You can usually tell a venomous snake because they tend to have wedge or arrowhead shaped heads - wider at the jaw where there are venom pockets. Non-venomous snakes don't have a visible "jawline" and have a more sleek head to body transition.

And overall snakes are fantastic to have around your home because they eat spiders and rats and mice and other small critters that might get into your house and do damage.

Black snake! Harmless and great for pest control!!

Rats or snakes. Take your pick. You really selling?

Nope, nope, nope, NOPE!

On the plus side, your roaming pig friend can take on a snake. Or you could get a flock of chickens. They won't hesitate to peck it to death and then play keepaway from the rest of the flock. (and help with tick control.)

Just hope Lulu knows to keep her distance from snakes.

Yep, looks like a black snake. As many others have pointed out, they're totally harmless and great for pest control. Wendy - don't read this story.

My grandfather had a place on the Chesapeake when I was a kid. One weekend, the toilet wouldn't flush - it felt like the handle was stuck on something. He lifted the lid off the tank and found a six foot-long black snake curled up inside the tank. It took him almost an hour to unwind it from all the plumbing.

Wendy - it really is a harmless black snake, that is helping keep mice and rats at bay. Use this a good excuse to go buy some seriously cute high-end muck boots to wear outside, "just in case", and get them in all the colors.

Karin, love the logic of that! Fun colored Wellies are just the ticket.

Wendy, just breathe. It's harmless. I had a black snake as a pet for a while in college. It had been rolled up by a hay baler and was pretty cut up. I kept it for a few months until it healed and shed it's skin twice. (The vet told me that would be sure everything was OK with the scarred areas on it's skin.) Then I released it back into the wild. They eat mice and rats, not people.

I'm terrified of snakes as well - and I think all of them are deadly too. My boyfriend's grandfather kept black snakes around to help with rodent control - also, they help keep venomous snakes away - and that affinity for them has passed onto my boyfriend. His home is on the river so there are always snakes around; a couple of years ago I walked into the house to find one crawling across the fireplace mantle and onto the piano! Last summer a mating pair crawled onto the porch and into a birds nest - that was a horrible experience. There is also one that sometimes lives in the ceiling. He will kill garter snakes, etc. - but black snakes (even the ones that come into the house) are totally off limits.

For what it is worth, our year old Rottweiler wondered off of our property and down the road a week ago, where he got bitten on the face by a copperhead. He got a bad infection in his face and got really sick. He is currently on a regimen of six antibiotic pills a day, a steroid, and "hot spot" spray. Which is to say, he's a pretty miserable pup.

And, since that has happened, I don't feel as nearly as nervous about having the black snakes around to help keep our property safe.

Just a harmless old rat snake. They're quite common in this area, and are great at keeping mice and other rodent populations in check. I hope you don't have it exterminated or moved. They may look a little scary, but they're not dangerous to humans, tend to be fairly shy, and they're a vital and necessary part of the local ecosystem (a fact that equally applies to spiders, and of which I have to remind myself with a shudder every time I come across a spider).

I live out in the country and I don't care for snakes or spiders. Get yourself some guineas and they will take care of the snakes. Also sprinkling sulphur I. The yard will drive them away.

Gaaaa....I FEEL YOUR PAIN!!! We, too, live "on the water" and THIS year have seen more copperheads than ever before...it is terrifying. We've removed HUGE black snakes from the OUTDOOR SHOWER...Lord, GIVE ME STRENGTH to "go in there and try again..." It's a JUNGLE!! franki

The poor little guy! I can't say I'm in favor of snakes but I'm not sure I dislike them. I think it's an "I respect you, please go away" situation. And I would totally rather have this guy around than rats. The snake is more likely to be scared of Lulu and slither away; a rat may be diseased and stand its ground. If your rats are anything like our rats, they can do some serious damage.

Our neighbors' dog was bitten by a snake in their backyard and, after a stay in the vet ICU, was fine. Another neighbor was bitten by a copperhead while gardening in sandals (bad for so many reasons!) and is fine but now wears real shoes to garden. So I second the call for some super fun Wellies.

A family friend who lived alone noticed the birds acting really strange outside, by her windows, looked and there was a huge copperhead in her house. So she did the only logical thing and climbed up onto the kitchen island until someone came to help. Obvs this is why we all need islands in our kitchens. For safety.

Snakes give me the creeps Saw a huge copperhead on a walk with my dog- scary!! I think this little snake is just doing what he needs to do, Be smart- Do not stick your hands when gardening, into places you can't see. A snake bite, even not poisonous, will end you up in the ER! But nature is nature- if you choose to live outside the city, you have to deal with it, sigh....Life is full of unexpected complications. Snakes are not the worst, even though they are very scary....

hahahahaha

Seriously though, it's just a rat snake. It's harmless to you and your family. It will take care of the rodents that are much worse for your home and your health. As others pointed out, it fills an important ecological niche, and if you get rid of it, a worse replacement such as a copperhead might move in. Really, the vast majority of snakes are perfectly lovely, and they're not slimy at all.

Long time lurker here (not the sort that hides in bushes!). Have so enjoyed reading through all your posts and will admit this one made me laugh but gah you make me so happy to be in the UK where the likely-hood of meeting one of these slippery fella's is pretty much nil!

Also Elaine "this is why we all need kitchen islands" YES will tell my boyfriend that its for my protection! How could he say no?

Wendy I am with you! I was even scared reading your post- I saw one by my driveway corner 2 years ago and still cannot kneel down and weed in that area- I strain my back while standing fully upright and bending and bending. A sore back is a small price to pay for my sanity!
Hugs!
Peggy