Snake Removal in Austell, GA

Snakes around your Austell home

Creek banks are good snake country. Sweetwater Creek and the woods along it give snakes water, shade, rocks, fallen logs and plenty of frogs and rodents to eat. The state park woods to the south add more of the same. So it's normal for Austell homes near the creek, or with a wooded back edge, to see snakes in warm weather. Older lots tend to have the things snakes like near the house too: brush piles, stacked firewood, overgrown beds, old sheds, and gaps in the foundation or crawlspace vents.

Most of what people see are rat snakes, which are harmless and eat rodents. Wildlife pros say only a very small share of their snake calls ever turn out to be venomous. Georgia has 47 native snakes, and just seven are venomous. Around Austell the copperhead is the one you're realistically likely to meet. Every non-venomous snake is protected, and killing one is illegal. The right move is to keep your distance and get it identified.

A snake outside usually leaves on its own

This surprises people. A snake crossing the yard or sunning on the walk is usually gone within a few minutes to an hour. By the time anyone arrives, there's often nothing to find, and you've still paid for the trip. If it's outside and not cornered, keep pets and kids back and let it move on. If it's inside the house, garage or crawlspace, call right away. Indoors, the longer you wait, the harder it is to find.

What brings snakes close to the house

Snakes come for two things: cover and food. Overgrown shrubs against the foundation, ivy, woodpiles, junk piles and old boards give them a place to hide. Mice and rats under a shed or in the crawlspace give them a reason to stay. Near the creek you can't do anything about the woods, but you can clear the hiding spots around your own house and deal with the rodents.

Copperheads near the creek woods

The copperhead is the venomous snake that does well around Georgia neighborhoods. It blends into leaf litter, likes woodland edges and rocky spots, and is most active in warm months around dawn and dusk. Wear shoes outside at night, use a light, and don't reach into woodpiles or thick ground cover by hand. If you see one, back away and call. Most bites happen when people try to kill or move a snake.

The harmless ones you'll see most

Rat snakes are by far the most common. They're long, often dark, and climb well, so you may find one in a shed rafter or a tree. Kingsnakes eat other snakes, copperheads included. Brown snakes and garter snakes are small and eat slugs and worms. All of them are protected in Georgia, and all of them help keep rodents down. Snakes are the animal people misidentify most, so don't assume it's venomous. Get it identified.

What the pro does

The pro identifies the snake, catches it with the right tools, and relocates non-venomous snakes legally. They won't harm a protected snake. Then they look at why it was there. That means gaps into the crawlspace or garage, missing vent covers, cover against the foundation, and signs of rodents. Sealing those gaps with metal mesh and fixing the rodent problem does far more than any snake repellent.

Snakes in the crawlspace or garage

Older Austell homes with a crawlspace often have a broken or missing vent cover, and a snake following mice will go right in. Garages with a gap under the door are the same. The pro removes the snake, then covers the vents with metal screen, adds a door sweep, and closes gaps around pipes. If mice are what brought the snake in, the rodents need to be dealt with too, or another snake will follow them.