i'm happy that you were able to free the snake neohippie, and i'm very glad to have the info- thanks! and just fyi (everyone); the very fine black bird netting will also trap snakes- they can't back out of it. i discovered a beautiful one hanging dead in my berry patch. -and it traps birds too, so check out the piles of netting you have in sheds and garages and put it in plastic bags. i found this out the sad way one summer long ago and have never used it since. min

If it was bright blue and only 5-6" long then the snake you were seeing is very likely not a blue racer - racers (Coluber constrictor) undergo an ontogenic color change with maturity and hatchlings/juveniles (even with the blue racer) have a very distinct pattern as can be seen here: http://herp-pix.org/coluber1/juvblue3.JPG If you saw a snake with a solid blue coloration at that size, I think it is possible you could have seen a smooth green snake (Liochlorophis vernalis), which can often have a blueish coloration. http://fwie.fw.vt.edu/VHS/sp_Smooth%20Green%20Snake%20(Liochlorophis%20vernalis)004.jpg Hope that helps, ~Mike

While looking through pictures of juvenile black snakes I came a cross a black snake that seemed to have a white spot on the head. I went to the page and read that it was a Melanistic Eastern Garter Snake. On another link I found this: "Melanism is essentially the opposite of albinism. While albinism is the absence of melanin (a dark colored pigment found in skin), melanism is the overabundance of melanin, leading to an individual with an abnormal amount of black coloration." What I thought as a white spot in the picture was a most like a reflection from the shiny black scales. This is just a wild guess, but it might have been a garter snake with an abnormal amount of black coloration. Perhaps Wayne, our GW snake expert, will come on and give us the real low down on what it most likely was.

Omar- I actually had 2 cats and the second died when he was 19 about 4 years after Chuck died at 16. I cried for days when they died. I'm tearing up now writing this and this all happened about 15 years ago. I swore off getting another cat because I knew there was no way they'd be as awesome as those two and it hurt so bad when they died. Well Dale's son spent a year in Afghanistan and we cat sat Root Beer for him while he was gone. It reminded me of all the great things about having a cat. So when a friend called about a homeless kitten she was trying to find a home for, I went and looked. I distinctly remember holding her when I decided to take her home and thinking "this is going to hurt so bad when you die." I guess that's part of the difference between having pets in your 20's and having pets in your 40's. But it's worth it. She's different than my first two, but still a great cat. We have three dogs now- all "dump dogs"- people have dumped them in the country and they showed up on our doorstep. We've fostered out at least 10-12 others over the years. I doubt I would ever buy a dog with papers- there's plenty of people looking for them at whatever price is charged. But there's thousands of rescues looking for homes in shelters. Some of them have papers if that's important to you. Why not get a rescue dog and save a life? Omar- rethink having a pet. Yes you'll probably outlive them and it will suck. But waking up every morning to an animal that has nothing but unconditional love for you is something very special. Lisa