Oh, yessiree they will eat fish. I'm glad they eat minnows since the DDH dumped his leftovers from fishing in my goldfish/koi pond, but I don't want them eating my babies so my DS and I captured them (5 total last year), put them in pillowcases and let them go in a cemetery near some woods. Debbie

Oh, man. I wish I had snakes. Occasionally I see a black snake and get all happy. I have so many moles and voles that they've pushed up my flagstones and walking on the yard is an exercise in ankle strain. I admit to using Grub-X, but while the grass (non-mole spots) are looking like grass, evidently the moles and voles have something else to live on. I have a good snake story, though. I have this one area where even though I stomp on the mole trails, they redig them into a raised bed. I keep moving plants away from their trail, but inevitably they end up under this one heuchera. One day, I was standing in the yard talking on the phone. I saw something dark move near the heuchera, and couldn't figure it out. I thought it might be a hurt mouse or something. I don't know why I didn't think mole. Anyway, upon closer inspection, it was a snake backing into the mole trail away from me. He'd found a little smorgasboard. Unfortunately, he must have gotten full and left, because the moles are more than ever. But it was so cool to find this snake doing his think in the garden! I like snakes. Not big on spiders, but I like snakes. C.

That house was a snake hibernicula and it makes me not only feel sorry for the occupants, but the snakes who depend on dens for surviving the winters. There is one state, and I forget which, where their local garter is going extinct mostly because they are killed by humans. No, I don't expect the family to have to co-exist with hundreds of snakes but neither did I appreciate they killed over a hundred harmless garter snakes when they knew full well what they were getting into. I have a garter snake up in one of my g'houses now. It has decided that laying on the benches daily is a good thing to do and I work around wherever it happens to sun itself. Last year it was a big rat snake who lived there. I also have a resident black snake in the cellar and we just watch what we pick up. Obviously I am not afraid of them and appreciate their role in prey/predation. No, I don't relocate them. We did remove any delapidated outbuildings on our property so they wouldn't be drawn to occupy structures near the house. It's rare now to have one 'get in' the house and if one does, my husband leaves it to me to pick it up and remove it. LOL.

C.Meens, is this home you are in a NEW home, or have you been there for a good while? If you've lived there a good while, I wouldn't worry much, BUT, IF you have just moved to your home, they likely have a spot close to your home where they overwinter. After I lost my past home in a divorce/bankrupcy situation, the guy that bought it (it's close to my present home) said there were Garter snakes living under the siding, they couldn't have been there long, so, he was able to get rid of them, OR they were living there unbeknownst to me when I lived there. BUT, they couldn't have been there for TOO long when I had been there, the double wide wasn't THAT old anyway. I wouldn't worry unless the house is new to you and keep finding more and more Garter snakes in your yard, There IS a house that was FAMOUS for having a swarm of them living in the walls and everywhere, BUT, I am sure THAT house has been deemed unfit for occupation by humans. I'd seen it on TV and REALLY IF somebody sold THAT house to anyone KNOWING the situation, they'll get sued big time. IT was MAYBE in Idaho or Iowa some place in the Midwest I THINK. Sorry, it may be the Vodka talking, but YOUR house is likely fine, I've seen a garter snake here and there, but, NOT this year yet. I've also seen a black racer snake many years ago. I am glad to see the snakes are NOT venomous ones. IF they do hang around you MAY have some rodents around for them to be hanging around your place. Do you have some animal feed that may be attracting mice? I HOPE this helps, I wouldn't worry, maybe they have overwintered in a hole in the ground near your place.