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Old 11-27-2013, 03:29 PM   #11
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

Quote:
Originally Posted by djm68
Thanks for the many replies. Leaving them at home is not and option, and we take our dogs on all of our hikes, leashed in needed.
DJM
Not to be Mr. Paranoid or offensive, but that's pretty dumb. Is that a policy that you simply adhere to without any evaluation or consideration of the circumstances that you'll be facing? I take my doggie many places but not all. I take myself to many places, but not all. I have very few accidents/

My philosophy: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should".

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Old 11-27-2013, 04:42 PM   #12
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

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Not to be Mr. Paranoid or offensive, but that's pretty dumb.
Well - now please don't take offense at this but... calling someones plan 'pretty dumb' is kind of offensive and apologizing for it advance doesn't help all that much.

These folks may just define 'hike' the same way we do:

"Any walk that can be safely accomplished by two people and two dogs with all our physical and mental abilities/impairments taken into account."
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Old 11-27-2013, 04:49 PM   #13
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

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Originally Posted by Viejo
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:

"Any walk that can be safely accomplished by two people and two dogs with all our physical and mental abilities/impairments taken into account."

I like that!
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Old 11-27-2013, 04:50 PM   #14
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

All you have heard it true. As far as the cold goes they will seek the heat from your engine bay if they sense it.

I have heard that the snakes will get into the engine when stopped and still warm so just
don't go sticking your hand in the engine and block off all openings.
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Old 11-27-2013, 05:08 PM   #15
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

We have a mountain cur and he tends to not be afraid as often as we like, but he is very fast. He has been through the rattlesnake training, and I think it was a waste (he seemed to be afraid of the snakes that day due to their shock collar), as he seems just as standofish with the snakes as he does with the coyotes still. Fortunately he does mind when told to come, so he typically doesn't get into too much trouble with wildlife. My wife and I figure if something happens to him, he has got to see and do more than most grown adults. It may sound "pretty dumb", but tell that to him , and living in a van for months at a time sounds "pretty dumb" to some people too
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Old 11-27-2013, 05:46 PM   #16
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

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Originally Posted by Jeffrey
Quote:
Originally Posted by djm68
Thanks for the many replies. Leaving them at home is not and option, and we take our dogs on all of our hikes, leashed in needed.
DJM
Not to be Mr. Paranoid or offensive, but that's pretty dumb. Is that a policy that you simply adhere to without any evaluation or consideration of the circumstances that you'll be facing? I take my doggie many places but not all. I take myself to many places, but not all. I have very few accidents/

My philosophy: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should".
Someone less friendly/polite might call you "pretty dumb" for leaving your dogs unattended in camp, but it is my understanding that we refrain from such behavior on the SMB forum. BTW, just last year, a co-workers dog was left unattended in their vehicle for a short time and choked to death on a toy.

Back to the topic: I wonder why you feel going on a hike is so much riskier than just being in/around camp? Someone on this very thread posted how a rattler was right next to them while in camp. We are talking about remote camping in a lightly travel desert -- pretty much the entire area can be considered a trail. Also, based on my research, rattlers (the Mojave specimen in particular) tend to prefer certain types of terrain and as such it could very well be that the trail is less likely to have ratters vs a camp.

No, we do not have "policy" that we strictly adhere to without evaluating or considering the circumstances. That said, if a hike/activity is too dangerous for my super fit, smart, well train German Shepard, then what the heck am I doing there?!

I also subscribe to the idea that one should not simply do something because "you can", but I am also not willing to allow fear to dictate my actions. That's why I posted here...so I can collect information from others who've had to consider the same decisions.



Cheers,
DJM
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Old 11-27-2013, 05:53 PM   #17
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

I grew up in Ridgecrest where Mojave Green's, Panamint Reds, and Sidewinders rattlers were frequent. I went "lizard hunting" all the time with my friend's and their dog and never saw any rattlers during the day. You see, they hunt at night -- they're "pit vipers" and have an infra-red sensing organ that helps but doesn't work well when the ambient temperatures are higher in the daytime. They tend to hibernate during the winter, and it's usually not worth their effort to "wake up" just for the occasional nice day.

All that said, of course there could be the rare daytime and wintertime sighting of a rattlesnake in the Mojave.

At higher elevations you could run into Western Diamondback (in the Sierra Foothills). Oddly enough, I've seen them mostly in the late afternoon, but then only in Summertime...

later,
jan
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Old 11-27-2013, 09:56 PM   #18
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

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Originally Posted by janliness
I grew up in Ridgecrest where Mojave Green's, Panamint Reds, and Sidewinders rattlers were frequent. I went "lizard hunting" all the time with my friend's and their dog and never saw any rattlers during the day. You see, they hunt at night -- they're "pit vipers" and have an infra-red sensing organ that helps but doesn't work well when the ambient temperatures are higher in the daytime. They tend to hibernate during the winter, and it's usually not worth their effort to "wake up" just for the occasional nice day.

All that said, of course there could be the rare daytime and wintertime sighting of a rattlesnake in the Mojave.

At higher elevations you could run into Western Diamondback (in the Sierra Foothills). Oddly enough, I've seen them mostly in the late afternoon, but then only in Summertime...

later,
jan

Jan,

Thanks for all the info regarding your experiences with rattlers and their winter behavior -- most helpful.

Cheers,
DJM
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Old 11-27-2013, 10:13 PM   #19
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

I've jumped out of the truck and landed on a Rattlesnake three times in my life and once picked up one by accident - none of them tried to strike at me, but all scared the hell out of me.

By the way, statistically, your dogs are at far greater risk riding in your vehicle than running around in the desert with Rattlesnakes. People always worry about the wrong things.
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Old 11-28-2013, 12:32 AM   #20
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Re: Mojave in the winter: rattlesnakes

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeffrey
Quote:
Originally Posted by djm68
Thanks for the many replies. Leaving them at home is not and option, and we take our dogs on all of our hikes, leashed in needed.
DJM
Not to be Mr. Paranoid or offensive, but that's pretty dumb. Is that a policy that you simply adhere to without any evaluation or consideration of the circumstances that you'll be facing? I take my doggie many places but not all. I take myself to many places, but not all. I have very few accidents/

My philosophy: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should".
My philosophy on the other hand is that being totally and utterly literal in this wide, wonderful world of ours is going to pretty much guarantee you will come off as an offensive prig.
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