Don’t Recoil! PETA Offers ‘Snake House’ Woman Humane Reptile Resolutions

For Immediate Release:
May 11, 2023

Contact:
Nicole Meyer 202-483-7382

Today, PETA sent a letter to Amber Hall, the woman whose new home in Colorado was found to be filled with harmless garter snakes, offering vital tips on effectively and humanely removing the reptiles and asking her to avoid using glue traps, as these cruel devices peel off snakes’ skin, sometimes fatally, as they struggle to free themselves.

PETA’s advice for Hall and anyone else dealing with unwanted slithery visitors is to inspect the home’s foundation and seal off any access points—such as exposed wire or pipe conduits and cracks around the eaves, roof, or porch—and then gently remove the snakes, who will try hard to avoid human contact. Snakes are highly sensitive to odors, so those currently denning in the home can be “evicted” by being exposed to the smell of vinegar, lime mixed with hot pepper, or clove, cinnamon, cedarwood, or peppermint oil. Other deterrents include decoy snakes and commercial products, particularly Liquid Fence Snake Repellent, and PETA has a local reptile specialist standing by to help, free of charge.

“Snakes are shy, gentle animals who are simply struggling to survive in a world where human encroachment has stolen much of the ‘wild’ away from wildlife,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is appealing to Hall to use sensible and humane snake-removal measures—and we’re on standby with tips to help her keep unwanted guests outdoors.”

Once snakes have been successfully relocated outside the home, which can take several rounds of removal throughout the summer, PETA advises keeping food and trash contained in tightly lidded containers, removing any unconsumed food immediately, and removing access to hiding places, such as wood piles, rocks, deep mulch beds, and thick shrubbery. Making the area unattractive for the animals is the only effective long-term solution—killing the snakes will not work, as more will simply arrive for still-available resources.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” and which opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview—offers additional advice on how to live in harmony with wildlife here. For more information, please visit PETA.org, listen to The PETA Podcast, or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.