# Snakes



## tom1212x (Jun 30, 2017)

I read that some folks find snakes in their home living in Thailand. Is this a real problem or just in certain areas


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## Asian Spirit (Mar 1, 2010)

tom1212x said:


> I read that some folks find snakes in their home living in Thailand. Is this a real problem or just in certain areas


I've not been to Thailand but live in the neighboring Philippines. Here, snakes are all over. Even in large cities they can sometimes be found. Pays to be careful indoors and out and not put your hand into areas you can't see.


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## 4gazza (Jul 1, 2017)

The big ones appear to live in certain areas. I live in the north and we see the odd one in the garden, but they are very small.


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## Mweiga (Sep 24, 2010)

tom1212x said:


> I read that some folks find snakes in their home living in Thailand. Is this a real problem or just in certain areas


Thailand has an impressive range of snake species and most areas will have a selection. 90% are harmless to humans. The dangerous ones are Cobras , Kraits and Pit Vipers of which there are 3 or 4 sub-species of each and which can be found in forests , open country , cultivated land and gardens - they are not naturally aggressive and will keep out of your way unless they get cornered , stepped on , etc , and feel threatened. Getting inside your house is very unusual. As a tourist or visitor you are very unlikely to meet them.

I've lived eleven years in Thailand in a good sized house in a rural area on 3 rai of land (1.2 acres) , 2 rai of which is garden. It was open coconut plantation land initially which I built on. In the first couple of years of developing the garden our two dogs disturbed common cobras on a fairly regular basis (I'm afraid the cobra would get the chop as the dogs would get it cornered , causing it to go into defensive mode with hood spread ready to strike , and never leave it alone). Other harmless species also turned up regularly. As the garden became increasingly developed fewer and fewer snakes would be discovered. The last time we had a cobra was 18 months ago , although we still get smaller species like Bronzebacks , Keelbacks , Tree Runners and the odd large Rat snake which is totally harmless (unless you are a rat or a frog). A Burmese python also turned up a couple of years ago - again , as a constrictor , totally harmless to humans (unless it finds you asleep and it's really hungry !).

I'm not at all a snake fan but making Thailand my home felt the need to understand their habits and habitats - there are good books and snake guides to read and a bit of googling brings up all you need to know. My advice - don't worry about snakes as you're unlikely to meet them unless you really go looking for them.


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## mark__land (Dec 6, 2013)

Hello,

Yes we've had snakes in our garden in Thailand. 

Is this a real problem? No. Not at all.

They pretty much try to avoid you because they are more scared of you than they you are of them. They are trying to live their lives peacefully and have no agenda to set and and chase after you. 

You may come across no more than one or two snakes in the course of a year, and you can choose to ignore them or to try and kill it. Either way believe me this will not the biggest worry you will have or something to waste a moment's more thought about.

The insects are far bigger problem if you are a gardener. Fire ants and mosquitoes are much more annoying!


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## 4gazza (Jul 1, 2017)

please try to avoid killing the snake


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## Susanmarie44 (Jul 26, 2015)

I lived in Chiang Mai for three years. My kitchen had screens and opened directly to a common area with my Thai neighbors.. I had several bananas on top of my refrigerator and found a small hole "drilled" into the side of one of them. When I showed it to my landlady, she said it was probably made by the small snakes that can easily slip under a screen door. After I stopped shaking, she assured me they were harmless. I never saw the snake, and never figured out how it had made its way to the top of the refrigerator.


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## neilr (Dec 11, 2013)

Snakes are just about everywhere, though it is not obvious, but most are not a serious threat to humans. In most cases they will avoid humans like the plague and will normally only fight back if they feel threatened or cornered.

I think many of the older Thai houses get snakes entering their homes because the doors to the homes are useless and have gaps at the bottom, certainly big enough for a snake to pass under (oh yeah, Thai's also have a habit of leaving their doors wide open for long periods). If where you live has a door that is just a few mm's off the floor, and closed, there should not be a problem. Our land sees lots of snakes in the dry months but never has one got inside in the 5 years we have lived here.

Anywhere big enough for snake to coil up, out of sight, is a potential hiding place for them but you do have a degree of control by keeping your garden tidy at all times.


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## Xynoplas2 (Jan 4, 2017)

Susanmarie44 said:


> I lived in Chiang Mai for three years. My kitchen had screens and opened directly to a common area with my Thai neighbors.. I had several bananas on top of my refrigerator and found a small hole "drilled" into the side of one of them. When I showed it to my landlady, she said it was probably made by the small snakes that can easily slip under a screen door. After I stopped shaking, she assured me they were harmless. I never saw the snake, and never figured out how it had made its way to the top of the refrigerator.


There's no telling how many critters that could be. Everything in the world seems interested in making holes in bananas. Unless your landlady is a herpetologist, she's probably just telling a story, as Thais will do...


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