SALT LAKE CITY As summer blazes through the West and hikers swarm the trails, Wild Aware Utah is warning travelers to stay away from snakes on the trails, keep hands away from burrows and narrow, shaded spaces, and wear appropriate sneakers to avoid being bitten on the foot.
All of those tips work fine for people. But dogs aren t quite so forward-thinking, and typically approach strange noises for further investigation. So how can dog owners prevent their canines from investigating that strange rattling sound in the bushes?
Snake aversion training for dogs is one way to keep dogs away from slithering reptiles. The classes, which typically take about three to four hours, introduce a class of dogs to a defanged rattlesnake, allowing them to observe the sight, smell and sound of a rattlesnake. This helps train the snout of a dog to recognize the smell of a rattlesnake.
Deseret News
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Annie Barker, Deseret News
As summer blazes through the West and hikers swarm the trails, Wild Aware Utah is warning travelers to stay away from snakes on the trails, keep hands away from burrows and narrow, shaded spaces, and wear appropriate sneakers to avoid being bitten on the foot.
All of those tips work fine for people. But dogs aren’t quite so forward-thinking, and typically approach strange noises for further investigation. So how can dog owners prevent their canines from investigating that strange rattling sound in the bushes?
Snake aversion training for dogs is one way to keep dogs away from slithering reptiles. The classes, which typically take about three to four hours, introduce a class of dogs to a defanged rattlesnake, allowing them to observe the sight, smell and sound of a rattlesnake. This helps train the snout of a dog to recognize the smell of a rattlesnake.
Deseret News
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Haley Bechard, of Utah Rattlesnake Avoidance, holds a western diamondback rattlesnake she uses in training in Salt Lake City on Thursday, June 24, 2021. In response to the drought, many snakes are out in search of food and water, and some have recently been spotted in moist areas of city parks and yards. Of the 31 species of snakes found in Utah, seven are venomous.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
As a scorching drought sweeps through Utah, more critters are making their way into public parks and backyards.
This is nothing new for Utahns, but an increased frequency of snakes in the Salt Lake Valley and elsewhere for the summer means that caution and preparedness is necessary, according to reptile experts.
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