Does Snake Away Work?

Snake Away is a non-toxic chemical repellent for snakes.

It is made of of crystals which distributed as a band around the perimeter around the yard or broadcast throughout the lawn. The crystals supposedly affect a snake's Jacobson's organ. This organ is essentially a snakes means to smell. The crystals are meant to be distasteful to snakes and thus the snake will avoid the crystal laden areas. The concept sounds good but does it work?

I've talked to a couple of people at my local Department of Conservation office who both stated that I was wasting my time if I chose to use the product. However, desperate for a solution, I tried it anyway. In short, I found it does work for certain kids of situations and when applied in certain ways. However, it is by no means a guarantee of snake removal.

The instructions state that Snake Away should be used in one of two ways. First, it can be spread in 2-6 inch bands around the yard. Hence, creating a barrier. While this approach may keep snakes out, snakes already in your yard won't leave. I found this method ineffective. Snakes which are frightened will cross anything. Plus the size of my yard at 40' x 110' was just too long to create the perfect barrier. The barrier method may work better for much smaller yards.

Any approach using Snake Away will have to be more comprehensive. It will also involve an "over" application of the product (more than the manufacturer recommends).

I started with the left most edge of my yard along my neighbors chain link fence. This was the area I encountered most of the snakes. I liberally applied Snake Away from the fence to about 13 feet inside the yard. I probably used close to one container to accomplish this. I watch over the next week or two to see what effect this had on the snakes. I began to notice that I was running into snakes in the middle of my yard now and not by the fence. So my second application of Snake Away involved a heavy dosage in the middle third of my yard plus a lighter dosage over the original swath. Now two-thirds of my yard was covered. As expected, I began to see the snakes move towards the right side fence. My third and final dosage covered the entire yard. It took quite a bit of Snake-Away. But over the next couple of months I saw very few snakes.

In the end, snake away is no guarantee. Remember to do the basic things like removing basic snake habitat and snake food. Try over-applying it to small areas first. Watch for patterns by the snakes. Then build out from your initial application towards the edges of your yard. How much Snake Away is enough? Just apply liberally. The key is being able to watch if there is any affect.