It’s high snake season here in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona. Recently, for the first time on the same day, I saw a king snake and then a gopher snake in my garden. Both are non-venomous. King snakes attack and eat rattlesnakes and gopher snakes compete with rattlesnakes for food and territory, so they are considered signs that you’re not likely to have rattlesnakes around.
The next day, I went out just before sunset to check what was happening with unusually loud noises from a vehicle nearby. When I stepped outside on the back porch, another sound near the cat enclosure diverted my attention. About 10 feet away, curled up in striking position, was a 2.5 foot-long Western diamondback rattlesnake completely focused on one of my cats, Lila, who was sitting in the cat enclosure looking at the rattlesnake.
