Name:   BAJ - Subject:   Snake problem Date:   6/8/2018 4:59:53 PM

It might be better to teach someone in that situation exactly WHY they shouldn't be scared. Killing something because it scared someone is just reinforcing their (incorrect in this case) opinion that it was indeed scary.

My mom had the idea "Y'all might not like snakes but you're going to be able to tell the good from the bad," so she made all of the kids at the lake handle a small water snake. That went a long way towards turning out a generation of kids who did not have that over-whelming fear of snakes, and who could look at one objectively and know whether or not to be worried. (None of the other kids wound up liking them as much as I did, but they all had the healthy appreciation and understanding that is lacking all too often.)