Snakes
 

Ok, I had planned to buy a walled villa so my cat could roam inside the outdoor walled area to kill all these mice I hear about. Now, I am reading about snakes killing cats in TV. :0. Thoughts?) UPDATE: I plan to put an invisible fence around the courtyard to keep cat inside, plus I plan to have nooks and crevaices for him to hide. PLUS, I would look for a villa in the center of others houses, not close to water or woods. More thoughts? OR, HOW CAN I MAKE THIS WORK? This cat HAS to be outdoors, some anyway. I'm thinking some sort of netting to cover most of the courtyard, maybe 2 ft high. ALSO, a couple of 6 ft long wood boxes he could climb into if coyote got into the courtyard. ANOTHER UPDATE: I do not need a lecture on the dangers, I am well aware of them. I need ideas! If you have no ideas, then dont post, it's very simple. I CAN read, shocking I know, but Ohioians can read!

I don’t know where you hearing this? Please post or reference the article. I’ve been here five years and never seen mouse. Seen couple of palm rats 🐀. Have never seen snake big enough to kill cat either. IMO walled villa not going to protect cat if you let it roam.

Our house abuts a preserve and we often see big nasty looking snakes lurking on the fence line. I am not afraid of much, but snakes freak me out. Water moccasins are definitely in the area and are aggressive and very poisonous. I won’t let our border collie go out there and risk her getting bitten. One time I saw our lawn mowing guy running toward the road leaving his mower behind. He told me he almost got bit by a snake by the fence. I very much do enjoy occasionally watching a hawk swoop down and grab a snake.

Please do NOT let kitty roam outside, too many predators and and cats are very curious and will probably find a way out! Our kitty enjoys going out in the screened lanai and birdcage. We went the extra mile and had pet resistant screening installed in the lower portion so that other animals should not be able to get in.

1. Mice aren't a thing in the Villages.
2. Your cat will find a way to climb the wall.
3. Walls don't stop hawks and eagles who want a nice leg-o-cat sandwich for a lights snack.

I watched a hawk dive bomb our next door neighbors Birdcage to get a geco on the screen. The hawk went right through the screen and got trapped inside the birdcage. Since the neighbor was not home and the birdcage door was locked, I had to peel back the already broken screen and let the hawk out. Then I replaced the spline on the screen and contacted the neighbor and let her know what happened. The hawk frantically tried to get out of the birdcage and broke a bunch of stuff inside that was on the table.

My thought is you shouldn't even have a cat if you think a walled-in area will keep your pet safe! Obviously, that isn't even a concern.

I agree with Villagetinker

Not sure where your hearing this nonsense..I have not seen mice here.. but then again it is nature..each takes care of their own..
Pretty sure your cat will climb a villa wall..

I had field mice in the garage when I first moved in . They got in through a small hole that wasn’t sealed properly around the garage door. Sealing up the door properly and getting a trap outside the door with bait , Irish spring soap inside the doors killed that. I woul worry about letting out the cat alone in a villa . I had a small snake - not sure what kind in my backyard. I would truly worry more about the hawks as well as the owls . Both can take a cat and will. A hawk came down one day and sat on my wall . Not sure what it was after but it never went down to the ground and eventually flew away but had I Had a small animal I’m sure it would have gone after it .

We have mice - have humanely trapped and released two that were living in our attic - so I suspect most gardens have them but that they just remain unseen.

That's why we encourage snakes in our garden - good for getting rid of baby rats, too.

As for a snake large enough to eat a cat getting into a courtyard villa - not so sure on that one.

How does that screening work with the cat claws? Does the cat climb the screens? I'd love to let our kitty onto the lanai but I'm afraid he'll wreck the place!

The Blue Herons catch and eat the snakes.
I've seen one capture and eat a snake whole in my neighbor's yard a few months ago.

We have a large bird cage for our two Maine Coons (Cage is 1,300 sq ft, Cats are 22lbs each). The walls all have pet screen - so far (over a year now) the screen holds up very well to their claws. We have had to take them off the screen after climbing after lizards, and the screen is still fine.

We had the same screen in our last home, and it was still fine when we sold it - after 5 years.

I would also watch out for coyotes that roam around The Villages. Be careful with leaving your pets unattended.

I have seen snakes 4 times since we have moved here. The one that scared me the most was I had taken my dogs for a walk. I returned home and there was a very large black snake by my front door. I was never so happy to have a keypad to open my garage door.

In September my neighbor accidentally walked into his villa backyard when a bobcat was in a tree and was jumping down. The cat was suddenly cornered and my neighbor didn't know what to do but stand there, he said the it climbed the wall in split second. I'm in a fairly populated area near Southern Star Executive and I see small black snakes from time to time and just last week a huge hawk was sitting on my bird bath. I'll find dead doves in my back yard about twice a year, really just a pile of feathers. Then one time I found out why, it was the hawk ripping a dove apart until nothing was left. I wouldn't let a small dog out in a CYV without close supervision. Here's a photo from Village News of a bobcat on top of a villa wall in the Village of Hillsborough. It's good that you asked for advice before going ahead with our plan.

https://scontent-mia3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...45&oe=5E803DE6

That hawk was probably Cooper’s hawk? I had one do the same thing. I suspect he was looking for lizards ������ or birds ������ to ambush.

Black snakes are you’re friends, why you probably don’t see palm rats or mice around.

In the 2-1/2 years that we lived here, on the water, the only snake I ever saw was in the Lake Sumter Landing parking lot. We have lots of hawks, owls, herons, alligators, etc. and I guess they take care of the snakes mother natures way. I have also never seen a rat or mouse since living here. We used to have outdoor cats walk along the water's edge, they were usually gone within a couple weeks, same with rabbits, here today and gone tomorrow. Two things I'm glad we don't have besides the snakes are Canada Geese, they make a huge mess and never leave, and chipmunks, fought those little creatures for years and never won a battle.

Coyotes cant get in a walled villa, can they?

I plan to have books and crannies where my cat can hide. This is an amazing shot

Palm Rats
 

[QUOTE=Topspinmo;1703042]Black snakes are you’re friends, why you probably don’t see palm rats or mice around.[/QU
We are having a problem with Palm Rats eating the screening in our bird cage. My husband put down traps and caught 2. Have not seen any new damage.

I just did a search and found this post from 2015

Topic: Coyote tore out our lanai screen, took cat

Canada Gees
 

The Canada Geese are here. I have seen them on 2 golf courses.

Snakes were a big issue for us when we were trying to decide whether or not to move to The Villages. We have two Black Snakes, Sammy & Pat who patrol several yards around us. They don't want anything to do with you and take off like a shot if you mistakenly come upon them while they are looking for a small snack. I don't believe these black Racers would have any interest in hurting a cat.

If I owned a Cat there is no chance it would be outside on its own. It just doesn't seem like a good idea to me. Good Luck, I hope you got the info you needed throughout this thread.

GE offered to send me a Bag O' Snakes as a joke and I have a real fear of Snakes but not like before. More realistic now. They just wanna do their thing and I wanna let them do it!

And in some areas there are the eagle families. They, too, are predators. If the cat gets out, there are the fox, coyotes and raccoons as well.

Several coyotes have been spotted carrying ladders around TV.:icon_wink:

I agree!! We never even let our dogs stay out in the yard alone.... we still don't. I'm even nervous to leave our jack russell out in the birdcage alone. There's a large pond in our backyard and there's a lot of birds. Hawks, bald eagles (that I used to like...), herons, owls, nice to look at but they can do harm.

That is the design of the screening, it will not tear if kitty climbs it. I have no idea where the installer got it, but I would check with White Aluminum in Leesburg (441) to see if they have it. It is thicker than the regular screen, so it appears a little darker.

No worries, that is Wiley E Coyote that you saw. Only be concerned if you have a pet road runner:)

Snakes
 

I would not let kitty roam free in the back yard. Not only hawks etc. But the fencing doesn’t always go all the way down to the ground...kitty could escape. Another thing is that there are many plants down here that are toxic to pets - even if the cat walked near the plant, the pollen could cause illness (or worse). My kitty is occasionally allowed onto the screened area, but ONLY when I am right there with him.

After 5 years, never had mice or rats, and have only seen one little snake. Have walled Villa, not by water, so that might make a difference.

Good Lord, why so nasty?

It is true; predators of various types have broken through screened lanais and snatched cats and even small dogs. I would never leave a pet unsupervised on a lanai, never mind out in the yard, walled or otherwise.
Also, keep a tight hold on your pet's leash anywhere outdoors because you just never know.

Large totally black snakes won't hurt you and eat bugs including palmette bugs, leave them alone and they will go away, lots here on the golf courses. I see them in our yard all the time, they tend to slither away if you make so.e noise.

See post #26

I live in a walled bungalow and found a cute baby ringneck snake in the middle of my house a few months ago. I relocated it over behind Lake Miona rec center.

I snapped a photo of it but can't figure out how to post it here.

Thank you for that positive comment. Very helpful.