TOLEDO BLADE (Ohio) 02 August 08 Putnam County area focus of search for rattlesnake (Angie Schmitt)

Continental, Ohio: Authorities were searching for a rattlesnake freed Wednesday from its glass enclosure in a garage at a home near the center of this 0.7-square-mile village in Putnam County.

The snake was one of a pair of Prairie rattlesnakes - a poisonous species native to the southwestern United States - released in what village police described as an apparent act of vandalism.

County Sheriff James Beutler said four buckles were removed from the lid to release the snakes.

One snake was found dead near the home yesterday morning, bearing injuries that may have been caused by a car, the sheriff said.

The other has eluded capture despite the efforts of sheriff's deputies, Continental police, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the dog wardens for Putnam and Fulton counties, and a Toledo Zoo official.

"There's been a lot of people in the neighborhood out looking and hunting," Sheriff Beutler said. "Some of the people who live in that area are quite concerned."

The village's population is about 1,200. The sheriff's department is advising residents to be on guard for the 3-foot-long, gray-green snake with a wide triangular head. The reptiles are nocturnal and are known to hide in brush and rocky areas.

Owner Harry Berger, 55, a Putnam County sheriff's deputy, is a reptile enthusiast who purchased the snakes 13 years ago in New Mexico.

He said the snake is not naturally aggressive.

A cousin of the snake known as the Timber rattlesnake is native to Putnam County and can be found in wooded areas, Sheriff Beutler said.

"If they feel threatened, they'll make you aware that they feel threatened," Deputy Berger said.

Anyone who happens upon the snake is urged to avoid contact and call 911.

The zoo has agreed to provide anti-venom to area hospitals in case of emergency, Sheriff Beutler said.
Putnam County area focus of search for rattlesnake

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