This question is for people who live in Western United States.?

Question

In your area, are there poisonous snakes, spiders, alot of ticks...? We are thinking about moving out West and have four dogs. Where do you live and what is the worst "thing" out there that you encounter often? Thanks for all your help.

Answer 1

Depends on where you go in the West. If you stay in a urban area you will never see any creepy crawlies.

They don't have deer ticks, so Lyme disease isn't an issue. The ticks are larger, carry something called Rocky Mountain spotted fever. In my 30+ years of living in the west I believe I had a tick on my body once. In New England we get ticks on us and our dog all the time, picked one off the dog yesterday.

In Colorado there are rattle snakes along the front range (Fort Collins to Colorado Springs) in the foothills. If you live/play in the populated areas you will probably never see one. If you go hiking in the mountains close to town, i.e. the Horsetooth area around Ft. Collins, there is a fair chance you would encounter one.

Texas - rattle snakes and scorpions - don't know about spiders.

Arizona, lots of poisonous spiders - in particular black widows. Also rattle snakes and gila monsters. You can have black widows anywhere, the others you will only see out in the desert. When I lived in Phoenix we regularly found black widows around the house - mostly outside, but once it awhile one would find it's way inside.

Western Washington - worst bug I remember from that area was the banana slugs. Big nasty green and black slugs that leave a slime trail. Nothing like the little slugs you see in New England.

Additional comment - I moved from the west to New England. In my and my wifes opinion the grocery stores out west are vastly superior to what you see in New England. Our produce and their produce all come from the same place - central valley in California. It only makes sense that being closer to the source you would have better produce. Things like a good bagel or gray corned beef are difficult to find out west. Kind of like great Mexican food is difficult to find in New England. Each area has it's strengths and weaknesses.

Answer 2

Western United States covers a lot of area. I live in Spokane, Washington, which is Northwest. There are a few rattlesnakes, never seen in the city that I know of, and the brown recluse spider, very rarely seen. Ticks can be a problem if you go out in the country but a good flea and tick collar or regular flea and tick baths handle that. You want to make sure your dogs have their heartworm medication. (Although I think that's probably true of the continental US) .

Answer 3

Boston Mom,
I am a Boston Baby - moved to Arizona, and as a Native New England er.... It's great to visit! My dogs both got Valley fever, neither died, but they will have it for the rest of their lives. Spiders - heck yes, brown recluse, very poisonous, and we had an infestation of black widows. Scorpions, even worse, don't ever bring a black light into your back yard unless you want years of bad dreams.
The WORST part of living out west, food. Supermarkets are lackluster compared to Boston - much less produce, poor quality, HORRIBLY EXPENSIVE, what you trade in cheap land, you pay for in taxes on FOOD, CLOTHES, ECT.
on top of it, if you enjoy eating out - your choices become very limited, and again, quality.
Things are different.
Cultural issues do arrive as well. The inflection in the New England speech patterns, and the way we present ourselves, in our choice of words, are often mistaken for being rude, abrupt, or misconstrued, and misunderstood.
I with out an actual accent - lost 2 jobs (I am a working professional) due to the fact that my words were misinterpreted.
I did not enjoy the west - and moved back east with in 4 years - my sister has been there 12 years, and is currently moving back east.
My suggestion -
go for an extended visit, a month or more.
Secure a job.
visit local dog parks, and speak with people.
make sure that you enjoy the area for real.