Our Mission – Snake Wranglers

The Snake Wranglers mission is to safely rescue and relocate snakes, so they will not be harmed and will not pose a threat to our friends, neighbors and their pets. While rattlesnakes make up most of our relocation calls, harmless snakes, including gopher, king and garter snakes plus the occasional rare variety help to keep us busy.

We are a group of volunteers, lead by founder Bruce Ireland, who created the Snake Wranglers in 2020. In the beginning, it was just Bruce and his young daughters taking the snake rescue calls. In the summer of 2020, it became clear to Bruce that he alone could not keep up with the demand for this service. By spring of 2021, our little group had grown to six. The beginning of summer, 2023, saw the Snake Wrangler ranks swell to 14 dedicated volunteers, with more on the way.

Our snake rescue and relocation services are currently limited to northern San Diego's coastal communities. At present, we can respond to calls in the following locations; Encinitas, San Marcos, Vista, Escondido, Carlsbad, Oceanside, Rancho Santa Fe, Solana Beach, Del Mar and the communities located along the SR 56 corridor.

We are always looking to expand the ranks of our volunteers. As we grow, we hope to be able to provide our snake rescue services to other areas in our region. If you think that you may have the right stuff to become a Snake Wrangler, please contact us.

The all-volunteer Snake Wrangler organization is composed of an eclectic group of great people. We are young and old, male and female. All Wranglers selflessly volunteer their time and cover their own expenses, which include specialized tools, licenses and the major one... fuel. On a busy day, it is not uncommon for our Wranglers to log 100 miles or more responding to snake rescue calls and then hiking them into wild locations.

The Snake Wranglers are 100% reliant on the generous donations from our clients and supporters. Without this financial support, the Snake Wranglers would simply not exist.

We intentionally chose to be a donation-funded relocation service, instead of one based on a fee structure. Our clients donate what they can afford, putting saving snakes ahead of any financial concerns. As a result, the lives of hundreds of snakes have been saved in a very short period of time. In 2022 we successfully relocated over 350 snakes. Our relocation count as of the end of July 2023 is over 200 snakes.

While snake rescue and relocation is the major part of our mission, we also take advantage of every opportunity to educate our clients about how valuable these creatures are at helping to keep nature balanced. Knowledge is a very powerful thing. Any time we can replace fear and hate with knowledge and respect, we feel like we have made important and valuable progress.