Hello, I am a new member. I found a snake a few days ago in a basement, and put it in a bucket. I've been keeping it in my room and since it's room temperature, I think I pulled it out of brumation. I put some water in a lid and bits of chicken to eat in the bucket, and a tiny towel for the snake to crawl under. Its about 6-7" long, so I guess it's only a few months old (first winter). The snake is black and has yellowish diamond markings rather than rings or stripes. The snake has been mostly dormant, but today it was the most active I've seen. When I was looking at it, it rose up as if to strike, and the tip of its tail rattled even though it has no rattle. It opened its mouth and lunged, but I was nowhere near it and didn't have my hand in the bucket -- I was just looking down at it.

I'm not really sure what to do with this snake, so I joined this forum. I suppose I should take some pictures of it and post them here. It's still too cold to put it outside (I live in Pennsylvania, just north of Pittsburgh). So, I am looking for some advice on what to do with it until it gets warm enough to release.

Thanks,
Gary