Common sense...don't stick your hands under log piles or in holes, don't sit on rocks and logs without looking around first, don't walk in cattle trails etc. I have lived and hunted around rattle snakes my whole life...were I'm from (NE) they get big...no, not as big as TX but a 4-5 ft snake is nothing to scoff at...the good news is their not those hyper little crappers they have in KS, short fat and meaner than...well a snake. If you are lucky enough to see one, get it into 2 or 3 inch pieces, bread it and fry it in hot oil...sweet white meat that's a little chewy...just hold it by the back bone and peel the meat of the ribs with your teeth...YUM!