Rattler lunges at Portage toddler

PORTAGE, Mich. (WOOD) - A rattlesnake that somehow got into the basement of a Portage house scared, but did not bite, a 2-year-old girl Tuesday night.

Anna Niehaus was in the kitchen, getting a glass of water when she heard her daughter screaming in the basement, and when she got to the scene, she saw the Massasauga rattler lunging toward Kaitlyn.

As Niehaus threw pillows and blankets at the snake, she realized she could not get to Kaitlyn. She told her toddler to go into a nearby bedroom.

Niehaus called the Portage police, who arrived at the house, which belongs to Kaitlyn's grandparents in the 10900 block of Higley Circle West around 9:40 p.m. An officer killed the snake with his police baton.

Kaitlyn was taken to Bronson Hospital, kept overnight for observation, and was released after displaying no symptoms of snakebite.

Doctors don't believe she was bitten by the rattler.

The Michigan DNR said Massasauga rattlers, Michigan's only poisonous snake, are common in swamps and wetlands.

Swampy areas around Big Sugar Loaf Lake, located just outside the home, are a good breeding ground for the snakes.