Joline returns to see Grampy and finds him sitting in the yard holding his pet rattlesnake. She asks him how he can free-handle a venomous snake that could kill him and he tells her that he scratched himself with rattlesnake fangs to gradually introduce the venom to make himself immune to it so he could handle rattlesnakes without fear. Of course, that won't stop a snake from biting him, which could still require a visit to a doctor.


Later, after Joline has been committed to a mental hospital because her obsession with using magic to protect Carl made her mentally ill, Grampy comes to get her out. She tells him she's too sick to live out in the world. He tells her "Maybe you were not sick enough. Maybe you needed a little poison in you to live among the rest of us and not get killed."


I think the snake we see in the oil drum is a Red Diamond Rattlesnake, which is only found in Southern California. According to the credits the snake was provided by Reptile Rentals which is based in southern California, so that makes sense. Except for the brick red color, it looks very much like the Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake which is found in El Paso. The snake we see in Grampy's hands might be a different snake, but it is definitely a live rattlesnake. How did they get away with having the actor, Alfonso Arau, hold a live rattlesnake? Maybe its venom glands were removed or its mouth was sewed shut. I'd love to know.