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Paul Kalich | profile | all galleries >> Galleries >> Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup 2007-Some Photos are Very Graphic tree view | thumbnails | slideshow

Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup 2007-Some Photos are Very Graphic

This is the 49th Annivesary of the Worlds Largest Rattlesnake Roundup held in Sweetwater Texas every March. Over 14,000 lbs of rattlesnakes are rounded up from the area around the town in west Texas and the event attracts over 200,000 people from all over the world. If you are interested in rattlesnake products there are some links shown in some of the pictures and you can also contact the roundup itself for information. I AM JUST A PHOTO DUDE AND NOT A SELLER OF RATTLESNAKE PRODUCTS!
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These skins are later tanned and turned into useful items
These skins are later tanned and turned into useful items		 This snake was over 5 ft long before being killed
This snake was over 5 ft long before being killed		 The Pit in the Afternoon
The Pit in the Afternoon		 GP3R0792.jpg
GP3R0792.jpg		 Keeping the largest snakes from the day
Keeping the largest snakes from the day
Teamwork in Measuring, Sexing and Weighing each live Rattlesnake
Teamwork in Measuring, Sexing and Weighing each live Rattlesnake		 GP3R0796.jpg
GP3R0796.jpg		 Sexing each Snake as it goes through the process
Sexing each Snake as it goes through the process		 Weigh in
Weigh in		 GP3R0808.jpg
GP3R0808.jpg
This gentelman was answering questions from the visitors about Rattlesnakes
This gentelman was answering questions from the visitors about Rattlesnakes		 Do Not Do This At HOME!
Do Not Do This At HOME!		 GP3R0813.jpg
GP3R0813.jpg		 On Occasion other non-venimous snakes get caught and they were showing this boy one
On Occasion other non-venimous snakes get caught and they were showing this boy one		 Joked with the guy if he would do this with a Rattlensnake and he Said He Was Not Crazy
Joked with the guy if he would do this with a Rattlensnake and he Said He Was Not Crazy
Snake Skin Skulls
Snake Skin Skulls		 Snake pit in the Afternoon
Snake pit in the Afternoon		 Snake pit in the Afternoon 2
Snake pit in the Afternoon 2		 Snake pit in the Afternoon 3
Snake pit in the Afternoon 3		 Snake pit in the Afternoon 4
Snake pit in the Afternoon 4
Facinated by the Butfchering Process
Facinated by the Butfchering Process		 Showing how even though the head was recently chopped off it still tries to strike
Showing how even though the head was recently chopped off it still tries to strike		 Another snake to be killed
Another snake to be killed		 a couple seconds later the head is chopped off
a couple seconds later the head is chopped off		 Another one
Another one
Machette does it's work
Machette does it's work		 Chopping snakes heads off
Chopping snakes heads off		 Snakes to be killed
Snakes to be killed		 Right before the machette strikes
Right before the machette strikes		 Showing them the tail end of the snake
Showing them the tail end of the snake
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Karen Moen17-Aug-2010 23:05
Not one of man's better days, but a great day for the resident rats! Eventually, there will come a tipping point, where the breeding population will not be able to keep up with this "sport." It reminds me of the bullfights I witnessed in Spain. Your pictures are brutal yet honest. Well documented. Voted.
Jim in Louisiana gets bit 05-Jan-2010 16:28
Jim in Louisiana: You said that :No place on this earth for something that can kill a human!!! See you boys in March. IF you enter into a animals habitat and get bit, attacked whatever, its your own fault. If you go deep sea diving in the ocean, I guess we need to kill all the sharks, hell no that is there home, It is very sickening that people go to these things, I'm a avid fisherman, I don't kill for population control. Maybe they ought to have a Jim roundup in lousy ana. You may think that these snakes are evil, you may think they would hunt you down, they will not. Daniel is right, These are God's creatures he created them, each animal has a definate purpose. If anybody participates in these roundups and gets bit they rightly deserve to be bit, but if you cross over into a animals habitat, you need to understand that the hunter may become the hunted. Just like the bear sooner or later you will cross his path, you are in his backyard, If you snake killers are so tough, I like to see go a few rounds with a bear.
Paul Kalich PPA member28-Jul-2009 17:03
OK Folks, there are a lot of MISTRUTHS being posted here and if they continue I will deleate all comments!

First, this roundup has been going on for 50 YEARS now and they still roundup about the same number/lbs of snakes per year and they pretty much have been getting snakes from the SAME GEOGRAPHIC AREA.

Second, since the snakes are being BOUGHT from the roundup people and those prices are based on size and weight when the roundup guys go into a DEN they DO NOT TAKE EVERY SNAKE OUT OF THE DEN, just the ADULT full grown snakes since the smaller snakes would not bring them any funds in.

Not sure about the comment about the venom since it HAS TO BE PROCESSED before being made into an anti-venom and the vast majority of venom is TAKEN IN THE FIELD from all types of snakes and the conditions there are a lot worse than here.

As to other animals being hurt, THERE ARE NO OTHER ANIMALS LIVING IN OR NEAR A RATTLESNAKE DEN since the snakes would kill and eat them!

As to the sexing may harm the snakes reproductive organs, THE SNAKES ARE DEAD WITHIN AN HOUR OR SO OF BEING SEXED. They started sexing the snakes a few years back to try to get an idea for field researchers as to the ratio of male to females out in the field.

As to the stress of the females giving premature birth of live snakes, I saw many many large cans of snakes being dumped into the pit and not one BABY SNAKE was to be seen, YOU CAN LOOK AS HARD AS YOU WANT AND YOU WON'T SEE ANY BABY snakes in that pit. Heck if the snakes are roundup early the storage cans are usually kept outside in the cold and the snakes go into a hybernation state.

ALSO this has been occuring in Texas at least, rattlesnakes are becoming active ALL YEAR LONG and not going into their several month hybernation.

THERE IS NO SACKING CONTEST AT THIS EVENT AND NEVER HAS BEEN!

So, yes this event does bother some people and I can see their view toward the subject but there is no reason to TELL LIES about the event. THERE IS ALSO NO REASON TO BRING UP THINGS THAT HAVE NO RELEVANCE AT ALL!!!!! IE a lot of what Claudetta has to say is just gibberish that don't mean a hill of beans- Really the people here don't want ulcerations of the skin since that makes the skin unusable- the venom comment is pure BS- the sexing comment is pure BS- as are a lot of her comments (but I will leave them posted unedited just so people can see how stupid she is!).

So keep it CIVIL or I will remove them! (I have removed a couple over the last 2 years because they were not CIVIL-ignorance I will leave up).
Claudetta 28-Jul-2009 02:02
What ugly things these roundups are. I can only hope that they are banned sooner rather than later.
--Gravid females can miscarry when 'stored' for these 'events' or while being tortured to death in sacking contests or while being 'stomped' to death. If this happens while they are being 'stored' the female can miscarry from stress and fear in some cases this can cause her to prolapse her oviducts and if they stay outside the body they dry out and narcotize causing sepsis. She could also get ascending paralysis and this would shut down her organs one at a time as it worked up her body until it reached and stopped her heart. Both these would cause terrible pain and suffering and slowly kill the snake over many hours or even many days.
--Injuries caused during capture would do this also. The snakes could become dehydrated when 'stored' if they had injuries to the mouth or jaw this could cause a disease called mouth rot. The mane is an apt description but this can also spread into the lungs and/or the stomach and untreated can cause slow and painful death that can take days or even weeks to kill the snake.
--If these snakes are stored in damp conditions for a long time they could get blister disease. This is another nasty infection that causes the ventral scales to ulcerate, the ulcers then get infected and this travels into the body causing a long, slow, agonized death. This to can take days or weeks to kill depending on what state the snake was in to start with.
--Many parasites that the snakes carry and are normally immune to can attack and slowly kill the snake, this would be brought on by stress and sheer terror.
--At the 'event' they would end up being used in sacking contests where the big, brave men get prizes for cramming as many snakes as they can into a sack and smashing them up in the process. This would cause broken ribs, spines and damage to the organs. Lets not forget the wonderfully barbaric stomping contests where a poor terrified snake is stuffed into a sack and the person who takes the most kicks to kick the poor creature to death wins the prize. Is this a particularly nasty contest one that was dreamt up for the weaklings who are too scared to face this creature on more equal terms.
--Then there is the sexing and the milking, sexing if not done properly can injure the snakes cloaca; I can only wonder how many snakes have had their jaws smashed up while being 'milked'. The venom is also no good for making antivenin as these snakes are not milked in sterile conditions. Nothing at a roundup has any scientific value and it is all done for cheap and nasty entertainment.
--Then comes the 'whacking'. If you think this is a humane way to kill a snake then think again. The head can survive for up to an hour and be fully concious. This would mean that the bodiless snake would be in agony both physically and psychologically. Oh, and those brave people jeer and take the micky out of the poor animal while he struggles to escape his torturers.
--They can survive this long as they have a low metabolism, but with no body the head fights for breath and gasps for air but his lungs are gone along with everything else. He still fights for the life that those goons took away. And do they get off on it.
--Then there is the final indignity. The skin trade. The idiots buy their skins that have been made into 'boots, bags and belts and other stupid trophies. This also encourages these people to go out and buy more snake skin products that may have come from beautiful pythons that may well have been illegally skinned alive and left to die, it can take a skinned python up to three days to die from shock and dehydration. Every second of it in unbearable pain.
--This is another reason to stop the roundups.
--Why do thousands of animals have to be tortured to death just to satisfy a few sadistic and barbaric people who quite frankly should go and seek professional help.
Peter 27-Jul-2009 21:14
I am with Daniel and Susan on this one. This is nothing more than a sick, twisted blood-fest for the sick and evil. I have a better idea. lets still have the blood-fest but without the snakes. Put these people in the arena and tell them they are going to take part in a bare knuckle fighting contest against each other. I would pay good money to watch that.
If humans want to inflict pain and suffering on each other that is fine. Humans have the right to give or with hold their consent but those animals they kill have not given their consent to be tormented to death.
Here is something else to think about. They say they do this so people are not bitten by snakes but how many other animals are killed as collateral damage and how many people are bitten as a direct and indirect result of these blood-fests?
This is just pure evil and I am ashamed to belong to the same species as the people who get off on spilling the blood of so many innocent creatures.
Daniel 20-Jul-2009 04:47
Wow, unbelievable! I'm with Susan. This isn't an 'event', it's a mob of hobos foaming at the mouth for blood. I don't even like snakes! They give me the creeps! But they are EQUALLY God's creatures and deserve NOTHING as SICK as what you people 'get off' on doing. This is pure, human evil. Get out of the trailer and learn something, Y'all.
tom 26-May-2009 05:21
For Jim in Louisiana: I guess your dumb arse mentality curses all of mankind to death, since a human can kill a human. Better rethink your philosophy.

Control any population that is making the planet less habitable for the rest of it's inhabitants. But oh yeah, that would mean humans would have to use their brains and be smart enough to control it's own population without using guns and violence to do it.

"Just drop the snakes off at their house". Only after some idiot goes around collecting obscene numbers of the snakes, thereby creating a dangerous situation. Sheesh Jim, don't try so hard to give Louisiana a good name or anything.
D 29-Jan-2009 09:19
It is strange to me that people would even wonder why these snakes bite humans. Do any of you realize that we are their predator? If you had someones giant greedy disgusting hands lunging toward you, would you not bite them?
Bill E Bob 22-Jan-2009 02:27
Susan, you must be a Yankee.
Jim in Louisiana 12-Jan-2009 23:12
Keep up the good work boys!! If people have a problem with this roundup and don't like the snakes killed, just drop them off at thier house so they can take care of the little darlings. No place on this earth for something that can kill a human!!! See you boys in March.
Susan 30-Dec-2008 13:26
Absolutely disgusting! You people make me sick.You take some kind of pride in killing all these snakes who were just going about there business trying to survive like everything else. Even if the population needs to be controlled, I fail to see why you have to catch so many, I suspect greed for more $'s plays a large part. Barbaric, just nauseating.
jake 28-Nov-2008 14:04
miss snakecharmer pics missing
Guest 12-Mar-2007 14:24
Awesome work as always, Paul. Especially the ones showing the full snake pits. This is really great stuff.
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