11-foot rattlesnake caught just outside George West (updated with photo)

[TexasTowelie]

A friend of mine mentioned this on Facebook. An 11-foot rattlesnake was caught just outside of George West, Texas, about 85 miles south of San Antonio on June 26. This was my childhood home and my father ended up killing two rattlesnakes near our house when I was young.

[nilesobek]

1. I hope he didn't kill this magnificent reptile.

This was obviously the grandaddy of them all. Let him go.

[Ilsa]

8. Much of this area is farmed and ranched.

I'm surprised it wasn't found sooner and smaller.

This is a deadly creature to farm animals as well as humans.

I suspect fracking could have affected its habitat as well.

[nilesobek]

9. That's sort of a Wyrd opinion.

I can't object to what you posted on that basis. I could kill so-called "pests" like rattlesnakes, porcupines, coyotes, and red foxes but I don't. Mainly I object to the redneck camo sunglasses attitude.

It didn't make his cock bigger.

[Ilsa]

11. Some people there dress that way because

All or most of their apparel for working in the brush doubles for hunting apparel when the season opens. The beard looks stupid, but his shirt is perfect camo for that area. Sunglasses are a must. There are real cowboys in this part of Texas. I don't know if this guy is one. But as much as I despise those "jock shots", judging this guy as a cock-obsessed philistine may be premature.

I've lived as far south as Laredo. The trip there from any other city covers some very rough territory. I've also got friends with a huge working ranch down that way. Rattlesnakes are only part of the problem. The javelinas and other wild hogs can get big enough to kill you if you are in the brush and unprepared. Most people that live in that area are comfortable by their teens with 12 gauge shotguns, other guns, and later rifles by necessity if they live in the country.

[nilesobek]

13. You cracked me up laughing

with the first paragraph comments and think you might really believe that ranch mentality.

The bees and animals are dying. Please stop spraying plants and killing animals for sport. Its immoral. Its not noble. Its a fucking ego trip.

I stand by my previous post minus the "friend" bit. Stop killing our friends. The ranchers are using that kind of talk up here in Idaho to kill wolves.

[Ilsa]

14. You should visit the area before

Judging it. Do you think they wear rubber galoshes or Gap clothing to manage the herd? I was invited to participate in the roundup at my friend's ranch one year, but I wasn't equipped for it, nor did I have the skill-set to join in. Being a cowboy is a real job, just like being a welder, auto mechanic, or nurse.

Rattlesnakes are not our friends. The bites are painful and can be deadly. They don't do anything to help the bee population, and in fact, could be a problem for beekeepers. They cannot be domesticated, and they aren't sold for pets. They are only good for killing rodents, but the local wildcats can manage that task as well. It's more likely that this snake was discovered while the man was doing something else. IOW, it probably wasn't hunted, but moved in to a territory where it didn't belong.

I'll save my outrage for a different trophy pic, like him posing with a wildcat (bobcat, cougar, etc) or deer.

[nilesobek]

15. We've got to stop killing things until

we are the only things left. This makes me sad for the world. I live in an extremely wild area in Idaho with cougars and bears coming to my door or investigating my garbage,

I don't wear camo and try to kill them. I could kill them easily but I choose to let them go.

[Ilsa]

16. These aren't mammals. They are reptilian

Killing machines. They aren't in danger of extinction in south Texas.

Cougars and bears have purpose. I wouldn't want to kill them or the wolves unless my life was threatened. A rattlesnake on your property is a threat.

But rattlesnakes can find ways into your home. They don't care. My mother-in-law was going to kill one on her porch with a hoe but had to call her neighbor to bring his shotgun when she saw how long it was (5-6'). She finally got rid of her chickens because the snakes were coming for the eggs.

A bite can cause significant tissue or organ damage, shock, amputation, and sometimes death.

[nilesobek]

17. Ok.

I don't know the story behind the hunting of the snake. That guy sure looks like he was suddenly threatened by this phenomenal creature. (sarcasm thingy).

Stop the killing of the world's creatures. Hunters don't understand what they are doing to the ecosystem. I stand by my previous post. This man in the photo is not virile, he is impotent.

[fasttense]

32. There is an unnatural fear of snakes in America

How many people in the area have been bitten? In the US about 7,000 people are bitten by snakes a year. That's 7,000 out of 150 million mobile adults. Your odds, even in Texas, of getting bitten are worse than getting struck by lighting.

I live in a very rural area. We have the the brown rattle snake and the copper head. I know of no one who has ever been bitten by a poisonous snake. Yet, I see smashed dead snakes on the side of the road all the time. People swerve to kill them. I see snakes about once a month on my property. Most of them are harmless. I don't understand why even in the brush, snakes have to be killed. They seem to keep the field rat and mice population down. We had some field rats under our chicken coop a couple of years ago. We tried traps and poison but nothing worked to keep them out, so we gave up. About 2 months later the rats were all gone. I caught a glimpse of a snake about the size of my arm around that time. We haven't had a problem with rats since then and the snakes do not bother my chickens.

Snakes are useful for pest control and rarely bite anyone, yet many Americans are so afraid of them that they go out of their way to kill them.

[Ilsa]

35. I'd rather have feral cats help with the rodent population.

With the cats around, the rat population is nil, and the snakes have nothing to feed on.

[Gman]

19. George West is beyond the southern boundary

Of the Eagleford Shale formation. If there's fracking in the area, it's not much.

[TexasTowelie]

24. There is significant fracking in the area for natural gas.

I lived toward the edge of the town when I was young and they drilled a well about 100 yards outside the city limits. There was so much noise when the well was drilled that we had to close up the house to get any sleep. It is a bit south of the Eagle Ford Shale formation, but there are other natural gas formations beyond the Eagle Ford shale.

There were also significant uranium mining operations in the area. My Sunday School teacher went from being a poor rancher to striking it rich and his children and grandchildren are pretty much set for life.

[NV Whino]

2. Whoa!

I think that beats the one we have out in Pope Valley. I think it measures between 8 and 10 feet. (Skin only at this point, of course. I think was caught in the '70s.)

[Malraiders]

3. My father killed one in East Texas

His friend who was 6 feet 6 inches tall was holding it up bthe the tail. His arm was stretched out over his head and there was about a foot and a half of the snake lying at his feet.

Dad chopped its head off with an ax and the snake kept biting (air) for a while after. The head was still deadly.

[TheCowsCameHome]

4. Scratch that area off my "to visit" list.

[nilesobek]

5. I object to this.

A dude in camo showing off his killing of an apex predator that might be more valuable to us than your friend. Also I think his cool" sunglasses and partially shaved beard let me know where he is at. Stop killing our animal friends!

[TexasTowelie]

10. That isn't my friend holding the snake.

There isn't any mention of whether the snake was killed. However, in that part of the state rattlesnakes are not considered to be friends. If you knew someone that has been bitten by a snake or walked outside to see one on the front porch you would understand why.

[fasttense]

33. Your odds of getting hit by lighting are better than getting bit by a snake

You should play the lottery if you personally know someone who has been bitten because the odds gods are in smiling upon you.

[Melissa G]

38. Our former babysitter was just bitten by a rattlesnake in Central Texas.

If you live in even urban Texas, you often know someone who was snake bitten. Ditto with spider bites and scorpion bites. Lifelong urban Texan. Not that uncommon here.

[fasttense]

39. Do you have a link?

I found the numbers broken out by state but Texas has no more or less snake bites than other warm weather states (the colder states have fewer snakes). Another problem of global warming is an increase in snake bites but Texas is not one of the states that has seen a noticable increase in snake bites. Actually if you lived in North Carolina it would make sense since it is noted for having the most snake bites of all the states.

Perhaps you have a link to the number of snake bites broken out by county and your county is high? But Texas as a state does not have the highest number of bites.

[Melissa G]

40. Why would I have a link?

It is not newsworthy. Someone just got bit by a rattler...
According to this article rattlesnake bites are on the rise in Texas. It also shows that you are way off on your struck by lightning assertion.
http://www.newschannel10.com/story/28824958/poison-center-warns-of-a-rise-in-rattlesnake-bites-in-texas

This article cites 30 people being bitten since March- Sincerely doubt that many have been struck by lightning.

[Gman]

20. That thing is better off dead

It's extremely dangerous.

[nilesobek]

21. I hope he's proud, A big fat killer putting on a persona

murdering a majestic creature. I say he's a coward.

[Gman]

22. To be sure

It wasn't a fair fight. I guess you have to live down here and out there in the brush to understand how dangerous they are.

No ones trying to eradicate them. Everyone also knows they're very important to keeping the rodent population under control.

Generally you have to look very hard to find them out in the brush. They can be found but you have to know where to look. I don't know of anyone that actually looks for them. But if someone runs across one in the open they'll usually kill it, especially around a house, garage or barn. You can't just leave it to bite your child, spouse, dog or livestock.

[nilesobek]

23. I work for a landscaping contractor that specializes in hardscapes.

I've seen every kind of creepy crawler there is. I used to live in Texas and was a resident at one time of each of its 3 great cities and have been all over the countryside.

I don't live in an apartment in NY or Seattle or something like that. I guess being homeless so long and living with all creatures made me sympathetic. I've noticed a lot less European bees and natural bees like bumblebees and a shortage of wildlife in the last five years.

Redneck jingoisms don't work on me anymore. Nor do commissar tactics. I stand by my post. It was wrong to kill this animal. "The way things are in Texas." Its a human condition and we are all in this together.

Ok, Texas is really manly. Now stop killing things.

[fasttense]

34. No that creature is only dangerous if you try to mess with it.

Most people are bitten when they go and try to kill or handle a snake. You have better odds of getting struck by lighting than getting bit by a snake, as long as you leave it alone..

[Ilsa]

37. Kids. Dogs.

It's a hard lesson for them to learn by experience. No, I'll play it safe and kill any rattlesnakes or coral snakes near the house so they can't hurt my family and furry family.

[Siwsan]

6. I wonder how much venom this snake carried

If it was caught live, would it even be possible to milk something so massive? From the photo, it doesn't look like that was the case, because he wouldn't be standing so close, or holding it with just a bit stick, instead of a super sized snake hook.

[Ilsa]

12. Freer Texas used to have a rattlesnake roundup event.

It was like a bizarre festival, and I always questioned whether they might be depleting too many from the environment. They would milk some of the smaller . I suspect this snake would be too strong to wrangle for milking.

[TexasTowelie]

25. I went to one of the rattlesnake roundups when I was about eight or nine years old.

I never ate any of the meat even though I was told that it tasted like chicken. It was icky and the snake pits really stunk so I'm glad that I didn't go more than once.

They also had a square dancing event going on in Freer, but I didn't participate in that either. The only time that I ever square danced was when I was eating at the Commons in college and some old women plucked several of the guys from the basketball team and I out to dance before the Commons closed that night. I was the only "country" raised fellow there so you can be certain that none of us knew what the hell we were doing.

[BillZBubb]

7. Damn!

[DhhD]

18. Protected Texas and Federal species of snakes.

http://southwesternherp.com/protectedspecies/texas.html

[Rstrstx]

26. Yeah umm, no

I'd be surprised if there's ever been an 11 foot rattler ever caught anywhere, at least one that's been verified.

It's a good sized snake but the picture is forced perspective, nothing more

http://www.livingalongsidewildlife.com/2009/07/return-of-giant-killed-rattlesnake.html

[TexasTowelie]

27. Does that mean that you are volunteering to have it slither into your bed and

you are going to get a tape measure to obtain a more accurate reading?

Maybe not 11 feet, but I give it at least nine. If they did kill it then they could of course get a more accurate measure.

[Rstrstx]

28. LOL, no

I'll pass. I do know someone who used to keep pit vipers in aquariums in his living room and that was MORE than close enough for me. Sure Bitis gabonica is a beautiful creature but to this day I still don't like going into his house.

[TexasTowelie]

29. Yes,

I knew a college student that had a pet rattlesnake that he kept in an aquarium after I graduated from college myself. He didn't remain on my visitation list for very long. He had a mental breakdown when he was a college student and I eventually lost track of him, although a mutual friend saw him several years later and said that he was doing okay.

[Sunlei]

30. how sad, probably the only animal left alive out there to eat invasive hogs

[4_TN_TITANS]

31. It took a lotta rodents, etc.

to feed that sucker! People don't stop to think about the potential nuisance populations that these animals are controlling, as scary as they may be in person.

[AuntPatsy]

36. Omg