It's quite understandable that Texas ranchers do not want them on their property. They can kill very valuable livestock. However, they are just as easily relocated, so not a good excuse IMHO.

The collecting is NOT done in a responsible manner. Collectors go in willy-nilly and leave nothing to repopulate the area. Entire populations are being decimated. Gonna be interesting when people start complaining of a growing vermin problem.

I heard it stated on the show last night that the venom is used to make anti-venom. NOT TRUE. Venom for medical use can only be collected in a controlled laboratory environment. I believe there are only 4 in the U.S. And they DON'T accept animals collected for round-ups.

At the round-ups, audience members are selected to hold a live rattlesnake. These are laymen with no experience whatsoever. What educational value does this have? That they can pick one up in the wild? And SHOULD a bite happen, there are NO EMTs on site. Brilliant.

And what has happened to our society when it is entertaining to watch a living thing being yanked out of it's environment for the purpose of being unfed, unwatered, taunted, then killed? Shame on us, we constanstly stoop to new lows for entertainment.

I am a 51 year old Texan and just can't say that there is ANYTHING beneficial or entertaining about this practice, except to the few who make a small amount of money off the explotation of these poor animals. And I'm going to be heartbroken when their numbers decline to a point that they are a rare and wonderous sight in the wild.

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