throughout the year in Texas there were
festivals complete with parades and
pageants but there's one that's rattling
nerves in a unique way yes just once a
year west of Abilene people from all
over come to take part in the
rattlesnake round up the goal to gather
up and kill tens of thousands of western
diamondback rattlesnakes
it's an event steeped in tradition and
designed in the interest of safety but
as channel twos Brandon Walker learned
the roundup and Sweetwater is not
without its share of controversy
[Music]
in Texas's big country I love director
deep in the caverns of the frontier
there's a time of year when the Cowboys
ditch horse and lasso to wrangle the
herd a big hit on this slithering
serpent the catch of the corral it feels
the air knowing something's run amok
it's hello a rattle more like oh not
happy to see you wait come here got a
question for how'd I end up here
welcome to Sweetwater Texas all right
come on
we're brothers Randy and Dave Powell
traveled from Atlanta they told us all
these stories all our life growing up to
come full circle
me and my little brother come back after
57 years to relive his trip he passed
away four years ago from cancer dad
broke a record that year it was March
tonight 62 when he was out here here
four of the rattlesnake roundup
[Music]
this is a western diamondback
rattlesnake Rob McCann hasn't been
around all 61 years but he spent much of
his life wrangling Rattlers a way of
life around here that's how the roundup
came about the police department here
were spending too much time on nuisance
calls getting rattlesnakes that were
actually in the city limits so grouper
farmers and ranchers got together and
rounded up a whole bunch of rattlesnake
we just keep the edge off the
rattlesnake population that's all we do
the Sweetwater JC's short for Junior
Chamber international put on the roundup
200 or so volunteers for the big
festival which takes place the second
weekend in March make no mistake about
it the roundup is popular and it's
growing but not everyone likes it in
fact some say it's no more than a bunch
of people killing animals for fun as
recently as 2016 Texas Parks and
Wildlife issued a report on the negative
impacts of using gas to flush snakes
from their homes a common technique at
the roundup later that year the agency
tabled the issue due to a lack of
support from either the community or
legislature on moving forward with
regulations but the JC says criticism of
the event is unfair for one thing game
wardens are present for the Hunts and
you must have a hunting license in order
to go out into the field it's all by law
and festival organizers say the whole
snake gets used skins from boots and
belts meat for food in Sweetwater the
rattlesnake is one with the landscape
the culture the roundup organizers say
appreciates that just make sure you're
up for the challenge they're beautiful
reptiles there
they're part of West Texas just lucky
you know armadillos a part of Texas this
is just kind of a Texas icon right here
well concerns remain about the impact on
other wildlife Texas Parks and Wildlife
tells us it has no plans for future
action regarding the use of gasoline at
events like the roundup however state
representative Jessica Ferrara recently
introduced a bill that would prohibit
the practice for non-game wildlife that
bill though has yet to go before
committee I'm Brandon Walker KPRC
Channel 2 News