More than 20,000 people are expected to turn out for four days of wrangling, milking and even eating. But opposition from animal welfare groups is mounting

If you are thrilled by the idea of gawping at a giant vat of writhing rattlesnakes, taking part in a rattlesnake-eating competition or witnessing a beauty queen decapitate a rattlesnake, then west Texas is the place to be this weekend.

The world’s largest rattlesnake “roundup” kicks off in the remote town of Sweetwater on Thursday. The four-day event attracted 20,000 paying spectators – double the town’s population – last year, with a bumper haul of snakes set to draw large numbers again this time around.

For a $50 weekend pass, attendees are treated to the sight of rattlesnakes, and plenty of them. An expected 3,000 snakes will be captured from their nearby nests and placed in large pits, where their writhing tangle of bodies will produce a cacophony of rattles.

The public watch as the snakes are weighed, milked of their venom and then removed. The animals are decapitated, their heads and tongues still twitching afterwards, and flayed of their skin. They are fried up in cooking demonstrations for the hungry hordes.

Other attractions include a competition for the longest snake, a snake-eating contest and the “Miss Snake Charmer Pageant”. High school beauty queens are regularly on hand to lop the heads off snakes. A gun and knife show helps round out the entertainment.

The annual Sweetwater event, held by the junior chamber of commerce, or “Jaycees”, has become a part of the fabric of the town, stretching back to to 1958. Organizers claim it’s not only an economic boon for a rural area, it has helped curb rattlesnake numbers and therefore saved life and limb of humans, pets and livestock.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Sweetwater rattlesnake roundup. Photograph: Jo-Anne McArthur

But opposition to the roundup, and others like it, is mounting. Animal welfare group Advocates for Snake Preservation and photojournalist Jo-Anne McArthur have documented what they claim to be a cruel charade dressed up as folksy, southern fun.

“At these events it’s common to see snakes swollen and bloody from being restrained or thrown by handlers, dead and dying snakes, snakes too weak or stressed to defend themselves, unsanitary conditions, cruelty, and dangers to the public,” said Melissa Amarello, co-founder of the group.

“Rattlesnakes rattle when they are terrified, not angry or preparing to attack as many think. The sound of rattling at these roundups is in fact a thousand snakes screaming.”

Western diamondback rattlesnakes – the species on show at the roundup – are typically solitary, elusive creatures. Being dumped in a vast pond of snakes is therefore quite unusual for them, which results in snakes biting and defecating on each other. A snake handler has to periodically wade into the snakes to stir them up and ensure they don’t suffocate.

Opponents of the event claim that the cruelty starts much earlier, however, when snake catchers fan out in the months from February to September to pluck rattlesnakes from their dens. A common trick to achieve this is to pump gasoline fumes down a copper pipe into the cracks of rocks, forcing the snakes out.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Animal welfare group Advocates for Snake Preservation say the event is a cruel charade dressed up as folksy, southern fun. Photograph: Jo-Anne McArthur

“It goes against the whole paradigm of hunting and conservation in the US, I consider it very unsportsmanlike,” said prof Lee Fitzgerald, a herpetologist at Texas A&M University who has studied roundups.

“There’s no question that snakes in roundups are under stress. These events have taken on a life of their own. Most people don’t realize that the snakes are brought in and sold for the commercial trade. They don’t question whether hunting with gasoline is good or bad. Those kind of messages are lost on the public because, well, it’s snakes.”

Many people have a visceral dislike of snakes and the sight of thousands of them squirming and rattling together is either thrilling or off-putting. Only five people a year typically die in the US from snake bites (lightning finishes off about 90 people, by comparison), but the fear of snakes comes from a deeper, less rational place.

“We wouldn’t treat other wildlife like this, such as squirrels or beavers,” said Fitzgerald. “There is this misinformed mystique about rattlesnakes. In nature, they very rarely rattle. They are secretive, solitary predators. This image of them rising up and striking people is completely unrealistic of their natural lives.”

Regardless, the organizers of the Sweetwater roundup believe they have helped create a safer, more prosperous town, all while barely denting the overall number of rattlesnakes.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest ‘It tastes very good, it’s a flakey white meat, a bit like fish.’ Photograph: Jo-Anne McArthur

Rob McCann, spokesman for the event, said that independent economic modeling has shown an $8.4m benefit to local coffers. But public safety is the main objective, he said.

“The main goal is to keep the rattlesnake population in check,” McCann said. “We are still finding the same number of rattlesnakes when we go out to look for them, but we aren’t getting children bitten in the centre of town any more. People here are very wary of snakes, you know you are in big trouble if you step on one.

“When we kill them, we use a bolt gun like you do with cattle. We aren’t throwing them around or stepping on them. We have game wardens on site to check that hunters are complying with all regulations.”

McCann points out that the money raised to vital local services and anyone who doesn’t like the roundup “should come and see it before they pass judgment”.

They are encouraged to also tuck into some snake while they are at it. “It tastes very good, it’s a flakey white meat, a bit like fish,” McCann said. “It’s very nice indeed.”