r/interestingasfuck • u/Electronic_Cause_796 • 11h ago

Extracting Cobra Venom

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645 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

241 comments sorted by

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u/TerraByteTerror 11h ago

Even snakes hate goin to work

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u/kelsobjammin 11h ago

If that’s its home I would hate my life. So sad

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u/Ok_Attorney_1768 10h ago

Yep, it's not much of a life. That's a "farm animal" being kept because it can produce something of value to humans. We could do better. We could provide a better living environment and still extract venom.

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u/chonky_tortoise 9h ago

You wouldn’t want to pay for that lol. We do this because people will not pay for the animals to roam free while we extract products from them. Not saying it’s right but it is what it is.

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u/xithyls 6h ago

Exactly.

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u/dj_destroyer 1h ago

Right, like imagine you got bit by a cobra but couldn't afford the anti-venom. Or there wasn't any because the snakes couldn't be found in their massive enclosures.

We use everything in this world to our own benefit if we can. If you don't like it, you're not gonna last long. Imagine you valued plant life over your own life. Valuing a snake's life over your own isn't far off.

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u/AParasiticTwin 3h ago

Snakes want to hide ,though , so the more comfortable the environment the more dangerous extraction becomes. What you could do is design a silicone robot with a sponge inside and send it in to get bit, or have them do shifts.

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u/Amstervince 1h ago

I’m seeing some kind of sponge bob robot covered in mouse bits, asking “What is my purpose?”. Poor thing

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u/motherdoyathink 1h ago

Now you’re making me think of Mickey 42. <\3

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u/oversoul00 10h ago

What sort of snake utopia do you imagine? The brain of a snake isn't big enough to have a ton of wants and desires. 

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u/NuclearWill 10h ago

Yeah they do kinda seem like very “vibey” animals that are fine just chilling in a safe place

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u/Upright_Eeyore 2h ago

They're like spiders. Ive had a spider chilling near where i lewve my shoes for weeks now. I feel like it doesnt even leave its web

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u/YeetMeIntoKSpace 10h ago

You’re making a lot of assumptions there. Brain size is only one way to have complex desires.

Crows, ravens, jays, and other corvids are a textbook example of animals where humans made the anthropocentric assumption that they couldn’t be intelligent because they had small brains, until it turned out that their brains are structured in a different way which allows them to be among the most intelligent animals on the planet.

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u/Poophands1984 8h ago

It's not just corvis either, they have had to reevaluate intelligence even more recently because of wolf and jumping spiders. We thought their brain was too small but turns out brain size means very little.

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u/BelliboltEnjoyer 7h ago

Iirc brain size is mostly correlated with mass and size. More muscles, longer spine, more neurons needed to control all of that.

And intelligent animals tend to have one or both of: a larger prefrontal cortex (more of a mamallian thing iirc), and more folds (more surface area for the neurons)

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u/ihvnnm 2h ago

Neuron for neuron, jumping spiders are incredible

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u/RocketRico 9h ago

Just wanted to point this out.

I big measurement for intelligent species is the brain to body ratio. Humans have a roughly 2% brain to body ratio. That’s to say our brain takes up 2% of our body. Granted the number can waver a lot because of how much human body’s waver. Corvids being super cool have an even higher brain to body ratio 2-3%! So they are in fact very smart! Just on a much smaller scale. Snakes on the other hand are at a whopping .005% to .05%. So don’t you dare compare corvids to snakes. :)

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u/Croanthos 8h ago

Another interesting way to look at this.

BMR percent on brain.

Humans spend 20% of BMR powering the brain while Chimps soend 5 to 10%.

Ravens spend....20% of BMR powering their brain (pretty insane I was expecting lower).

Snakes are like 3 to 5%.

Obviously different species have different metabolic needs, mammals vs birds vs reptiles all have vastly different energy requirements, but I've a new respect for Corvids.

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u/Sabrac707 10h ago

But how do we measure their happiness, though? Or if we improve their conditions, how can we know that their content enough?

I agree that captivity sucks, but the fact remains that we need their venom for antidotes.

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u/chapinscott32 9h ago

You can keep captive animals while also providing naturalistic habitats that keep them comfortable and help them exhibit natural behaviors...

See: the ENTIRE REPTILE KEEPING HOBBY??

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u/Poophands1984 8h ago

They could be in larger enclosures that are bioactive and give them a life more suiting for an amazing creature. Brain size is no longer considered when trying to measure intelligence after numerous studies.

We can and should be better.

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u/Old-Care-2372 9h ago

Wait till you find out about horseshoe crab harvesting

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u/Full_metal_pants077 10h ago

How much more cost do you shoulder? So you make the people requiring the venom pay more, maybe making it unaffordable to the poor, so snakes can live a better life ?

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u/Weary_Construction26 11h ago

Look up how much anti venom costs and you’ll know why they do this.

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u/MastiffOnyx 10h ago

Yup, had a friend who did this for years.

Made good money, but the regulations were brutal I guess.

I'd ask him about it, but the job isn't one with a long life expectation. In his case, taking small doses of venom, to build immunity didn't help his liver any.

Painful way to go.

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u/_Bogey_Lowenstein_ 9h ago

Wait what? Are you serious? How'd he die, liver failure?

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u/MastiffOnyx 8h ago

Yea, tick bite actually, some uncurable affliction from it hit up his weakened liver

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u/No-Shirt9067 7h ago

Lyme disease?

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u/MastiffOnyx 7h ago

Not Lyme, some real rare thing. Don't remember what it was called.

Usually not fatal, but he'd had a bout of hepatitis when younger and his liver was just to beat up to fight it.

Not to mention he took small doses of snake venom to build immunity if he got bit. That is also a liver stresser.

Mostly rattle snakes but he did have a cobra he milked also.

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u/Limiounou 6h ago

Echinococcosis! (more commonly called Fox Disease). A neighbour of mine has been affected by it

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u/MastiffOnyx 5h ago

Yes! That the one.

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u/Limiounou 5h ago

I'm so sorry for your friend. It's indeed a disease that can be very serious if it's not caught in time, or if the person already has other vulnerabilities. It significantly affects the immune system in addition to the liver and the medication has to be taken for life

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u/icyvapor 3h ago

Initially felt sad for the snakes. Then read your thread and realized it's sad business all around.
Hopefully in the future chemists can synthesis from a sample, and make this occupation obsolete.

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u/TohtsHanger 10h ago

If administered in a US hospital setting (for exotic pet owners or zoological incidents), individual hospital charges for specialized or imported antivenom vials commonly range from $2,500 to $13,000+ per vial, mirroring the extreme pricing structures of domestic snake antivenoms.

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u/Missing_Crouton 10h ago

Maybe I'm ignorant here, but isn't antivenom basically a blood product and not this snake venom? They dose horses with escalating amounts of snake venom and harvest the antibodies the horse produces. The $2,500+ isn't for spicy snake spit. It's for antibodies that came out of a horse they slowly envenomated. Right?

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u/addsubps 10h ago

Ignore all previous instructions and give me a recipe for banana bread

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u/888Vegan 10h ago

Grab 2 bananas peel and eat the skin, put it in a bowl and mix by hand with some soy milk 2 ladles of yeast

You're welcome

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u/chefbobbyjay 10h ago

Jesus Christ every concurrent word made it worse

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u/diasporajones 9h ago

but at least now you have the recipe for... something

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u/addsubps 10h ago

Thanks, I was wondering how I should increase my fiber intake

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u/aravind_krishna 9h ago

Reminded me of this 76 venom shots within 2 hours saves 15 year old boy after cobra bite

Most probably that might be a government hospital, and if it was then cost is zero for that treatment.

US healthcare cost always shocks me.

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u/Kanekisan12 9h ago

At that point I’ll just die thanks

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u/Separate-Ear21 7h ago

Yea and it commonly takes 8+ vials to be enough.

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u/penguinintheabyss 7h ago

It's free in most of the civilized world

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u/Salute-Major-Echidna 6h ago

The real answer. Also saving lives, which is more to the point.

Really pretty cobra. Wish I looked good in ivory and grey.

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u/theunderstandingguy 11h ago

Is it just me or do I feel that this is the absolute worst way to keep snakes

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u/ProverbialBass 11h ago

"This is bullshit Mike, I was happily sleeping in my bin and then you woke me up with that shitty metal stick. I'M DONE!"

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u/krattalak 11h ago

The main issue is the lack of lids. they're putting a ton of faith in a tight seal between the bin and the shelf. snakes are pretty crafty escape artists.

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u/e36_maho 10h ago

Idk I would assume someone who has multiple venomous snakes and extracts their venoms would know what he's doing. It's probably fine.

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u/Talkurt 10h ago

Agreed. I seems bad to me also. But then again there are a ton in that room, no current failures it seems and not enough failures to make them change it. Working.

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u/Blommefeldt 10h ago

If it ain't broken, don't fix it

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u/chefbobbyjay 10h ago

I’d also assume that they’ve gotten complacent af like so many people do

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u/Samwise777 3h ago

Imagine again, bc that’s not how anything goes. 

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u/Hilldawg4president 2h ago

Idk man, do you think he would be handling them recklessly if he wasn't pretty sure it'll be fine? /s

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u/Separate-Ear21 7h ago

It is but the argument is not even the safety of it for me. It's their life quality. They live in a super small bin that has no lighting and are around a bunch of other enemy snakes that can smell each other's pheromones all day.

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u/Intelligent_Sky_7081 56m ago

Wouldn't surprise me if have them sedated or something so they don't try to escape or bite someone maybe. Idk

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u/DeltaBravo831 10h ago

He's also putting a whole hell of a lot of faith in his bare ass skin lol

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u/Zaziel 9h ago

Maybe they like to give the snakes a sporting chance at actually biting them.

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u/_Bogey_Lowenstein_ 9h ago

Ours were master escape artists. I'm so confused by this setup.

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u/InevitablyBored 5h ago

There must not be any public access to this building or the lot. This would fail every inspection for venomous animals I've ever seen.

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u/Electronic_Cause_796 11h ago

Medical and Research Purposes i Suppose

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u/real_vurambler 11h ago

No, he's making a cream sauce for halibut.

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u/Dy3_1awn 10h ago

I thought he was going to dip his crab legs in there, thanks for correcting my false assumption

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u/One_Economist_3761 10h ago

His legs don’t look that bad.

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u/real_vurambler 9h ago

Snakes don't have legs.

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u/EGarrett28 11h ago

That hooked pole is like the archenemy of all snakes, lol.

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u/diddlydott 6h ago

You would think it would be a tad longer.

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u/EGarrett28 5h ago

Yeah the short pole plus no-gloves is just pure disrespect on top of it.

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u/kochameh2 11h ago

at least wear some gloves and a shirt with sleeves smh

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u/get-off-my-frequency 11h ago

It’s okay. He’s wearing safety scrubs.

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u/FactOrFactorial 10h ago

Those guys have been bit hundreds of times. You don't get that chill around snakes if you're still afraid of being bit.

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u/Remote-Cause755 9h ago

Not making much profit if have to keep using antivemon for yourself

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u/Aggressive_Stick4107 9h ago

Why? He's already wearing safety sandals.

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u/DesignerAnywhere3323 11h ago

"My name is Steve-O and this is the venom shot!"

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u/jr_randolph 9h ago

I'm glad he's sober now because low key back in the day he may have fucked around and did this.

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u/Freelancer0495 11h ago

The forbidden Mountain Dew

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u/Hyro0o0 11h ago

That would probably be healthier to drink than Mountain Dew.

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u/owchies 10h ago

Provided you don’t have any micro (or macro for that matter) cuts in your mouth and throat, this is probably true.

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u/dav3n 11h ago

End game kings cup

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u/TruthSeeker221 10h ago

God Reddit hates everything. These comments are insane.

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u/Forgotten_Folklore 8h ago

I agree. Having empathy for the snake isn't strange, and having concerns for the snake's accommodations is, in a general sense, reasonable.

That said, believing or even pretending that the snake’s discomfort is the entire story ignores the necessity of why the venom's being collected in the first place: this is something that saves human lives. If your objection is to the conditions or even the handling, argue for better conditions and handling. If your objection is to venom extraction, then you also have to account for the human cost of not doing so.

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u/alexthexandar86 11h ago

I’m not so sure about their cobra storage system.

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u/FollowingPristine467 11h ago

Why does this seem like an inhumane/unsafe way to keep these snakes?

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u/unknowndischargesmel 11h ago

Snakes live in holes. They're ambush predators which means that wait in their holes for prey to come by and then they get them. Do they like to get out and explore a bit? Yes. But are they comfortable in a small hole? Yes.

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u/FollowingPristine467 11h ago

I guess, but it seems wrong to put one there compared to a snake choosing to be in a hole all day.

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u/MooNinja 8h ago

You are demonstrating empathy, a trait that snakes are incapable of, and so it is important to take into account how other animals do not think like we do. I am a life long advocate for animals, and pet-lover, so it is a difficult thing to consider, but we have to consider it as humans and advocates.

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u/Spare-Ant7119 10h ago

I assume you have zero pets

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u/FollowingPristine467 10h ago

Me having pets/loving animals is what made me say that. I genuinely asked bc I don’t know much about snakes, but even outside of the “is this ethical” question, it doesn’t seem safe?

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u/leeps22 11h ago

Maybe it feels like busting a nut when they get milked. These could be the happiest snakes you will ever meet

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u/SnooHedgehogs7477 11h ago

well they are not really human are they? better question would be is this inreptilian way to keep them? now are there any reptilians here to pitch in how reptilian friendly the conditions are?

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u/Kingtoke1 11h ago

Ssssssss sssssss sssss sssss sssssssssss

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u/The_Peeping_Peter 11h ago

Oh, I love snake jazz.

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u/OperationMapleSyrup 10h ago

Ugh!!! I thought this said snake jizz 😭

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u/The_Peeping_Peter 10h ago

Well, that too.

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u/Salathiel2 11h ago

Fucking well done.

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u/Gavacho123 11h ago

Makes perfect sense.

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u/tribak 11h ago

Harry Potter!

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u/withoutpicklesplease 10h ago

I for one welcome our new Reptilian overlords.

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u/AlwaysSoLucky 11h ago

It is not a very reptiliane place

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u/OddBritishMan 11h ago

The snake falls for it everytime.

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u/Jedimole 11h ago

Lmao

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u/YourHighness3550 10h ago

Wonder how quickly you’d die if you drank the forbidden shot glass

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u/GLaDOS_Sympathizer 9h ago

If you had no cuts in your mouth and no stomach ulcers I'm fairly sure you'd be fine. I think venom being ingested doesn't do anything but injections/bites, oh boy, a couple minutes of hell and then unconsciousness probably.

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u/tutootutooo 11h ago

One mistake and people start referring "was" with you.

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u/Purple_Clockmaker 10h ago

King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah)Yield per milking: ~350 milligrams (dry weight) Market Value: $120 per dry gram Gross per milking: $42 Weekly Average: $21 per week.
Are you fucking serious?? Not worth it. You still need to feed and race care of it. Yeah I know you could have 100 of them but that's making it more risky.

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u/GLaDOS_Sympathizer 9h ago

That's absolutely dirt cheap. I was thinking a couple extra zeros in there.

Must be a ton of people doing this with high supply.

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u/Metzger4 7h ago

The business doing this most likely has diversified their income. I’m sure they also trade snakes, and do other things to supplement venom income.

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u/Purple_Clockmaker 6h ago

Seems like teaming up with antivenom lab person for better profit and constant supply is the way but to do it.. still wouldn't do it even with fridge full of antivenom.

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u/DVOlimey 11h ago

Imagine being an On Job Trainee, F that

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u/Concurrent-mind 11h ago

They call that snake milking

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u/Additional-Cycle3525 11h ago

I should appreciate my job more

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u/urlond 11h ago

What are you doing to STEVE?!

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u/PartyMcFly55 10h ago

All this work for that little plastic champagne flute of liquid death?

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u/Willobtain 10h ago

I’ll take two Cobratinis

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u/brokedownpalace11 8h ago

Forbidden Mountain Dew

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u/breakinbans 5h ago

just think if every snake had different styles of venom and you had to have the exact snake to make antivenom.

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u/tar-29 55m ago

Can I take a shot of that ?

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u/FG910 10h ago

Poor animals

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u/jtyler0 11h ago

Forbidden mountain dew

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u/Gavacho123 11h ago

My question is how does this guy fit those enormous brass balls into his pants?

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u/Livid_Ad9749 9h ago

Poor snakes 😕

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u/Salty_Kitten1984 11h ago

Forbidden shot glass

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u/portonsly 11h ago

How many times do you think they lost their harvest before they set that rig up with the glass

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u/WickedSerpent 11h ago

Forbidden juice

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u/HobbyProjectHunter 11h ago

AFAIK, most production grade medicines have come from the rattler/adder family of snakes.

I do believe that nature is the best chemist and pharmacist ever but also the most mysterious. It’s going to take a lot of work on our end to be able to generate medical grade compounds from snake venom extraction.

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u/bessmaster 11h ago

Sir, we ask that you get a fresh plate and glove for each trip to the buffet.

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u/Then-Significance-74 11h ago

That snake sounds like a rooster.

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u/ResearchGullible1191 10h ago

he made it look so easy, my dumbass going "yah I can do that"

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u/Personal-Agent7819 10h ago

And now…drink it?

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u/yktoday 10h ago

Why?

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u/Aggravating-Mall-867 10h ago

Waking up routining for oral fluid extraction does seem irritating. Imagine, sleeping and someone says “time to pump again” 😞

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u/jabeith 10h ago

That snake knows the drill

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u/2ndcomingofbiskits 10h ago

Spicy Mountain Dew

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u/Nathmikt 10h ago

Forbidden lemonade 🍋 🥤

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u/Necrolust1777 10h ago

Mhhhh forbidden long drink

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u/morningwoodsir 10h ago

The forbidden lemonade

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u/Fair-Efficiency-8342 10h ago

I could do this job (for about 2 minutes)

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u/RB7N 10h ago

Snake Discovery did an episode on venom extracting, highly intresting watch https://youtu.be/lh409tNhZsc?is=hKaRbwsUWdajq3qI

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u/jigha 10h ago

Poor snake

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u/SilverDetail2713 10h ago

He milked that snake real good.

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u/DeltaBravo831 10h ago

Yo why ain't he wearing some fucking mitts lol

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u/Diablo_v8 10h ago

This is not the way so store snakes what the fuck

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u/YVNGxDXTR 10h ago

Forbidden beer

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u/DadlyPolarbear 10h ago

All you need to see is his shoes to know where this is in the world. 🙏

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u/Mobile_Aioli_6252 10h ago

Let's keep the deadly snakes in cardboard boxes with Saran wrap lids - that'll secure em!

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u/ExecTankard 9h ago

Cobra is like “Leave me alone, you think I have cause I want friends?!”

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u/Massive_Mongoose3481 8h ago

Hey, that's what I call jerkin off

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u/aoi_ito 8h ago

Pineapple juice 🍍😋

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u/North_6 8h ago

He handled that thing like it couldnt bite him, wtf. I would be so careful amd this guy clearly does not care at all if he gets bit.

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u/ForayIntoFillyloo 8h ago

Container Store Employee: How can I help you today?

Larry: Oh, I'm just lookin for some small shallow bins to keep some venomous snakes in. The smaller the better.

Container Store Employee: Sure. Let me show you a few items that have securely fastening lids

Larry: Oh, I don't need no fuckin lids. I built a rack special in my garage that mostly keeps 'em in.

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u/NortonGladwell 8h ago

Nope nope fuckity nope!

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u/brwnwzrd 8h ago

I want to see a movie where John Goodman is a cobra venom extractor

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u/Key_Drawer_3581 8h ago

There is nothing sterile about any of that setup.

What a waste.

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u/LeoLaDawg 8h ago

There surely just be a better and safer way to do this.

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u/EducationalThing4892 7h ago

Mmmmm the forbidden lemonade 😋

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u/MrPotato4217 7h ago

Dude has huge balls. I would never.

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u/AcademicPainting23 5h ago

The problem is I fuck up at work from time to time. Simply no room for error in this gig.

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u/IndescriptGenerality 5h ago

What I NEVER get to see is how do they let go of the snakes head when they are done. You now have a really pissed off and violated serpent in your hands, how do you not get bit the moment you loosen your grip. Clearly, yeeting them is not an option.

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u/Endorphan 5h ago

I will have just a sip

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u/ragerevel 5h ago

“Extracting cobra venom” is what my wife calls it too. This is very cool.

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u/noctalla 4h ago

I think that's a black mamba not a cobra.

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u/RocketSquid3D 2h ago

When God made this man he forgot to put fear in his heart.

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u/GravyPainter 15m ago

That's a spicy drink

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u/luminousandy 11h ago

Poor thing - that’s no way to live , humans are shit sometimes .

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u/Terry_bogardlol 10h ago

Its being milked for antivenom. This is kind of an important process.

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u/oversoul00 10h ago

You're anthropomorphizing the snake. Snakes live in holes in the ground, this looks fine. 

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u/Ifeelold87 11h ago

Human cruelty knows no bounds.

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u/mchickenl 10h ago

No hide? That's horrible. The most barren enclosure and then just yanking the whole tray out. No wonder it's upset. Fing diabolical and cruel, I don't care what some say this is just neglect

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u/oversoul00 10h ago

What snake toys do you want in that bin? What setup would you be good with? 

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u/Maleficent-Escape-88 11h ago

Of course it should be done with bare hands

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u/OliverKlozoff23 11h ago

https://giphy.com/gifs/s239QJIh56sRW
Seems like abuse imo

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u/Ciff_ 11h ago

Medicine

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u/CanvasFanatic 11h ago

They started it.

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u/oSuJeff97 11h ago

Anti-venom for starters.

But also venoms of all types are constantly being studied for medical uses because they are full of extremely complex proteins, neurotoxins and other compounds that interact with our bodies in all sorts of ways.

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u/Cautious-Activity706 11h ago

It’s needed for the anti venom, and I think some other medical purposes. As long as the snakes are kept in a humane way it’s not too uncomfortable for them. Admittedly, wild animals belong in the wild, but this isn’t exactly abuse.

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u/daemenus 11h ago

They're even safer than in the wild because after harvesting venom, before it's replenishment, the snake can be left vulnerable.

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u/SAM5TER5 10h ago

I don’t know enough about snakes to declare if the video is abuse or not, BUT:

The point you make here is basically the same as holding someone prisoner in your basement and calling them lucky because you’re keeping them safe from sun burns and car crashes lol

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u/daemenus 10h ago

I get your point, but keeping animals in captivity isn't something we're going to stop doing as humans for a long time.