A young Chinese woman who returned to her hometown to raise 60,000 venomous snakes and earns more than 1 million yuan ($140,000) annually is drawing attention online.
According to the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post (SCMP) on Thursday, the woman, surnamed Qin, was born in 1995 and hails from Guilin in Guangxi Province, southern China. Two years after graduating from college, she returned home to help her father's snake farm and now manages more than 60,000 snakes, including over 50,000 highly venomous pit vipers and more than 10,000 cobras.
Her father initially opposed her joining the business, citing the dangers involved. But as the farm grew too large for him to manage alone, he had no choice but to accept his daughter's help. "Handling snakes is still dangerous, but I'm not afraid because I grew up watching my father raise them," Qin said.
The farm generates revenue through multiple channels. According to Qin, dried snakes, snake gallbladders and snake oil are used as traditional medicine ingredients, while extracted venom is used for medical research. Trained snakes can have their venom collected twice a month. Snake venom trades at 40 to 200 yuan per gram depending on quality, while snake meat sells for 200 to 300 yuan per snake, with larger specimens fetching over 1,000 yuan. Even after deducting labor and other costs, the farm earns more than 1 million yuan annually, she explained.
Qin has gained over 22,000 followers online by sharing her breeding experiences under the name "The Girl Who Collects Snake Venom." In one video, she said, "If a snake handler says they aren't afraid of being bitten, it means they've never been bitten. A snake bite causes excruciating pain, and once you experience it, you'll never forget it for the rest of your life."
Netizens responded with comments such as "This isn't something just anyone can do," "I'm scared just looking at snakes, so I respect her," and "She fully deserves to earn that kind of money."
