This is wrong on so many levels...
That not a timber rattlesnake, It is a diamondback. IF it is from the east it would be an eastern diamondback (Crotalus adamanteus) but in my honest opinion it looks like a western (Crotalus atrox). Adamnteus are usually much darker.
No doubt, it is a huge rattler but it is not 9 ft. The snake is 3-4 ft closer to the camera than the man holding it depending on what kind of tong he is using. And it is definitely not 90 lb! try holding anything that heavy 3 ft out from your body. The momentum would be huge...
I keep rattlesnakes and my atrox that is just shy of 6 ft. He is very well fed (I feed him a 3 lb rabbit a week) and weighs just about 15 lb. I would say that he is heavier than they are in the wild.
Lastly; The "the only good snake is a dead snake" mentality is pissing me off. The more ignorant people I get to know the more I like rattlesnakes.
Peace out
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