Best live feeder fish

[Timsreptiles]

What is the best live feeder fish for small garters?

I know goldfish must be avoided

And guppies seem to be the most recommended.

Any other available small fish that can be used?

[Greg'sGarters]

There are some that can be used. If your garter snake is still small, you may want to try to get some pinkie slices into his diet. There are a handful of pet stores hat sell feeder mollies/feeder platies. These are hard to come by though. Below is a quote from the Garter Snake Care Sheet (http://www.thamnophis.com/index.php?page=caresheet), which tells you which fish are ok to feed and are thiaminase free.




Ayu (Plecoglossus altivelis) Bass (largemouth) (Huro salmoides) Bass (rock) (Ambloplites r. rupestris) Bass (smallmouth) (Micropterus d. dolomieu) Black backs (pseudopleuronectes americanus) Bluegill (Lepomis m. macrochirus) Chub (bloater) (Coregonus hoyi) Cod (Gadus morrhua) Crappie (Pomoxis nigro-maculatus) Croaker (Micropogon undulatus) Cunner (Tautogolabrus adspersus) Cusk (Brosme brosme) Cutlassfish (silver eel) (Trichiurus lepturus) Dogfish (squalus acanthias) Eel (anguilla rostrata) Gar (northern longnose) (Lepisosteus osseus oxyurus) Haddack (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) Halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus) Hake (Urophycis spp.) Herring (Leucichthys artedi areturus) King whiting (ground whiting) (Menticirrhus americanus) Lemon sole (Psuedopleuronectes americanus dignabilis) Lizard Fish (Synodus foetens) Mackerel (Scomber scombrus) Mullet (Mugil spp.) Perch (yellow) (Perca flavescens) Pike (northern) (Esox lucius) Pike (wall-eyed) (stizostedion vitreum) Plaice (Canadian) (Hippoglossoides platessoides) Pollock (Pollachitus virens) Porgy (scup) (Stenotomus aculeatus) Porgy (scup) (Stenotomus chrysops) Pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) Redfish (Sebastes marinus) Salmon (Salmo salar) Salmon (Coho) (Oncorhynchus kisutch) Seabass (centropristis striatas) Sea catfish (galeichthys felis) Sea robin (Prionotus spp.) Smelt or "silversides" (Hypomesus olidus)(arctic pond. Also known as silversides, usually frozen available in pet stores) Spot (Leiostomus xanthurus) Squid (Loligo brevis) Tautog (blackfish) (Tautoga onitis) Trout (brown) (Salmo trutta fario) Trout (lake) (Christiconer n. namaycush) Trout (rainbow) (Salmo gairdnerii irideus) White trout (Cynoscion nothus) White trout (Cynoscion avenarius) Whiting (Merluccius bilinearis) Yellow tails (Limanda ferruginea)


Hope this helps!

[Timsreptiles]

Thanks

Going to pet store today will see what I can find. The list narrows it down a lot, thanks

[Selkielass]

Guppies, mollies, swordtail and plagues are the most recommended live feeders, but some people have found live trout fry from local hatcheries.
The above species are more likely to be found in markets. Slices of fish are eagerly accepted by most garters.

[Timsreptiles]

The small garter is getting live fish and worms as he is very skittish and refuses fish fillets as they do not move.

[Selkielass]

Put the live fish & water in a custard cup or smaller container and then add slivers of fish about the same size as the one live fish. Some of the fillet usually gets grabbed and eaten before the fish gets caught.
Worm pieces and bits of fish or pinky work on the same principal.
sorry about auto-correct errors. Plague= platies

[Timsreptiles]

Update: Put a live guppy in a feeding tub with the garter snake waited two hours and snake ignored the live feeder fish. The guppy unfortuntley perished. Placed the snake back into his cage. I dropped the now dead guppy in the snakes cage and he chomped it down in seconds.

[guidofatherof5]

Update: Put a live guppy in a feeding tub with the garter snake waited two hours and snake ignored the live feeder fish. The guppy unfortuntley perished. Placed the snake back into his cage. I dropped the now dead guppy in the snakes cage and he chomped it down in seconds.

Success comes in many forms.:D

[Invisible Snake]

He probably only likes to eat inside his enclosure, most likely he feels safe and secure there.

[Light of Dae]

I agree, he was probably out of sorts and was more concerned with the changed environment then the food.