Snake racks

[SD Reptiles]

Have someone experience with keeping garters in plastic tubs in a snakeracksystem?

[chris-uk]

I'm sure there are some that use racks, but most of us like to see our garters so keep them in vivariums rather than tubs and racks. Tubs can be useful for babies though.

[guidofatherof5]

Garters like to move and explore, they are a very curious snake. The more room you give them and things to explore the better.
Just my opinion.

[kueluck]

I don't understand why people would use a rack system for anything living, except maybe bugs. That's like putting someone in isolation and that's done as punishment!! No living creature deserves that. IMO.

If I could, I would let mine have run of the house.

[gibble888]

+1 on that...i would love at least 40 gallon size for each but can get a little spendy so i aquire used ones at yard sales and whatnot....he who dies with the most aquariums wins!

[guidofatherof5]

+1 on that...i would love at least 40 gallon size for each but can get a little spendy so i aquire used ones at yard sales and whatnot....he who dies with the most aquariums wins!

Don't forget Craigslist!

[SD Reptiles]

I forgot to tell that i only want to use this rack for animals that are sick , pregnant or just out of hibernation.
Some animals i take inside to hibernate in a box in the barn and some animals stay in their own hibernaculum in their outdoor enclosure.
The rest of the year they will have much much more space than 40 gallons ;-)

[guidofatherof5]

I forgot to tell that i only want to use this rack for animals that are sick , pregnant or just out of hibernation.
Some animals i take inside to hibernate in a box in the barn and some animals stay in their own hibernaculum in their outdoor enclosure.
The rest of the year they will have much much more space than 40 gallons ;-)

With that being said I would say racks are OK. I use tubs for quarantine animals or newborns.

[the_edsta]

Lets slow down here! The common rack system offers 3sq ft of space per level, which is MORE floor space than a 20 gal long container. Throw a nice hide, some substrate, and a water bowl in there and you can stack six on top of each other in only 45" of height! Hard to beat that for practicality. I keep my garters in tanks because they are active, but I have a milk in a nice tank and I'm taking him out. He hates that I can see him and prefers the safety of the rack. I'd imagine the clear tank would be wasted on a BP as well.

Lets just not forget that the clear glass is for US, not them. If we start feeling a certain sense of altruism... Might as well open the back door and let these critters loose!

[the_edsta]

I don't understand why people would use a rack system for anything living, except maybe bugs. That's like putting someone in isolation and that's done as punishment!! No living creature deserves that. IMO.

If I could, I would let mine have run of the house.

If having one snake in a tub is solitary confinement, then isn't putting three in a tank just like being in the general population (still in a prison)? I know garters are social, but many other snakes kept in captivity are not. They prefer to be in a warm, safe place where food is abundant.... And many owners who want what is best for them use racks. It really does depend on the species, not our own projections onto the animal.

[Stefan-A]

Lets slow down here! The common rack system offers 3sq ft of space per level, which is MORE floor space than a 20 gal long container.
20 gallons is less than half and 3 square feet is just over half of what I provide my snakes with and even these enclosures are on the small side.

[the_edsta]

20 gallons is less than half and 3 square feet is just over half of what I provide my snakes with and even these enclosures are on the small side.

It is still a bit arbitrary to decide on a specific square footage as being acceptable and to then castigate at large systems that are especially useful for other species. I have particular aversions to the taking of imagined moral high ground in a hobby that calls for us to cage cold-blooded animals and sacrifice others -- often warm blooded animals that are closer to ourselves as organisms -- for their sustanence. I do it as well, but I understand the implications of this action and hence don't feel the need to make such narrow distinctions.

[guidofatherof5]

It's not just square footage it's also view for garter snakes. Allowing them to see their surrounding creates less stress and makes them more comfortable.

[d_virginiana]

I've kept Harley in a tub for almost half a year now. It was a quarantine thing because I needed to be able to immediately clean and replace anything she pooed on because of the parasites. But the floorspace is about that of the 50 gallon that she was in, and she seems perfectly happy in it. It's a clear tub, so she still comes out and watches me move around the room and all. I'd like to get something with a little more height for a permanent enclosure, but I see nothing wrong with the idea of a sterlite tub instead of a tank if the sizes are appropriate.

My python is in a tub as well. Works much better for her since they are nocturnal and prefer to sit still squished into one place (she isn't squished in, but she smooshes herself into corners and under decorations anyway).

[the_edsta]

It's not just square footage it's also view for garter snakes. Allowing them to see their surrounding creates less stress and makes them more comfortable.

That post was responding to the notion of some kind of moral stance against rack/tub systems for all species. I agree that tanks are best for garters.

[guidofatherof5]

That post was responding to the notion of some kind of moral stance against rack/tub systems for all species. I agree that tanks are best for garters.

I don't have a problem with rack systems for some species of snakes but my personal opinion is garters do not benefit from them.