babies!

[NovaPrime9]

Hello everyone,

my son found a garter outside and we have been keeping it... we do this every summer. We find one, keep it, and release it in August.

This one, however... it turns out she was pregnant! We have 19 little babies now- SO CUTE!

I have read that they won't eat until their first shed. Is this correct? Should I offer food? Before I read about this, I did spend some time trying. Two of them ate. The others couldn't care less.

Please let me know. I don't want to mess this up.

Oh, I guess some details are in order:
They were born 8/4, in the morning.
They are, I believe, Eastern Garters (checkered morph)
I have them separated in three tanks... three with 'mom', and the two eaters by themselves (so I could keep track of who's eaten) and the rest in another tank.

Any advice or input would be most welcome!

Thank you!

[guidofatherof5]

The first shed should have occurred shortly after birth. It's not like all the other sheds these snake will have in their lives. The first shed is a ultra fine shed, almost like ash. All the snakes I've birth get this shed done within the first couple hours of life. Putting them in a container with wet(not moist) will help them remove it. What are your plans for the neonates? If releasing back into the same area the mother came from is your idea, it's a good one. She was suppose to help repopulate the area. The sooner you release them the better for the species. If you plan on keeping them eating could take a week to a month and some snakes may be lost along the way.
Best of luck and congrats.

[slipknot711]

congrats. if you normally release but are proud to see the little ones, maybe consider keeping one of the babies? and letting the mother and other babies go?

[NovaPrime9]

Thanks so much for the input you guys.

To answer the questions and concerns:
- we absolutely intend to release the babies and mother. As I said in the first post, we always release our "summer pet." This time, it just happens to be petS. ;)
- I will leave the decision about keeping one or two up to my son. I'm fine with that many but no more. The rest have to go back where they came from. Is holding onto them for a week okay? (btw, where to wild garters get their water from? Just curious, since my house doesn't have any standing water or streams immediately nearby...)

I tried feeding again last night and had no luck, but I'll be able to put a lot more time into it tonight. Are there any methods that work better than others? I've been using needlenose pliers to hold the tip of a piece of worm for them, wiggling it in front of them. Good? Bad? Please let me know if there's a more reliable way :)

Thanks again!

[slipknot711]

i noticed my guys LOVE when things wriggle. so maybe just cut up the worms and leave them in the tank? i feed them around my dinner time, a few will eat but most eat after i go to bed. maybe grab a cpl guppies from the store? i had asked steve this question previously, you can keep them for a while just make sure you give them enough time before it gets to cold to look for a spot to brmate and find food

[NovaPrime9]

They'll absolutely be back 'home' by the end of August, as with all of our "summer pets" (previous pets have included another garter which I posted here about a few years ago, a crayfish, a preying mantis, and a bullfrog. It's a fun way to teach the kids about some of the wildlife near us.)

I will try your feeding method tonight. Last night, the only ones that ate were the two that had already previously eaten. If the others don't eat in another few days, we'll release them to fend for themselves. I figure being more comfortable (free) will be just the ticket they may need.

[slipknot711]

sounds like a good plan :) leave the worms in till the next morning, mine usually eat randomly at night

[Mommy2many]

Welcome to the forum! We would love to see the pics of your babies and Mom!