enclosure & breeding Qs

[Snake lover 3-25]

Is it okay to keep a 15 inch baby and her 28 inch mother in a 2o gal tank??? even if the mother is wild caught? would it be okay to get an adult male to keep with them for possible breeding next year? would the male breed with both of them or just one?:confused:

[adamanteus]

You would need to keep a very close eye on them, particularly at feeding times. Personally I always try to keep only snakes of similar size (and same species) together.

[Snake lover 3-25]

OK good i feed them in seperate cages thanks :)

[Snake lover 3-25]

although they do get along great they are always together...
http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/snake_006.jpg

[adamanteus]

Beautiful looking snakes, Shanley!:)

[Snake lover 3-25]

Thanks LOL

[ssssnakeluvr]

Nice looking snakes!!!!!!

[Snake lover 3-25]

I found the mom in my yard and she had the baby 1 month later... i always thaught that they were "just average" you guys make me think twice... :)

[adamanteus]

No, they are prettier than 'average', Shanley. Love that pinky/orange colouration.

[Snake lover 3-25]

Yay!!! i hope to breed them next yr. that is if i can capture a male or two this summer...

[ssssnakeluvr]

yes, that orange coloration is real nice!! I have a het albino with a little bit of orange, not as much as that one!

[Snake lover 3-25]

what kind do you think they are? i have no idea...

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

eastern garter snake t. sirtalis sirtalis, or maritime garter snake t. sirtalis. pallidulus

what kind do you think they are? i have no idea...

[ssssnakeluvr]

they are eastern garters, t sirtalis sirtalis.

[Snake lover 3-25]

okay thanks that's what i thaught

[Snake lover 3-25]

would the male breed with both of them or just one?:confused:

[adamanteus]

The smaller female is most probably not mature at 15 inches.... maybe next year.:)

[Snake lover 3-25]

okay... i hope she comes out...

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

are you 100% positive the younger one is a female?

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

one male can go to three females before he starts shooting blanks (or at least in egg laying species only fertilize a couple eggs), and ya i agree with james better wait untill next year when shes nice and big, the last owner of my maritimes bred her at 16"!!! it was amazing she was not harmed or killed

would the male breed with both of them or just one?:confused:

[Snake lover 3-25]

oh sorry... yes i'm positive that she's a girl...

[Snake lover 3-25]

by next year do you mean next spring or spring of 2010

[Sputnik]

Spring 2010 would be in two years. It's only 2009 next year. ;)

[Snake lover 3-25]

so i could find a male snake over the summer and breed her next winter?

[adamanteus]

bermutate

You mean brumate, right?

[Snake lover 3-25]

yes sorry... i'm not right with the "terms"

[Snake lover 3-25]

How long should she be to breed? just to make sure...

[Snake lover 3-25]

are heat rocks okay for garters? and can i get a mesh cage instead of a glass one?

[Snake lover 3-25]

wait... now you've given me 2nd thaughts... is she female?
http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/IMG_3958.jpg
sorry about the pic quality...

[Snake lover 3-25]

i'll try to get more pics...

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

thats a male

i'll try to get more pics...

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

20" with good girth

How long should she be to breed? just to make sure...

[Snake lover 3-25]

where can i take her/it to check for sure?

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

here, thats a great picture for sexing im 99% positive thats a male, you could get him probed but hed have to be a year old

where can i take her to check for sure?

[Snake lover 3-25]

OH NO now what do i name him... :( i wanted a girl!!! :( I was positive it was female...

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

why did u think it was female? and besides now they can breed u dont have to get a male

OH NO now what do i name him... :( i wanted a girl!!! :( I was positive it was female...

[Snake lover 3-25]

but he/it's her son isn't inbreeding bad?

[Snake lover 3-25]

as soon as the babies were born i "popped" them

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

you did? did u have any experience? that could explain why
heres a good vid(some ppl do it the wrong way)
YouTube - Kathy love popping corn snakes (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJ1g_kv_jko)
and heres one on probing
YouTube - Probing a corn snake (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJQ69oeqdPI&feature=related)
but i dont suggest doing either without experience

as soon as the babies were born i "popped" them

[Snake lover 3-25]

well i read it in a book... when i did it about 1/2 came out male and 1/2 female

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

you can inbreed 4 generations (in garters) without defects arising

but he/it's her son isn't inbreeding bad?

[Snake lover 3-25]

man... i wanted a girl!!!

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

u could of still done it wrong, sorry :(

well i read it in a book... when i did it about 1/2 came out male and 1/2 female

[adamanteus]

Popping and probing are often viewed as being fool-proof, in fact they are both fallible and potentially dangerous. I don't do it any more, I try to assess other factors to establish sex... I'd rather be wrong than pop or probe. I never buy a snake these days if I know it has been sexed in either of these ways, they are so often damaged.

[Lori P]

The guy I bought my baby ball python off of MORTIFIED me when he "popped" her to show me it was a female. It was very brutal. I won't ask anyone to do it again unless it's someone I KNOW to be an expert!! I was so scared that he had hurt her...

[Snake lover 3-25]

oh... yes i agree that i shouldn't have but when i did they were just a few hours old and it didn't seem to bother them at all, but i agree and i won't do it again...

[adamanteus]

Shanley, I wasn't having a go at you. Many people pop their snakes. It's just my personal preference not to do so.

[Snake lover 3-25]

i know but i do agree with you... the book does say that it's risky...

[Snake lover 3-25]

and there was really no point in that risk, seeing that i was wrong about the only one that i kept... and i didn't even sell the babies... i just let them go...

[Snake lover 3-25]

maybe i'll breed the mom again so that i can have 3 generations like i had origionally hoped... too bad it took me 2 yrs to figure out that i was wrong...

[adamanteus]

... too bad it took me 2 yrs to figure out that i was wrong...

Two years is pretty good going. I've been keeping reptiles for over forty years, and I still make basic mistakes.:o

[Snake lover 3-25]

wait... shouldn't i separate them now? but i don't have a cage GRRR!!! everything was so easy when he was a she!!!

[Snake lover 3-25]

i have to change his name now... willow is NOT a boy name... GRRRR!!!

[Zephyr]

From my experience with popping, the genitals are very easy to "coax out" right after the snake has pooed. Now, I'm not looking at the vent, I've taken snakes who've just finished pooing and gently pushed on the tail base, and the genitals just sorta slid out. :D

[Snake lover 3-25]

that's what i did when he/she was only hours old... but now i have to change everything and it's 2 yrs old!!!

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

u can keep together, u even have a chance of them breeding

that's what i did when he/she was only hours old... but now i have to change everything and it's 2 yrs old!!!

[Snake lover 3-25]

man... i always wanted 3 generations of girls... hmph...

[Snake lover 3-25]

although they do get along great they are always together...
http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/snake_006.jpg

they cuddle so mush i thaught it was cute when it was a girl... but now... it's just not the same i guess...

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

no worries u can find a female or 2 in the spring/summer and they can breed with ur male in addition to the female u already have

[Snake lover 3-25]

very true... but i would never have the room for 2 pairs... or two litters... GRRRR!!!!!!!!

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

u dont need a pair one male can mate with 3 females, u just need a cage big enough for 4

very true... but i would never have the room for 2 pairs... or two litters... GRRRR!!!!!!!!

[Zephyr]

u dont need a pair one male can mate with 3 females, u just need a cage big enough for 4But Reed, you gotta make sure the boy doesn't start "shooting blanks." lol

[Snake lover 3-25]

oh thanks that makes me feel so much better!

[Snake lover 3-25]

Man... i still can't believe that it's a boy!!!

[Snake lover 3-25]

okay... how about this one... boy or girl???
http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/IMG_3994.jpg

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

lol i think girl kinda bad angle, did you find it or is that the one u already had?