What do you feed and how often

[Scaley.Jade]

right thought id get some discussion going what do you feed your garters and how often this will help me for when i get mine hopefully in september :D

so come on guys what you think

[adamanteus]

Variety is the key. I feed mine 60% fish (usually trout), 30% pinkies and 10% earthworms... as and when I can get them.
My adults get fed once a week, smaller ones twice, although I'm not strict about this.

[jeanette]

im feeding pinkie mice 3 times a week and earthworms inbetween feeding days if they are hungry. :)

[Scaley.Jade]

earthworms live just in the tank with them ?

[adamanteus]

No. They probably won't get the chance. Most Garters are pretty keen on earthworms, and grab them straight off.

[jeanette]

i put the earthworms in a dish so they can get snatched before they have a chance to dissapear under the substrate:)

[adamanteus]

Pretty much what I do...or forcep feed them. Usually when earthworms are on the menu, I have Garter Snakes pouring out of the vivs in their haste to get to them!:D

[jeanette]

Pretty much what I do...or forcep feed them. Usually when earthworms are on the menu, I have Garter Snakes pouring out of the vivs in their haste to get to them!:D
lol hungry snakes then :D
i havent manged to feed mine on forceps as of yet, they seem to be scared of them lol. i will persevere though and see what happens :)

[el lobo]

I feed mine on toads, leopard frogs, spring peepers, tadpoles, various analids, live fuzzies, grasshoppers, minnows, very small chubs....basically whatever I can catch during the summer. Toads are their favourite. I would NOT recommend toads! As has been stated numerous times on past threads, once a snake goes toad, it would rather not go back. During the winter, I usually buy earthworms from the baitshop, and fuzzies, hoppers, and goldfish from pet supply stores. As James stated, variety is key. Enrichment is beneficial in so many ways...keep them interested!

[el lobo]

Oh, and I usually feed anywhere around every 4 days to a week...I don't really have an organised feeding schedule; I just go by the size of their last meal :)

[adamanteus]

Grasshoppers, Caleb? Have you actually seen them take these? It's generally accepted that Garters don't take this kind of prey... if you have a photo of that happening, it would be good to see.:)

[el lobo]

I will try a photo next time I feed one...my camera is in the shop :( I have also caught a garter that regurgitated a grasshopper. As I said, next time I feed a grasshopper, I will post a picture!

[el lobo]

I could still use my sister's camera like I did for my monitor...I will have to wait though...she is leaving to tour the east coast for a week tomorrow morning...but that is ok...the grasshoppers aren't out yet anyway!

[SpyrotheGartersnake]

my garters all feed on the same diet:
trout,salmon,pinkies(rat and mice),nightcrawlers,bannna slugs sometimes....


what do you feed your garters?

[infernalis]

about the same, throw in live guppies, newts, etc...

Wayne

[el lobo]

didn't we have a thread like this just a couple days ago?

[adamanteus]

didn't we have a thread like this just a couple days ago?

We did.... now you're in it!;)

[el lobo]

wow. That was magical!

[Snake lover 3-25]

anyone know how long bait worms will stay alive in the fridge????

[infernalis]

anyone know how long bait worms will stay alive in the fridge????

Until that one morning when you open it up and find dead worms.

I'm sorry I had to....

Mine are always ate befor they die, a couple weeks is seldom a problem.

Wayne

[Snake lover 3-25]

lol

okay thanks!!!!

[Zephyr]

I've kept nightcrawlers in potting soil for around 3 months with no problems.

[Snake lover 3-25]

ok :D:D:D:D:D:D

[Sid]

I feed mainly pinkies or sub adult mice ( depending on the size of the Garter) , some minnows, and some night crawlers. Adults are fed weekly and babies are fed twice per week.

[Kurly1]

Uh-Oh... After reading all your responses I don't think we are feeding my son's garter snake enough. We feed him one pinky once a week. Have had him about a year now and he has shed three times. When my son caught him, he was very small. He is about 16 inches long now so I guess we should be feeding him more often and more of a variety? :confused:

[el lobo]

I would say more variety, yes. I dunno about frequency though...

[adamanteus]

I would suggest greaty variety and greater quantity.

[Kurly1]

When you say greater quantity do you mean feeding him two pinkies instead of one at the same feeding? My son used to cut the pinky into pieces before feeding him but the snake is now able to eat it whole.

My husband goes fishing a lot during the summer so I'll have him get an extra box of nightcrawlers or minnows the next time he goes to the bait store. I guess I was just afraid that the snake wouldn't eat the pinkies if we started giving him nightcrawlers and minnows again.

I saw this video of a garter snake catching his own minnows from a bowl in his tank on YouTube. Of course the minnows were live and swimming around in the bowl. It was pretty interesting to watch the snake hunting his own prey so to speak. Does anyone else's snake do that?

[KITKAT]

snip ... so I'll have him get an extra box of nightcrawlers or minnows the next time he goes to the bait store. I guess I was just afraid that the snake wouldn't eat the pinkies if we started giving him nightcrawlers and minnows again.

I saw this video of a garter snake catching his own minnows from a bowl in his tank on YouTube. Of course the minnows were live and swimming around in the bowl. It was pretty interesting to watch the snake hunting his own prey so to speak. Does anyone else's snake do that?

That was probably one of MY four videos titled "garter snake hunting style", and along with them there is a video response, as well as several comments written by me, showing what happens to a garter that eats a steady diet of minnows. PLEASE DON'T FEED YOUR GARTER MINNOWS ON A REGULAR BASIS!!!!

YouTube - Thiamin deficiency (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFGpH2cZ8uU)



Regarding the cruelty of filming this snake instead of euthanizing it immediately... 1. The snake had been treated with vitamin B complex and we were waiting to see if it would help her. 2. Providing education about this nutritional disease will help many other gartersnakes avoid the same suffering.

Guide to feeding garter snakes: VARIETY, VARIETY, VARIETY.

Un-safe foods for garter snakes: Minnows (live or frozen), Goldfish (live or frozen), frogs or tadpoles (live contains parasites, frozen MAY be safe), crickets (garter snakes cannot digest insects).

Safe foods for garter snakes: Raw frozen and thawed trout and salmon cut into strips, nightcrawlers, slugs, scented beef organ meat strips, scented venison strips.

[Scaley.Jade]

wow interesting to see all the different views will bear it in mind when i eventually get some garters of my own
so basically variety is key to them being healthy

[adamanteus]

so basically variety is key to them being healthy

Absolutely.... pinkies, 'safe' fish and earthworms, makes a good diet.:)

[Kurly1]

All I can say is that I was very glad when our little guy started eating pinkies. In the beginning we were feeding him earthworms and his poo was ... ewwwwwwww :eek: ...soooo smelly and sooo runny! Never thought I would be so happy to see a more solid poo with less odor in my life. :)

Guess that memory of feeding earthworms has stuck with me but it won't be so bad as long as we mix up his diet a bit. Just got him a larger terrarium. My son is away at camp so he has no idea that I got his snake a larger home. I am waiting for him to come home and move his snake into the larger one and let him get more stuff for it too. Both of them will be very happy!

[crzy_kevo]

according to the thiaminase containing fish article bass is a safe type of fish and my garter readily takes small fillets that i cut off altho if there are any ribs in the meat which most small bass have the garter wont eat it i fish a lot so i am planning on having many fillets stored in the freezer for the winter months my garter also loves earthworms and i toss him a live minnow once in a while for a treat

[adamanteus]

Fillets are fine, that's what I use. Although unless you are using other foods as well, I would recommend a multi-vitamin supplement, especially formulated for reptiles.. there are many on the market.
I feed mine (approximately) 60% fish fillet (trout or salmon), 30% pinkies, 10% earthworms (nightcrawlers).

[crzy_kevo]

i will feed george earthworms when i can find them i usually go across the street and start turning up rocks but i will occasionally stroll down to the bait shop and get some worms a dozen worms will go a long way for 1 snake

[anji1971]

....... a dozen worms will go a long way for 1 snake

Tell that to my snakes, who chug down 4 or 5 nightcrawlers at a time!!:D

[Rook]

Rook gets Pinkies, various fish(live or fillets), and earthworms, and he is fed once a week. we breed our own pinkies and fish and catch our own earthworms, Rook does quite well, eats anything we give him, and grows like a weed :p