Beginner's Questions

[Corinne33]

I just got my little snake yesterday and am trying to find out all i can. Right now he's crawling all over the log in his cage and seems to be reasonably happy/healthy and I'm trying to keep it that way so I have a few questions.

1-What is your substate of choice? I know what you CAN use but what do you PREFER to use. I just have paper towels down now b/c its all we had and it just looks trashy. Plus he likes to hide under them.

2- I have yet to see him anywhere near his water, should i put him in there to make sure he knows where it is?

3- He is a baby, i forget when they told me he was born but he is maybe 7inches long at the very very most. How much and how often should i feed him? I'm going to start with earthworms b/c they're free (my boyfriend sells bait in his store and is bringing me some tonight). I know thats not a complete diet but at least he won't starve to death before i can get something else.

4-How do i know if he has parasites?

5- I'm pretty sure he is an eastern garter but can someone take a peek at these pictures and tell me if i'm right?
http://i580.photobucket.com/albums/ss242/mwascorinne/100_0773.jpg

http://i580.photobucket.com/albums/ss242/mwascorinne/100_0775.jpg


6- I know you can't tell from these pictures, but is anyone on here decent at telling sex visually? Even if its just a guess I'd like some idea.

7-Can they be kept in groups? Should they be kept in groups? Would he be happier with a friend? I would be but I'm not a snake and don't want to come home to find my snakes warring with each other.

Thank you all SO much! I love forums and was so happy to find this one b/c its real life, real people, real experiences...no animal lives "by the book" and its nice to have people's brains to pick!

[MasSalvaje]

You have a lot of questions there that you will get lots of different answers to so I will throw in my two cents.

1-for young garters I just use paper towels. They are not the prettiest substrate but for as many little ones as I have right now and for as much as they poop, I find it the easiest and cleanest. I also use carefresh and that works really well, it is easy to spot clean and there are kinds that look pretty cool. If you go with carefresh try to get the "ultra" kind. It is "dust free" and I find it a lot easier to use.

2-You can but I don't think it is necessary. It will find it when it needs it, if it hasn't already.

3- Start it on anything it will take. Try cut up worms, feeder guppies (not goldfish or rosyreds), pinkie parts, salmon or trout fillets, whatever it will take. If you can get it started on worms go for it just make sure your boyfriend is getting worms from a clean source.

4- The only sure way is to take a fecal sample to the vet to get tested. They usually just look at it through a microscope and it is relatively cheap. There are more indepth test they can do but they can get pricey.

5- I don't know enough about Easterns to give a positive ID. It depends a lot on its original location. If I saw that here in my area I would say with out a doubt it is a Wandering Garter but like I said it all depends on place of origin.

6- Try to get pics of the vent posted, there are lots of people on hear that are really good at sexing visually on this site.

7- They can be in groups but be advised there are some species that are canibalistic (the wandering most notably), some people say it is better not to risk it.

I hope this helps a little. Like I said there are others here that will give a lot more info than I. Just keep studying and you will do fine.

Be sure to check out the caresheets on this site as well as others.

-Thomas

[Lovok]

I think I can help you with a few of those, if no one else has already in a Private Message to you...

1. substrate of choice? Paper towels and newspapers aren't really any good because:
a) you already found out they look like crap, and
b) they retain too much moisture, which could cause fungal growth/infections, mold, and it'll smell after a while, and
c) you'll spend more $$$ than you need to for maintenance.

I started with dried and dead leaves that I have in my back yard. While it looked ok, i found that it also had little "bonuses" in with it- little weird mite-looking critters, small spiders, baby millipedes, etc., which I figured couldn't be too healthy for her (I'll get to that in a sec) long term in an enclosed space. My next experiment, which is still in progress, is lawn clippings. I don't spray or use insecticides in the yard, so I'm confident that she won't get poisioned somehow. The clippings seem to be working great so far. I collect them right after I mow, so they smell good, are still damp but not wet, and good & soft. I'll layer the bottom of the tank with newspapers first, then layer the clippings on top. I've found that putting papers down first, you can just lift the whole deal out when it comes time to change the substrate. I'm not yet familiar with what garter poop looks like exactly, so I've been changing it out about once a week instead of digging for droppings (sounds like a game show, doesn't it? LOL). Using the lawn clippings is much less messy than the leaves. When the winter months come, I'm planning on using astroturf (astroterf? how the heck is that spelled anyway??). If you kind push the clippings down but not smash them, it should be solid enough for your baby so cruise along the top instead of burrowing underneath. That part you'll have to experiment with to see how it likes the grass, how much to put in, etc. this may sound like more of a production than keeping a cage clean, but it's actually pretty easy once you get the process down. It takes me 20 minutes tops, to hose out the empty tank, dry it, and put it back together. A friend of mine said "She's lucky to have you- sounds like she lives in a penthouse for snakes!" LOL

2. What do you have the water in? A shalow pan works best, but because Scylla is over twice as long as yours, I use a plastic container that I get chinese food deliveries in. After I put down the substrate, I put the water dish in (empty), and build up the grass around the edges of the "pool", making it flush with the edges. Once in place, then I put water in. That way, there's less of a "balancing act" by avoiding putting a full water dish in. I also have a couple hunks of tree bark I use as ramps, so she just runs right up over them, and across the water (if she doesn't stop for a drink first). You may want to help your baby along and show it where the water is too. They can smell it, and not knowing what you're using, it may be able to smelling it but not precisely locating it.

3. Not sure about this one. Someone else may be able to give a better answer. Until someone else does, stick with what you know: earthworms. That's what mine started on. Just get it to eat first. After that, you can compile a list of what they're known to eat, and just trial and error it. Stay on the side of caution, and whatever you end up trying, make sure its about the same size as the snake's head. Sure, they can do that nifty jaw-dislocation thing, but why not make it easier for it if you can? I cut salmon into slivers about the size of the worms she's eaten, and that seems to work just fine.

4. Can't help you with the mites question. Did you get it at a store or find it inthe wild? If it was in a store, I'd think it may stand more of a chance getting them from a dirty cage than from the wild. But that's just a guess.

5. I'd say yes, it's an Eastern. It's patterns are exactly like Scylla's, right down to the two yellow marks on the top of the head.

6. I found this page, and it really helped. It's how I determined mine is a female:

Alan's Garter Snakes - Maintenance of Garter Snakes (http://www.gartersnake.co.uk/maintenance.htm#Sexing%20snakes)

With yours being pretty small, you may have to wait a little while for it to get bigger if you're using those drawings, but they may be helpful.

7. Not sure about this one either. I'm happy with just the one, as I'm kinda limited on space, finances, and resources.

Hope this was helpful, and let me know how you make out!

[jitami]

Awww, such a cute baby! Congrats!

I like carefresh for substrate, but paper towel at first is a good choice for the first few weeks so you can see what's going on... and coming out ;) I'd show him/her the water, but just cause I'm a worry wart mothering type. Probably not necessary. After he settles in a bit feeding every other day or every third day should work well for you. As he gets older you can cut back a bit. Parasites, yeah, no way to tell without having a fecal test done. As long as it's not a wandering garter (T. elegans vagrans) they do seem to appreciate a buddy about their size, but certainly do just fine alone as well :) If you can get pics from the belly & side of the snake from about mid body down to the tail we should be able to help you determine the sex. You're off to a great start and I look forward to hearing more about your little one :)

[Corinne33]

Thanks for the help so far. Let me see if i can answer the questions already asked.

For a water dish I'm using one of my baby's bowls. It was wide and shallow and seemed about like the right size. I looked around on here and found some pictures and its about the same size as some other water dishes I've seen.

My boyfriend bought it home from his friends. His friend has a wild caught female that turned out to be preggers so he had about 20 babies to find homes for. I wanted a snake, my boyfriend and i got in a fight, he brought it home to make up to me lol.

I'm a little worried just cause he is so teeny tiny. If he doesn't make it i will be very very upset, BUT we have a whole bunch of garters in our basement i can probably track one down.

I am in Ohio, i don't THINK we have wanderers around here, but maybe we do...I'm gonna go google it.

[drache]

looks like you've gotten plenty of good advice already
welcome to the forum

[Corinne33]

Oh and one last thing. Someone mentioned space. He is in a 30 gallon tank, is that enough space? Is that enough space for him and a buddy? We have snakes like crazy around here and everyone in the house has been told to look out for one his size. Id ask the guy who gave us this one but knowing him hell charge an arm and a leg for another. He owed us a favor which is why this one was free.

[ssssnakeluvr]

eastern garter.... 30 gallon is awfully big for a baby...might have trouble finding food.

[Corinne33]

I can always section part of it off, not a problem there :-). Id rather have it be too big. I can make a big tank smaller, can't make a small tank bigger. Just glad to know its not too small!

[Lovok]

Corinne-

Here are some pics of the habitat (the "penthouse" :D) I've set up. It's an embarrassing admission to make, but I'm not sure what size the tank is! :p

This is the left side...
http://i463.photobucket.com/albums/qq360/Lovok_2008/Habitatleftside.jpg

and this is the right side...
http://i463.photobucket.com/albums/qq360/Lovok_2008/Habitatrightside.jpg

and this is Scylla after I moved the bark that's on the left side (one of her favorite spots to hide)...
http://i463.photobucket.com/albums/qq360/Lovok_2008/Scylla08409.jpg

Hope these give you a better idea of what I was describing in my post. :D

[gregmonsta]

eastern garter.... 30 gallon is awfully big for a baby...might have trouble finding food.

:rolleyes: I've never had trouble with babies finding food ... I always go for the biggest enclosure possible.

[GradStudentLeper]

Substrate: I use a combination of gravel, bark, and pond collected duckweed and other aquatic plants. I actually tend to replicate the marsh habitat that Eastern garters tend to inhabit, so i have areas with filtered open water. If you cannot do that with plants.

If you cant do that (or dont have the time to maintain that) another option that does the same thing is to layer substrates (gravel for drainage, then some nice organic soil, then a layer of say, leaf litter. This will create a nice biologically active substrate) If you do that, you wont need to do a whole lot of work keeping things clean. So long as you mist periodically and mix the soil the harmless aerobic bacteria will do the rest. Just clean out large pieces of fecal material. For water, you can either bury a large tupperware container and switch it out periodically (your snakes will appreciate larger water areas), or you can use a peice of plexiglass and silicone to section off a deeper water section you can keep filtered. From there, place branches and hollow logs and fix up your lights and you are golden.

Apparant hydrophobia: You might want to show him where it is, particularly because he has no idea what a water dish is, and would need to be trained to travel up to get to water.

Food: Earthworms are good, but not bait earthworms. They are kept in pretty poor conditions. Get them from a garden or mulch pile, or alternatively a pet shop. You can also use tiny little feeder guppies (not goldfish or minnows, but guppies. Any livebearer like mosquitofish are also good), or little tadpoles you fish out of a pond. Those have the advantage of offering complete nutrition.

Parasites: You dont know, and even if he has them, you wont be able to tell unless you start seeing them in feces. You can do a fecal smear test, but there is no point. WIth the low to mild parasite loads he will (yes, will. No matter what you feed him, it is just a matter of what type of parasite) get from his food he will be fine provided you dont starve or dehydrate him.

Species: He is either a sirtalis or an elegans. EIther way, care is identical.

Sexing: He is too young. Any guess is going to have the same probability of being right. 50%. Unless you want to probe him, which will just hurt the snake.

Most snakes are anti-social. Garters are not. They are not necessarily happy with a friend, but they dont mind one. The only problem will be when feeding time comes, as they will sometimes grab the same food item and... keep going... Particularly if one of your snakes is especially aggressive.

[Mommy2many]

Let me ask a question...

My kids have been catching what we believe to be baby trout in a stream behind our house. Would these be safe to feed my snakes? There are all sorts of sizes from very tiny to toe biting :) We don not live in an urban area, so I don't believe contamination would be a big problem. The stream actually starts as a trickle behind my house and then gets bigger. And when I say trickle, that is just what it is!

[GradStudentLeper]

Let me ask a question...

My kids have been catching what we believe to be baby trout in a stream behind our house. Would these be safe to feed my snakes? There are all sorts of sizes from very tiny to toe biting :) We don not live in an urban area, so I don't believe contamination would be a big problem. The stream actually starts as a trickle behind my house and then gets bigger. And when I say trickle, that is just what it is!

Yes. The little trout are just fine.

[Mommy2many]

Cool! Free food supply for my squiggly ones! And, the kids get to have fun doing it! :D

[untoucheclipse]

thats a nice setup :D gives me some ideas of what im going to do with my tank now

[commongartersnake]

Yes a 30 gallon isn't too small, try to put more than one water bowl then.