New snake owner

[reptilegirl]

Hello everyone,
I am new here and I joined this forum because I am having some snake issues.
I caught a storeria dekayi at work last month, I take animals home from there all the time because the managers kill them.
Anyway, everything was going good until I got home today and saw like 20 babies in the tank. I have no idea what to do, what do I feed them I feed the mother earth worms?
can I touch them? is it ok to touch the mother or is she in pain, she looks tired?:confused:


thanks, any help would be appreciated :)

[guidofatherof5]

Welcome,
20 babies! Yes, she's tired. Very small(tiny) earth worms or very small slugs(large ones cut up) will get the babies started. I'm dealing with my first baby Dekayi's so it's new ground to me, also. Make sure they have access to plenty of water and something to hide under. Best of luck.

[Snakers]

as steve sad that is alot for dekay and she is tired so gently remove the babies and put them in a small setup feed them what steve said and what i do is separate the ones that have eaten and the ones that haven't good luck with your new babies

[Didymus20X6]

Not red wigglers. Red wigglers are poisonous to snakes.

[Snakers]

We've got a blind date with Destiny!
And it looks like she's ordered the lobster!
best signature ever

[Didymus20X6]

We've got a blind date with Destiny!
And it looks like she's ordered the lobster!
best signature ever
Thanks! ^_^

I'll give you a cookie if you can tell me where I got it from.

[Snakers]

MYstery MEN!
(http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0132347/)

[Didymus20X6]

http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/PTGPOD/826309.jpg

[Snakers]

mmmm warmmmm

[drache]

not cookies - dekays

good luck with them, reptilegirl
sound like you've got your hands full right now
the first couple of weeks are the hardest

[count dewclaw]

Welcome, welcome! :D

Congratulations on the new snakes, hope things go well with all the wee ones.

[Mommy2many]

Welcome to the forum! And good luck with the squigglies!:D

[reptilegirl]

Thanks for the support guys!
I tried cutting up a worm, but they didn't eat it, they had some interest in it when it was whole, but obviously it was too big.
does anywhere sell baby slugs or baby earthworms?

thanks

[mustang]

Thanks for the support guys!
I tried cutting up a worm, but they didn't eat it, they had some interest in it when it was whole, but obviously it was too big.
does anywhere sell baby slugs or baby earthworms?

thanks
petco...red wrigglers!

[reptilegirl]

someone else posted that red wigglers r poisonous to snakes, is that not true?

[Didymus20X6]

Red wigglers are NOT recommended for garter snake consumption. They are toxic, and will make the snakes sick.

See the CARE SHEET (http://www.thamnophis.com/caresheets/index.php?title=Garter_Snake_Care_Sheet#TYPICAL_TY PES_OF_FOOD:) for details.

[mustang]

Red wigglers are NOT recommended for garter snake consumption. They are toxic, and will make the snakes sick.

See the CARE SHEET (http://www.thamnophis.com/caresheets/index.php?title=Garter_Snake_Care_Sheet#TYPICAL_TY PES_OF_FOOD:) for details.
i know but they eat worms in wild and small ones are hard to come by...i used a minnow wrapped around a pinky since he ate minnows which aint good either...i simply ment red wrigglers as somthn to cover up somthn like half a pinky so ittl eat that!...sorry if i wasnt clear enough!

[Didymus20X6]

But that's still counter-productive. To toxicity of the red wigglers will make them not want to eat, rather than entice them to eat. If they taste the red wiggler, they will associate that with the pinky, and decide not to eat it ever again.

It's like with humans: if you eat something that makes you feel sick, you tend not to want to eat whatever it is for a long time afterward. The same with red wigglers: it might entice them to eat once, but will also make them not want to eat it ever again.

[drache]

these guys sell baby nightcrawlers - bottom of page
Night Crawlers at Knutson's Live Bait - Live Canadian Night Crawler packages for fishing bait or pet feeding (http://www.knutsonlivebait.com/night_crawlers.html)

[reptilegirl]

The mother snake has been eating the red ones and so far she hasn't had a problem with them. I called a pet store and this guy said that baby brown snake won't eat in captivity and are better off if you set them free outside. That confuses me because the mother eats and she is in captivity.
Has anyone successfully raise baby dekays in captivity?

thanks

ps: sorry for the abundance of questions guys

[Snakers]

yes i have susccsefully raised beautifull baby browns in the past and now have more

[mustang]

But that's still counter-productive. To toxicity of the red wigglers will make them not want to eat, rather than entice them to eat. If they taste the red wiggler, they will associate that with the pinky, and decide not to eat it ever again.

It's like with humans: if you eat something that makes you feel sick, you tend not to want to eat whatever it is for a long time afterward. The same with red wigglers: it might entice them to eat once, but will also make them not want to eat it ever again.
...well i had a flathead and all he ate was red wrigglers...he was allready at adult length when i caught him....and it was during winter when very cold...i believe i kept him here longer than he would have lasted if i hadnt found him

[jitami]

Robert, just because we've done something in the past doesn't make it the best advice. Red wigglers are known to be toxic. There are other choices out there, so why not stick with things we know are safe?

Reptilegirl, the only thing I know that works are tiny baby slugs. Some have had sucess getting them to take cut up worms and even cut up pinky parts, but they really do prefer slugs. If you can't find slugs it's probably best to release them very near to where you found the mom.

[mustang]

Robert, just because we've done something in the past doesn't make it the best advice. Red wigglers are known to be toxic. There are other choices out there, so why not stick with things we know are safe?

Reptilegirl, the only thing I know that works are tiny baby slugs. Some have had sucess getting them to take cut up worms and even cut up pinky parts, but they really do prefer slugs. If you can't find slugs it's probably best to release them very near to where you found the mom.
ya listen to him... he probably(we does) know best

[reptilegirl]

ok, well I will stop buying the red ones then, the mother was the only one that liked them anyway. For the mother are night crawlers too big? I will try to look for baby slugs outside.
I cant put the babies back where i found the mother, I found the mother in the garden center where i work. She came off a plant truck in one of the plants and the other workers were going to kill it (they kill anything that wanders in there, i've saved other stuff from there before) so i took it home.
I tried to give her away at first because I thought that snakes only ate mice and I couldn't handle that, but after i found out she ate bugs I was soooooo happy.
I really hope the babies survive.

[jitami]

I cant put the babies back where i found the mother, I found the mother in the garden center where i work. She came off a plant truck in one of the plants and the other workers were going to kill it (they kill anything that wanders in there, i've saved other stuff from there before)

Sorry. I missed this part before :( Nightcrawlers are fine. You'll just have to cut them up. It's not a fun process, but Shannon (aSnakeLovinBabe) has a technique that makes it a little easier. Hold the worm under hot running water for a couple of seconds. This kills the worm and makes it a little easier to cut either with scissors or a knife. The babies can eat this too if you cut the pieces small enough. Your best bet is to find some slugs, though. You can cut them to size, too. I can only guess what a slimy process that may be, but we do what we have to for the little ones, right? If this doesn't work would you be willing to ship them to someone who has experience with them? Shannon, Steve, or a former member who has had good results raising baby dekays?

[Didymus20X6]

I'm telling you: A Damascus steel santoku and a nice big cutting board.