pitbulllady
10-13-2009, 09:17 AM
I've kept and bred Nerodia for quite some time, but never have bred Thamnophis of any species before, although I've had the odd Garter now and then. Back on Sept. 5, I purchased a really nice-looking large(for this species)female Blue-Striped Ribbon Snake(T. sauritus nitae)at a reptile show in Raleigh, NC. She'd recently dropped a clutch of 13 babies, which the vendor was also selling at the show. I often do educational presentations with snakes for school groups, etc., and this girl was large enough and attractive and calm enough to make a good addition, so I took her home. She'd been devouring Tilapia and Salmon pieces with gusto, until about two weeks ago, when she went into a shed, and has not eaten since. I figured that she was just getting ready to shut down for winter, given that she had good weight on her. A couple of days ago, she started acting strangely, very agitated, trying to get out of her enclosure, etc., and I got a bit worried that she was sick.
Well, long story short-woke up this morning to 16 new mouths to feed! At least it explained why she was so agitated and not feeding, but man, these things are TINY! I could floss my teeth with one of these little strings! They are active and alert, and most are still undergoing their first shed, but what on earth do I feed these little buggers? At least baby Water Snakes can eat good-sized fish chunks at birth. The mother eats cut fish pieces, so are baby Ribbons likely to take really small slivers of fish, too? I can't get guppies. We have no pet shops within a 45-minute radius(yes, I'm out in the "sticks"), and they do not sell feeder fish other than goldfish and rosy reds, both "no-no's". I live in an area with no streams or ponds, only one river, and the only access is a very dangerous hang-out for drug dealers and gangs, so catching my own tiny fish like Mosquito Fish isn't an option. I need some recommendations as to what to feed these tiny things.
Also, what about the color-the mother has really bright electric blue striping, but the babies' stripes are all yellow or gold; I can't even see a greenish tinge to indicate blue coming in. Does the blue on these show up later, after several sheds, or is it a recessive genetic trait that must be present in both parents? I have no idea what she got bred to, and since she'd just dropped a clutch right before I got her, had no reason to suspect she was gravid again. I do not know if the seller had left her in with a male or not before selling her. I'd never heard of these double-clutching before. Do they retain sperm from a previous breeding, even though they have dropped one clutch already? All of the adults that the seller had were females, including this one and a Red-Striped Ribbon from TX. I'm in SC, and these aren't native to this state but to Florida, so simply releasing the babies is a bad idea. I'd really appreciate some advice on what to do with these minute little things.
Well, long story short-woke up this morning to 16 new mouths to feed! At least it explained why she was so agitated and not feeding, but man, these things are TINY! I could floss my teeth with one of these little strings! They are active and alert, and most are still undergoing their first shed, but what on earth do I feed these little buggers? At least baby Water Snakes can eat good-sized fish chunks at birth. The mother eats cut fish pieces, so are baby Ribbons likely to take really small slivers of fish, too? I can't get guppies. We have no pet shops within a 45-minute radius(yes, I'm out in the "sticks"), and they do not sell feeder fish other than goldfish and rosy reds, both "no-no's". I live in an area with no streams or ponds, only one river, and the only access is a very dangerous hang-out for drug dealers and gangs, so catching my own tiny fish like Mosquito Fish isn't an option. I need some recommendations as to what to feed these tiny things.
Also, what about the color-the mother has really bright electric blue striping, but the babies' stripes are all yellow or gold; I can't even see a greenish tinge to indicate blue coming in. Does the blue on these show up later, after several sheds, or is it a recessive genetic trait that must be present in both parents? I have no idea what she got bred to, and since she'd just dropped a clutch right before I got her, had no reason to suspect she was gravid again. I do not know if the seller had left her in with a male or not before selling her. I'd never heard of these double-clutching before. Do they retain sperm from a previous breeding, even though they have dropped one clutch already? All of the adults that the seller had were females, including this one and a Red-Striped Ribbon from TX. I'm in SC, and these aren't native to this state but to Florida, so simply releasing the babies is a bad idea. I'd really appreciate some advice on what to do with these minute little things.