Slugs?

[RedSidedSPR]

I have two questions:

1. Are slugs a good food source for garters? I've read that they are, but rarely hear of them being used... I have a lot of them in my yard. A LOT.

2. I've read ALOT of things (especially on this forum) about how you can't feed snakes stuff from the wild because of parasites. I totally agree, but... I've also seen people from this forum talk about how they dig up there own worms (and slugs occasionally)... Is that safe? Do you recommend? If so, why are worms safe from the wild, but nothing else? Is it because of what they eat? This goes for slugs too.
I'm mostly asking because worms kinda expensive where I get them (PetsMart/PetCo) and I use them up quickly. And like I've said before THE ONLY local pet stores I have are PetsMart and PetCo. I hate those. They are expensive and take horrible care of their animals (petco is worse)... So I'd like to be able to dig up my own food... my own snake food, that is.

[mb90078]

Earthworms are less likely to have parasites that will do major damage to your snake than other types of wild caught foods. The problem with earthworms is herbicides and pesticides (fertilizers).

As for purchasing nightcrawlers, have you looked to walmart? You can get a cup of them for a bit over 3 bucks, more of them in there than petsmart & petsco too, I believe.

[guidofatherof5]

Worms and slugs can both carry parasites. I think(my opinion) that worm carry less of a parasite risk than some other(frogs, tadpoles, minnows).
I feed slugs when I can find them but have found that many of my snakes don't want them.
I look at wild caught night crawlers/slug as the lesser of other evils to feed them.

[RedSidedSPR]

We live on private property with lots of woods in the back (well, we did until the tornado flattened the woods a week ago), so pesticides won't be a problem.

I have checked WalMart, but they don't have 'em. Don't know why. I'll check our other one.

[RedSidedSPR]

Worms and slugs can both carry parasites. I think(my opinion) that worm carry less of a parasite risk than some other(frogs, tadpoles, minnows).
I feed slugs when I can find them but have found that many of my snakes don't want them.
I look at wild caught night crawlers/slug as the lesser of other evils to feed them.

Is it safe enough to risk it, or not? Should I do it only occasionally, or not at all?

[guidofatherof5]

Is it safe enough to risk it, or not? Should I do it only occasionally, or not at all?

It becomes your call as the keeper.

[RedSidedSPR]

Dang, man, your the expert! You have like, a billion snakes, and I only have one! And I'd like to keep him nice and healthy, so I don't want to feed him anything I shouldn't, but I'd like to get free food out of my yard so I don't go broke buying my food from stupid stores like PetsMart!! But I don't know enough about that to risk it without some help. I think I'll just stick with store bought food, except maybe occasionally, like when I run out and haven't bought any... sigh...

[ConcinusMan]

I've never had any problems that I could associate with feeding my snakes worms that I collected from the wild. It is my opinion that as long as you get them from an unpolluted source, it doesn't hurt anything. Gut loaded worms and slugs are quite nutritious. High in calcium and iron.

[guidofatherof5]

Dang, man, your the expert!


No, no I'm not.
All any of us can do is make suggestions to you in response to your questions. You must gather all the information given to you and make a decision.
I don't want to tell you what to do.
If your question had been whether you should feed your snake goldfish. I would have came right out and said no you shouldn't but that doesn't mean you would listen. It would be your choice.
Your question of whether to feed wild caught worms/slugs has far less of a risk and comes down to the keeper's personal preference.
These are your snakes and you must develop a plan on keeping them as all of us have done with our snakes ;)

[RedSidedSPR]

I've never had any problems that I could associate with feeding my snakes worms that I collected from the wild. It is my opinion that as long as you get them from an unpolluted source, it doesn't hurt anything. Gut loaded worms and slugs are quite nutritious. High in calcium and iron.

So I'll probably end up doing it. Just not a lot...


No, no I'm not.
All any of us can do is make suggestions to you in response to your questions. You must gather all the information given to you and make a decision.
I don't want to tell you what to do.
If your question had been whether you should feed your snake goldfish. I would have came right out and said no you shouldn't but that doesn't mean you would listen. It would be your choice.
Your question of whether to feed wild caught worms/slugs has far less of a risk and comes down to the keeper's personal preference.
These are your snakes and you must develop a plan on keeping them as all of us have done with our snakes ;)

I would listen if you said no goldfish, because you're the expert:D(compared to me). Or at least an expert. You know what you're talking about, and you know more than me, and you have way more experience than me. I'd feel the same way with Richard, or Wayne... Not EXPERTS, but experienced snake keepers. But I hear what you're saying.

[kibakiba]

The way I see it is there is always a risk no matter what your feeding. I view slugs as a treat. They seem like they would be very fattening for the snakes. I know Snap loves them, and my wild caughts will take them without much of a problem. I'm cautious about feeding my snakes worms, too. I make sure that the worms have been eating nutritious things before I get them near my snakes. When I catch worms, I put them in a well ventilated container with some left over organic veggie scraps and some bone meal or finely crushed eggshells, with some carefresh and a little bit of clean soil. After a week, a one inch worm shoots up to 4 inches-6 inches. It doesn't lower the risk of parasites, but it makes them healthier, in my opinion.

[RedSidedSPR]

Good to know. I might try the feeding of the veggies. It makes me a little paranoid feeding stuff from the wild, so if it makes it healthier, I'm all for it. As for the slugs, I never planned on that being a main food source, I just have so many in my yard, I thought it would be cool if I could feed him some occasionally.

[kibakiba]

Yeah, Snap goes wild for them, so I let her have one every month when I find them. I keep hoping it'll make her love me, but it doesn't. ;)

[RedSidedSPR]

Don't dislike the hand that feeds you. Good quote.:D Anyway, I guess as long as it's safe-ish I'll try it. You do feed them live, right? Not sure if you can freeze those things or not.

[kibakiba]

Slugs? I feed them live. I make sure to give smaller ones, since they'll try to slime their way out of the snakes mouth. The smaller ones can't slime as much.

I think someone said not to feed slugs that put out yellow slime. I can't remember if that was it or if it was something else.

[RedSidedSPR]

I think I've heard that yellow slime means something...

[guidofatherof5]

Redworms have a yellowish fluid(defensive) that is toxic to garter snakes.
Eisenia fetida - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eisenia_fetida)

[RedSidedSPR]

I know, maybe that's what I'm thinking of..

[ConcinusMan]

Good to know. I might try the feeding of the veggies. It makes me a little paranoid feeding stuff from the wild, so if it makes it healthier, I'm all for it. As for the slugs, I never planned on that being a main food source, I just have so many in my yard, I thought it would be cool if I could feed him some occasionally.

Yeah, why not. I got tons of slugs too, nearly year 'round. Northwesterns and a couple of my radixes love slugs from my yard. If you get them early in the morning their guts are still full of fresh greens. You could gather them up and deliberately feed them cabbage, broccoli, kale, spinach, whatever, right before you give them to your snakes too.

If you're ever unsure if that red worm you find in your yard is the bad kind, pick it up. If it's the bad kind, it will excrete and nasty yellow slime thick and sticky like slug slime, and it will smell like rotting flesh. If it just smells like dirt, you're probably OK.

[kibakiba]

I caught a slug earlier and gave it to Ember. It created a very thick yellow/orange slime and nearly suffocated him. I got it out of his mouth, thankfully. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't the normal slug we have around here. It was brown with lighter brown stripes down its back. I've seen something similar, though it was usually a yellowbrown colour with lighter stripes. If it puts out yellow slime when you squeeze it, I think it would be safer to keep it well away from your snakes.

[nitrogen15]

The other thing to consider is whether the slugs have been exposed to pesticides or fertilizers, like in your garden. Turns out slugs soak up undesirable chemicals like sponges and don't necessarily die after exposure. If your yard is mostly "organic", the slugs should be safe.

[RedSidedSPR]

Yeah, why not. I got tons of slugs too, nearly year 'round. Northwesterns and a couple of my radixes love slugs from my yard. If you get them early in the morning their guts are still full of fresh greens. You could gather them up and deliberately feed them cabbage, broccoli, kale, spinach, whatever, right before you give them to your snakes too.

Alright, I think I'll go dig some up tomorrow morning.



I caught a slug earlier and gave it to Ember. It created a very thick yellow/orange slime and nearly suffocated him. I got it out of his mouth, thankfully. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't the normal slug we have around here. It was brown with lighter brown stripes down its back. I've seen something similar, though it was usually a yellowbrown colour with lighter stripes. If it puts out yellow slime when you squeeze it, I think it would be safer to keep it well away from your snakes.

Gotcha. Stay away from yellow crap coming out of slimy slugs. Easy enough.


The other thing to consider is whether the slugs have been exposed to pesticides or fertilizers, like in your garden. Turns out slugs soak up undesirable chemicals like sponges and don't necessarily die after exposure. If your yard is mostly "organic", the slugs should be safe.

My yard is as organic as it gets. No garden. Just a big front yard with lots of woods in the back. Woods is where I see the worms/slugs.

[ConcinusMan]

I caught a slug earlier and gave it to Ember. It created a very thick yellow/orange slime and nearly suffocated him. I got it out of his mouth, thankfully. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't the normal slug we have around here. It was brown with lighter brown stripes down its back. I've seen something similar, though it was usually a yellowbrown colour with lighter stripes. If it puts out yellow slime when you squeeze it, I think it would be safer to keep it well away from your snakes.


There are a few native woodland slugs around the northwest to stay away from. And yes, they produce a very thick, sticky yellow or orange slime. These are not slugs you would find in a typical garden or backyard situation unless you just happen to live in the middle of a woodland. I want to stop short of trying to produce a lesson in slug I.D. I just know them by how they look.

For the most part, I find these in my yard and they are fine garter food:

(Tiger slug)

http://www.all-creatures.org/works/images/tiger-slug-Limax-maximus.jpg

Also these lighter colored ones are OK:

http://oregonstate.edu/dept/nurspest/Images/mollusks/slugs/slugcourtshipthumb.jpg

But some are bad news and are only typically found in woodland type settings and give off a choking slime. They tend to have a rough look to their surface, a tough skin, are black or very dark above, with yellow or orange below:

http://oregonstate.edu/dept/nurspest/Images/mollusks/slugs/flying%20slug%20thumb.jpg


[img]

[kibakiba]

I live in the middle of a forest and field. None of the slugs we have in my area look like that. The one I gave ember looked just very slightly like the big brown one, however, it was striped. The middle of its back was a dark tan and its sides were that brown colour.
We do have a lot of those brown ones around, but we always throw them to the side when we slug hunt. The only light coloured ones are very young slugs. I guess I'll have to really pay attention to what they look like when I want to feed them.

Needless to say, the slug that did that to Ember is not alive and was tortured. I'm not that kind of person, but if it harms something that means everything to me... There is hell to pay. ;)

[RedSidedSPR]

None of mine look like that either, but I'll stay away from them. We have tiger slugs too, I think.

[Spankenstyne]

Another suggestion for worms is to check out a local hardware or fishing/bait store. They're less expensive than from a pet store. Anything repackaged or being sold specifically for the pet industry usually gets a large markup.

[RedSidedSPR]

No local fishing/bait store. Sucks don't it?

[ConcinusMan]

Another suggestion for worms is to check out a local hardware or fishing/bait store. They're less expensive than from a pet store. Anything repackaged or being sold specifically for the pet industry usually gets a large markup. True, very true. I can get a lot of big night crawlers and slugs any time I feel like collecting them. For all other times, I can get 26 night crawlers from the walmart down the street, for $2.99.

[RedSidedSPR]

My location SUCKS! No local pet stores other than PetsMart and PetCo, not bait stores, my walmart doesn't cary any of that stuff.

[Sonya610]

Question about feeding earthworms. To avoid cutting up frantically squirming earthworms would it be okay to freeze them briefly before feeding (and then cut/dethaw) ?

Assuming the snakes will accept them, would it make them watery or somehow undesirable?

[guidofatherof5]

From what I've heard freezing worms gives you mess when they're thawed out.

[RedSidedSPR]

From what experienced, you don't want to do that.:D

[Sonya610]

Okay. I recall doing it years ago for a baby bird BUT of course baby birds eat out of an eye dropper and aren't so picky. Hope to get the babies on 100% pinkies and silversliders (with salmon/trout occasionally) before too long so maybe very few worm slasher scenes will be necessary.

When they can take whole earthworms the yard is full of them and the occasional treat will be easy to deliver.

[mb90078]

Question about feeding earthworms. To avoid cutting up frantically squirming earthworms would it be okay to freeze them briefly before feeding (and then cut/dethaw) ?

Assuming the snakes will accept them, would it make them watery or somehow undesirable?

Not undesirable in my experience. Accidentally froze some a while back, and figured to try to feed it to them anyway. They went NUTS over them, but it was an absolute mess.

[Spankenstyne]

Question about feeding earthworms. To avoid cutting up frantically squirming earthworms would it be okay to freeze them briefly before feeding (and then cut/dethaw) ?

Assuming the snakes will accept them, would it make them watery or somehow undesirable?

I've got a special worm cutting board and straight single edged razor blade for my worm cutting station. I rinse em off in cold water, chop into some bigger pieces and then just chop the bigger pieces consecutively in halves until I get the sizes I need. Once they're cut a few times you don't get as much wiggling.

[kibakiba]

I cut my worms very fast with a sharp knife (which is only used for my snakes' food) if you cut them in to fifths really quickly, you shouldn't have such frantic wiggling. In my experience, freezing and thawing them makes them floppy and extremely hard to work with. I've run them under hot water for a couple seconds to get them to stop moving. I only do that with the very large ones that are hard to work with.

[RedSidedSPR]

I just cut 'em with a knife. Whatever's handy at the moment. If there's no knife handy, I pull 'em in half. THAT is nasty. And kinda hard to do.:D

[d_virginiana]

If you keep your worms in the refrigerator beforehand, they should be sluggish and not so wiggly, but none of the mess that happens with frozen worms. Makes cutting them up a lot easier.
(Sorry if this somehow gets posted twice; my internet keeps kicking me off and I can't tell if a post has gone through or not!)