what type of snake do i have?

[nicolelove]

hi can anyone tell me wht type of baby garter snake i have? i have issues with feeding him and he hasn't ate since i bought him. can anyone tell me how i can get him to start eating worms or crickets i bought him?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Get rid of the crickets. Garter snakes don't eat crickets. also, try live guppies. And please read our care sheet.

[RdubSnider]

Hey I would say Its a radix (plains garter ) but its kinda hard to say for sure. Shannon's advice for feeding is perfect no matter what type it is.

[d_virginiana]

If you bought it then it might be a bad idea to just let it go depending on where you live and what snakes are native to that area..
Once it gets the right food it'll probably start right up eating though. :)

[kibakiba]

That's a Northwestern garter snake. They specialize in worms and slugs or snails. Make sure that if you are to feed it a slug, it is not bigger than it's head and that it's a safe slug. If it puts out yellow slime, it can kill the snake. Garter snakes NEVER eat crickets. Buy night crawlers, all of my northwesterns like night crawlers.

I doubt it's a radix if it's native to Washington ;)

[ssssnakeluvr]

it's a northwestern garter. they specialize in worms..... garters will generally not feed for a week or so after being caught as they acclimate to captivity. very small worms is the best to feed. absolutely avoid crickets!!! garters can't digest them or any insects.

[Didymus20X6]

Crickets are out. Try nightcrawlers or guppies. Being such a small snake, I would cut the nightcrawler up into bite-sized pieces right before feeding them to the snake, that way they're small enough for it to handle, and are still wiggling around to catch its attention.

Also, how long have you had the snake? Snakes generally don't need to eat frequently (about twice a week is good - a juvenile snake may need to eat more frequently, though). They tend to go on lengthy fasts on occasion (sometimes weeks at a time - shed cycles, brumination, if they're about to give birth or pass unfertilized eggs). With snakes, you really have to be patient and let them eat when they want. But if the snake is relatively new, you might want to wait as long as three weeks to let it adjust to its new environment.

[drache]

welcome to the forum, Nicole

just to clarify:
the worms you feed should be nightcrawlers (a kind of earth worm), not meal worms; or "compost" worms (red wigglers - also earthworms, but toxic)

[nicolelove]

thank you everyone who has replayed to my post! i did buy night crawlers and i cut them up but i didnt no how small to cut them up. i think it was to big. but im very new to this and i didnt no they die like 5 days after buying them so i trew them out this morning. and i took the crickets out as well. im leaving for petco this afternoon to buy some pinkies for him. i was wondering how in the world to cut those up for him to eat and wht size? today will be 9 days iv had him. and still wont eat.

[kibakiba]

If you keep them cold they wont die that fast. He will eat when he's ready, give him some time alone and offer food every day if you're that worried. He's a baby, it's likely that he was born not too long ago. They don't eat, usually, until the second week after being born.

[RedSidedSPR]

cut when frozen. 9 days is not that bad. Mine took 4 weeks

[RedSidedSPR]

cut them frozen. 9 days is not that bad.

EDIT: OOPS!! already posted... sorry

[ConcinusMan]

Looks like you bought a snake that is the most commonly encountered reptile in the state of WA? Hope you didn't pay much. Any is too much. They can be found in high numbers just about anywhere in western WA, including Puyallup.

He is just a baby and probably hasn't eaten yet. It can take a while. Several weeks. He doesn't look too starved. I would keep trying, and use small, wiggling earthworms if you can.

[Didymus20X6]

I wouldn't chastise her too much for buying the snake. After all, she may have not been confident to herp for one, and buying one was just a good time/effort-saving shortcut. But then again, I have Easterns, which are extremely common around here, and I'm confident enough to catch them myself when I spot them. But if I hadn't gained that confidence, I never would have wanted to keep one and wouldn't pay for it.

[RedSidedSPR]

Plus they're healthy, tamer, etc, when they're CB

[ConcinusMan]

Plus they're healthy, tamer, etc, when they're CB

Common misconception

[kibakiba]

My wild caughts are TONS more calm than my CB... :rolleyes:
If anything, my cb snakes hate my guts. Look at how Snap acts compared to my least tame snake, Runt. Runt will musk if you pick her up quickly and try very hard to squeeze the life out of your fingers... But if you pick her up slowly she is the sweetest little thing. Now, if you pick up Snap, regardless of how it's done, she opens up and poops and musks everywhere, she bites, hisses and whips you with her tail. She'll occasionally smack your hand with the side of her head, too, which makes me giggle because it's more like she's "facepalming" in a really literal sense.

[RedSidedSPR]

Ok... i know all that, i have a WC too. But when you catch a snake he's not gonna be perfectly healthy without a bunch of meds. He's also LIKELY to be more skittish and stuff. BUT I GET IT!! No prob with WC snakes. I have one, i'd keep the next one i find.

Maybe it's just MY experience. My CB snakes are the calmest thing ever, even the one that bites all the time. But my WC is the jumpiest, freaks out if i put him on the floor blah blah blah. But he's getting there.

[d_virginiana]

For babies I don't think it really matters... I mean, if you are getting an adult I think a CB snake is more likely to be calmer with being handled, but I've handled some pretty calm wild ones.


I wouldn't chastise her too much for buying the snake. After all, she may have not been confident to herp for one, and buying one was just a good time/effort-saving shortcut. But then again, I have Easterns, which are extremely common around here, and I'm confident enough to catch them myself when I spot them. But if I hadn't gained that confidence, I never would have wanted to keep one and wouldn't pay for it.

Mine is an eastern too, and they're apparently very common around here, but I *never* see them in my area, even though I like to think I'm pretty good at finding snakes. :p Before I bought mine though and got used to handling snakes, I never would've been confident enough to just go out and grab a wild one to keep..

[RedSidedSPR]

I guess it's just my experience with the two (CB and WC) i do get it though. WC can be just as tame, and CB can be very nippy etc. (like my flame)

And, yeah. Who cares if she bought/caught the snake. Shut up, man! :D

[ConcinusMan]

Well, this is a northwestern. Most of them are very tame and sweet. WC or CB. I hope this one eats for you soon. They make great pets if you can get them to eat well. Chopped worms or small wiggly worms in a dish, moistened a bit with a spray of water, then give some privacy and time. That's your best bet with this little guy.