I can hardly contain myself!!!

[dieselbaby]

Im so excited, i was going to wait and post once i had them, but i just cannot contain myself. I have found not one but two adorable little checkered baby garters to adopt. Thank you so much to everyone that helped me find these two adorable babies. I will post pics of them as soon as they arrive. I am expecting delivery on October the 6th, unless something happens to change that. It was getting very frustrating trying to arrange shipping, but at last we have done it. so crossing fingers that all goes smoothly from here on out.

Its like 2 weeks away but i have have their new home ready for them already..lol.. gives me some time to get the humidity down from the cocohusk and play with temps a bit to get it all on track for when babies arrive. :D

[katach]

That is fantastic news! Congrats! I can't wait to see pictures.

[guidofatherof5]

Great news. Looking forward to seeing some photos.

[infernalis]

congratulations..

[RedSidedSPR]

Awesome! Congrats! Can't wait for pictures!

[dieselbaby]

ive been smiling all day today since i got confirmation of a shipping day, and arrival day and got them and the shipping all paid for. We are going to name one Indy and not sure bout the other yet, you know the whole checkered flag and all lol Anyhow, this is going to be the longest two weeks of my life waiting on the lil ones to arrive.

Since i know babies are escape artists and my top was meant for a 55 gallon not a 25 gallon so it was longer and wider, i was worried they might get out, so i cut the mesh the appropriate size, and a friend of mine custom made a frame for it so it fits nice and snug now. so no babies shall escape or get injured. I will still weight the corners just in case lol but i feel much better knowing they will be secure.

Doing the happy dance here in Canada!

[wolfpacksved]

pretty cool. checkered garters are great looking snakes. always stared at their pics in the field guides as a kid. took 36 years to actually see one in the field

[dieselbaby]

I've seen them in a group picture but not just the two of them. The whole litter is adorable. There new home is ready and waiting for them, even collected worms from the garden today as i was harvesting our potatoes, for them. It might not be too readily available come October to collect worms. I do have frozen pinkies for them as well. got them worms in a Styrofoam container with some moist soil. can we say BUFFET lol

[RedSidedSPR]

I just got a baby checkered, they really are cool!

Hopefully yours won't be as mean as mine.:rolleyes:

http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg30/scaled.php?server=30&filename=ssssnakes005.jpg&res=iphone

[dieselbaby]

lol well even if the lil ones are mean i will love them just the same. Just handle them less(just kidding).

[dieselbaby]

that is a sweet looking lil checkered and he has his very best innocent face on i see lol

[RedSidedSPR]

"Who me?":D

Yeah, he's a crazy little guy...

http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg263/scaled.php?server=263&filename=checkered013.jpg&res=iphone
http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg153/scaled.php?server=153&filename=checkered011.jpg&res=iphone

[dieselbaby]

i remember those pics. he looked like he was thoroughly enjoying himself :D

[RedSidedSPR]

Yeah he does!! Look at that big grin!:D

[dieselbaby]

lol It really looks like he is. I dunno what it is but he just looks very pleased with himself lol.. luv those pics

[RedSidedSPR]

Also looks like he's going TAKE THAT!!

[Mommy2many]

Congratulations!

[dieselbaby]

Thank you all.

Yeah it does sorta look like he is saying TAKE THAT!!! i just love his expression. You can see he is a spirited lil guy.

[RedSidedSPR]

In a sick kinda way.:D

[dieselbaby]

you watch my two will end up like him lol i seem to always get the most "spirited" or quirky pets.

[RedSidedSPR]

I doubt it. It's not exactly normal.:rolleyes:

I mean, the guy hung onto me for almost 2 minutes the otherday... there's a video on my YouTube channel (in my singature) showing it.

He's a NUT!

[BlueGarterz]

Look at that huge smile as he munches your hand!!!! Sooo cute. You should name him (if it's a him) Buster, cause he,ll bust your hand when he's an adult lol.

[RedSidedSPR]

Yeah!

Wow this kinda turned into my thread, of my snake. Sorry.

[dieselbaby]

that okay he is adorable and since i dont have pics to post yet, why not talk bout yer lil guy. He has such personality how can we not talk bout him. Oh and just cause its not normal lol doesnt mean it wont happen to me. Not to many of our critters are NORMAL. I have turkeys who think they are human, i have a gander who has paired with a duck, and helped her raise her ducklings(we have other ducks and drakes too ) a pygmy goat who thinks she is a dog, a 700lb boar who thinks he is a lapdog. so normalcy....WHATS THAT....lol...:D

[jitami]

Congratulations!!! Looking forward to pics :)

[RedSidedSPR]

that okay he is adorable and since i dont have pics to post yet, why not talk bout yer lil guy. He has such personality how can we not talk bout him. Oh and just cause its not normal lol doesnt mean it wont happen to me. Not to many of our critters are NORMAL. I have turkeys who think they are human, i have a gander who has paired with a duck, and helped her raise her ducklings(we have other ducks and drakes too ) a pygmy goat who thinks she is a dog, a 700lb boar who thinks he is a lapdog. so normalcy....WHATS THAT....lol...:D

Weird...:p

[HazAnga]

I'm so glad I've found a good home for these 2 babies. You'll enjoy them and they'll love having you as their owners lol. They'll be getting their last mean until after you've received them. For safety's sake. They'll of digested the food by Monday so they'll be good to ship.

[dieselbaby]

Yay Tuesday is shipping day and Thursday is receiving day. Getting more excited by the day. Thanks Nick, we will do our very best for these babies and what we dont know im sure we will learn right here on the forum. For those who didnt know, Im adopting two babies from HazAnga(Nick), one male one female. So i guess when they get older ill be needing two tanks, im not sure inbreeding would be a good idea. So excited!!

[dieselbaby]

UPDATE: my new babies have gotten on the reptile express courier truck and is headed for im guessing the big truck that will bring them west to my city. YAY. They are on their way, sooooooo excited here. Thursday i should have them in my posession and doing a happy dance. For anyone in Canada looking for garters, shoot Nick an email, he has been awesome through all of this. THANKS Nick, and can't wait to get the babies home.

[RedSidedSPR]

I know that feeling!

[dieselbaby]

these are going to be the longest 2 to 3 days of my life i swear.

[dieselbaby]

3039I swear it feels like tomorrow is never going to come. So we colored up the hide some( i know it sucks but we have a much nicer one on order from a local fish/reptile store just wont be in til friday. Put in some fake plants and tied the logs together and turned on the under tank heating mat. Late tonight i will switch on the heat lamp to get it all toasty warm for the babies arrival. This will be the babies new home. We have decided to name the male Indy, and the female Lexi. Tomorrow is going to be such a great day. we get to meet the babies for the first time and watch them explore their new home(hopefully they wont hide the whole time, but if they do thats okay too).

[katach]

Looks great! Congrats! Can't wait to see pics of the little ones!

[RedSidedSPR]

Colorful tank!

[dieselbaby]

well it is fall after all lol

[dieselbaby]

well today is the day the babies are supposed to arrive. Why is it when they give you a tracking number its never updated. I mean what is the point of even bothering if ya aint gonna update the darn thing. I swear i think having the number and no updates is worse then not having one at all. I mean my babies, should be in my city and on a delivery truck as i type this yet tracking says that they had an intake scan in southern ontario.. sorry for the rant but i think that stinks.

[RedSidedSPR]

Better then what they did to my package which resulted in death because they were lazy and LIED.

You can't expect these guys to care about what they're delivering, or delisting to. You just have to be there to get that package.

[dieselbaby]

Im sorry to hear that, thats got to suck a$$. well i can expect them to care, as i expect people to do what i would do.I mean the box is marked Live harmless reptile. Temperature sensitive.. HELLO!! should be first delivery off the truck. I know that is not the case a majority of the time as time is money blah blah blah (i am an ex truck driver). Also we used reptile express who is supposed to specialize in this, even though its coming on a sameday truck. I am here anxiously awaiting their arrival, i cleared my schedual for yesterday, today, and tomorrow just in case. So i had early covered, delivery day covered, and late delivery covered. although its only a 14 hr drive from where they are coming from. Im thinking i should have just paid the extra money for them to get on a plane. This waiting is sooooo nerve racking. How do ya'll do it.

Still waiting on the truck anyhow. Pacing lots.

[RedSidedSPR]

Waiting for a snake sucks.:D

Yup, well they came around 2:00 (two hours late) said we weren't home, (are you freaking kidding me) and didn't leave the slip like the were supposed to if not home, said "we tried twice you were not home" both lies.

The funny thing about that is, the shipper of that package specifically had it marked to leave it there if they aren't home, since he knew we would be. So even if we WEREN'T home, they should have/would have left it there, which shows they were lazy, and lied, and dont give a damn.

. The second time I told them, screw you, do not put it on the truck, I'll come and pick it up myself first thing in the morning.

UP^ UP^ UP^ all over the box. So, naturally, they handed it to me upside down.

Now, this WASNT marked "harmless animal" but that should matter. It was an express package, marked UP^ you gott respect it even it's a pillow, and it's not like they would have acted ant different if it were marked "entire African zoo".

[dieselbaby]

Thats terrible. i remember reading something bout that in my exploration of the forum. These guys best not do that to my babies. I might not be as friendly as you were. Im not real good at holding my tongue with stupid, rude people. Beware of flying objects lol Thats insane what they did but i can easily believe it. I have watched countless people unload my trailers and knowing i had damagable goods, watching them THROW the stuff out of the trailer. I always took pics so i wouldnt get blamed for damaging cargo..If i ever do this again, Im springing for an air transport!!!! Couple of my dogs came by air, one from dallas texas, and the other from tulsa oklahoma. Both went smooth as silk. this is just sooo nerve racking knowing they were picked up tuesday morning, and here we are 48 hrs later and they arent here yet, and its only a 14 hr drive.. If gas werent so dang expensive here i would have picked them up, and had someone to feed the livestock for one day.

[RedSidedSPR]

Yeah I personally will never trust them to deliver a live animal to my house ever. I will pick it up each and every time.

[dieselbaby]

seriously i dont know how ya'll do this. Im going insane here. Im soooo worried bout them, and they are just babies to boot. Good thing i got their home all warmed up for em, even their pool is nice and warm.

[RedSidedSPR]

Dunno if you want the pool to be warmed, but I don't think it will hurt.

Yeah, I remember. Was only a month or so ago I was waiting for mine (I've got my other locally) waited forever. Then to have him arrive dead.:mad: Waiting all over again. Can't say it's all bad, cause if the first one had made it I wouldn't have my little Rooster!:D Who is fast becoming my favorite snake.

[dieselbaby]

the pool is bout 75F and it will cool, that side of the tank is 79.6 and the warm end is 82.9 right now.

[dieselbaby]

which one is rooster? is he the lil ummmm enthusiastic taster?

[dieselbaby]

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR okay got a call from the freight company, snakes are at the terminal, but they cant deliver til late today, so im headed 45 mins into town to go pick them up.. Can't make them or me wait any longer.. Hope they are doing okay when i gets there..

[katach]

Oh, good luck, drive safe!

[RedSidedSPR]

Crap that sucks. Good luck.

Your temps sound ok!

Rooster is my concinnus (red spotted). This guy

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b283/chucknkelly/24c9353d.jpg

[dieselbaby]

Okay i hauled a$$ and took only hwys, back home with the babies im so relieved they made it, their heat back was ice cold though. I took pics. soon as they got into the tank the girl went for the hide, and the boy went and hid behind the rock lol poor wittle babies. Ill post some pics in a couple mins, uploading them now.

[guidofatherof5]

Glad they arrived safely.
Looking forward to seeing the little scrubs.

[dieselbaby]

304730483049Yay unpacking

[dieselbaby]

30503051These two pics are of the female "Lexi. she is now in the hide hiding.

[dieselbaby]

305230533054This is the male "Indy"

[kimbosaur]

Yayyy, congrats. :D

[guidofatherof5]

Good looking.

[dieselbaby]

lol thank you all.. Now thats all im going to see of them for awhile i imagine.

[RedSidedSPR]

I'll combine those and say: congrats!!! Good looking little guys!! Glad they made it safe. Look like big healthy babies.

[dieselbaby]

Big OMG... i opened up the cups, and thought omg they are sooooo tiny. The nightcrawlers i get out of the garden are sometimes bigger.. Gonna have to find small worms. I wonder when i will see them again. Good thing i got pics, i set them down, and GONE!!!!

[dieselbaby]

from what i did see of them thought, lots and lots of tongue flicking going on, and they are really really fast. The one that was behind the rock dissappeared, must have found its way to the hide.

[RedSidedSPR]

Well sure they're tiny, but big, robust, babies. Healthy looking.

Yeah you gotta chop the nightcrawlers or find little earthworms.

[dieselbaby]

i knew they would be small but they so cute and little. I just couldnt get over how small they were, but sooooo fast. Im one happy camper right now. Course would be happier if i saw them out exploring, but i realise they just had a huge upset in their little lives and probably a very bumpy trip. so i will leave them alone glancing over at the tank lots and lots hoping for a peak..

[RedSidedSPR]

Yeah theyre fast. Seems like the smaller they are the faster they are.

They'll get used to you. Let them settle in, no touching, feed them in a few days (or whenever -- all mine ate the day they arrived) and then start interacting.

[dieselbaby]

LOL well these ones are racing snakes i swear.. I guess Indy fits... i was going to offer food tomorrow or the next day. They ate i think Nick said monday. and yes i plan to let them be for awhile. They are going to get complexes when everytime they peak out of the hide 3 girls are staring at their tank lol

[Kantar]

I'm just comparing the checkered spots on dieselbaby's checkereds and my checkereds

Seems like there are twice as many spots on mine

what do you think?

http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/s720x720/309523_10150379445634359_525334358_9995510_1840277 011_n.jpg

[kimbosaur]

Especially on Lexi!

[RedSidedSPR]

Yeah... It does... Mine isn't a lot of spots either but got a good bit of em. Here's mine.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b283/chucknkelly/4b89541e.jpg

[Kantar]

do the number of spots along the body mean anything? does there have to be a certain amount of spots for him to still be considered a checkered?

[RedSidedSPR]

No.... He's a checkered even without spots.

[dieselbaby]

Theres the cute lil feisty guy. I dunno how you guys can tell the difference they all look like the have about the same number of spots to me.. Im sure markings are as unique as the snake itself of course but unless they were labeled (like they were) i cant tell them apart lol im sure once i get to know them i will be able to tell them apart by personalities. but dangit they wont come out lol

[guidofatherof5]

Give it some time.
You'll see the differences before you know it.

[kimbosaur]

Actually, taking another look, it doesn't seem like she has more spots so much as smaller spots - even when compared to the male. It's rather cute. :D

[RedSidedSPR]

Lexi has smaller spots -- that's one way.

Look at the head/lip markings. The lips are different, and the spots on the head - Indy's is not separated. For now you can go by that.;)

See? Bigger spots, and the spot on his head isn't separated into to like Lexi's.
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b283/chucknkelly/6803fccc.jpg

Lexi -- small spots and......
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b283/chucknkelly/55a00c06.jpg

Separated (two) spots on head.:)
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b283/chucknkelly/1ab770d5.jpg

[dieselbaby]

i can try but when they zippin round at 90mph lol.. but yes i see what you mean bout the head spot. too bad there wasnt a tail dip lol..one pink one blue lol

[katach]

I'm so excited for you! Congrats! They are awesome!

[dieselbaby]

Thanks Kat! i love them already even though i only seen each of them for a minute while i inspected them and placed them in their tank. The tank is on a stand next to my computer desk, so i been keeping an eye out for them to peak out. Maybe after the kids go to bed tonight and its quiet they will come out to have a look around, and maybe a good drink. tank is now stabilized between 81.6 and 82.2 (on the hot side) I guess i was kinda hoping they were going to be brave like sally snake was, and always exploring. Oh well ill just keep watching for them.

[katach]

They will get there.they are just adjusting right now.

[dieselbaby]

I know they are and i respect that which is why i havent given in and looked under the hide every 5 mins, or at all for that matter. Ill give them some time to settle in and relax. Just been a month waiting for them and now they are here and nowhere to be seen lol but ill take my big girl pill and be okay...lol...Im so relieved they made it in good health, uninjured and alive. Thats the main thing. I could have strung up the couriers though. I think Reptile express needs to find another courier cause courtesy courier sucks XXX, but at least they called me and told me they werent coming so i could go get them.. just peeved me off is all that they werent first on the truck... and when i was picking them up someone in the office asked what was in the box and i said checkered garter snake babies. well all they heard was SNAKE. Cleared the office right out. I said well see now if they had of been on a delivery truck first thing this morning like they were supposed to be you guys wouldnt have to have cute lil snakes in the office.

[dieselbaby]

well it got the better of me so i shined a flashlight into the hide and they not in there. I happened to catch sight of a tiny tail dissappearing under the pool. So i slid the tank over a bit and here is what i saw!!!3066

[guidofatherof5]

Oh, you've got it bad. :D

[dieselbaby]

HAHAHA yes i do lol very!!!! I soooo missed watching sally explore and play. I looked at an empty tank for so long, now these babies are finally home and they hide under the dang pool lol least i found em.

[katach]

That's cute!

[RedSidedSPR]

Lol!!

[dieselbaby]

They must be hot, its cool and damp under there. brung the enclosure temp down to 78F

[RedSidedSPR]

I doubt that, they just really wanted to hide and feel safe and new that was the most concealed. place. I have a snake that is always burrowed in bedding even when in hides.

[RedSidedSPR]

But good idea go head and keep it cool for now.

[dieselbaby]

THEY WERE OUT THEY WERE OUT and then i moved to get a closer look and pics and i scared them and now they back under the pool...
306730683069

[katach]

That second picture needs a caption "can she see me now?"

[dieselbaby]

HAHAHAHA i like that lol i saw them both drink last night and peak and come out. They only went around the pool, but at least i know they have had drinks and arent trapped under the pool.Their fav spot is under the pool obviously lol what a spot. I slid the tank over and showed the girls this morning so now they believe me that there are actually baby snakes in there..lol..So i wonder what today will bring, yesterday was two adorable baby snakes and a cutie pie pinto pony filly.

[jitami]

Awww, they're sooo cute! Congratulations on the new babies (snake & pony alike)!

[dieselbaby]

Today is a good day. The babies were out some for pics and exploration, and ewww one ate a fly. I think i best feed them soon. I wetted some ground around some rocks and a log so hopefully there will be some worms for picking tomorrow, its been super warm the last few days. they are used to worms and pinkie parts so i want to keep it familiar to them. I got some good pics today.

3078307930803081

[dieselbaby]

I forgot to add that i took out the hideous, huge hide and used this bend a log hamster thing, for a hide, and they seem to love it, and added a shady green plant for cover and shade.

[RedSidedSPR]

Sounds like good upgrades

[dieselbaby]

there is more to come for upgrades they just havent arrived yet. My snakes seem to be backwards on their sleep schedules, they sleep all day and come up late night only.

[dieselbaby]

any advice on how to catch these two little speed demons in a few days to feed them?

[guidofatherof5]

Move fast :D

[tress29]

used this bend a log hamster thing, for a hide

Is that what that is? I was just wondering if you made it our bought it somewhere!

[dieselbaby]

Yep its a hamster bend a log home. I shop in all departments for stuff for the snakes lol i just make sure i dont buy anything made of pine etc. That hide is made of apple wood. I thought it was cool because you can bend it in whatever shape you wanted it has bendable wires pushed thru the logs, so i could make a nice low, wide hide for them. Hoping to coax them out from under the pool.

[HazAnga]

The one picture where one of them has their head out of the hide kinda reminds me of this one of their dad
http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k491/HazAnga/Checkereds/IMAG0059-1.jpg

[dieselbaby]

Thats so cute. I think i saw that pic on your site. I have taken all the goodies out of the tank left the bedding, their log hide, and a smaller pool, and they seem to be alot more active since i did that. Could it be everything else was too intimidating? They are nocturnal though lol silly lil snakes. i petted lexi today she is alot more brave then Indy. Im going to make a run to petsmart today to get one of those plastic critter totes, for feeding the babies in. Tomorrow is feeding day, i will be offering worm pieces and pinkie pieces up for dinner, i do have a couple silvery minnows to offer in case they wont take them since i cannot find feeder guppies at any of the petstores in town. If not i also have tiny trout and salmon bits for them.