Glad I found this forum!!

[PickeringiiMom]

Hi, All
My name is Ami. We recently WC a puget sound garter baby (only about 6-8 inches long), we've had him about a week. He's had great energy and is eating well, but he's having trouble pooing. We started warm bathes today (not our first snake, but is our first colubrid, we're more familiar with boas and pythons). With the warm water massage we've managed to get him to poo a little, but there's definitely more in there, and we noticed some dried feces around his vent before we started the bath. Is there anything else we can do, please let us know. Also, if you have any general tips and tricks for garters, we're all ears!! Thanks!

[infernalis]

[indigoman]

Welcome to the forum! pics would help if possible.

[guidofatherof5]

The warm water soaks is a good thing. Keeping the vent clean is important but this is all a symptom of something else.
Tongue flicking, moving, alertness, drinking, eyes clear, no retained shed? A photo would be very helpful.

[Albert Clark]

Hi Ami! Welcome to the forum. My tips would be that wc pugets are a state protected subspecies of garter snake so be careful. Second, wc garters are loaded with high parasitic loads so again be careful of that. What you think is just feces can be a combination of parasites as well or a internal issue with the little guy. Think about wearing rubber gloves while handling him and definitely while cleaning up after him. Good that he is eating well which is a positive. Try to examine him closely for any signs of external issues on his scales also. There are captive bred garters that are a safer bet and more than likely healthier.

[guidofatherof5]

Nice to have you with us. I'll link you to the page care sheet.
Garter Snake Forum - Garter Caresheet

[PickeringiiMom]

Thanks everyone! I appreciate the welcome and tips! We think we found the problem. As mentioned before, our experience lies mostly with pythons and boas. As such, the tank we had lying around was a 40 long. We think it's too big for him right now and he's not getting warm enough, as we had the tank outside with just a heating pad, so he's having trouble digesting. We moved his tank inside last night and we're going to pick up a UV heat bulb today and see if this helps. Unfortunately putting him in a smaller tank isn't feasible for us right now because we don't have anything smaller and we can't afford the cost of a new tank. We live in the Kitsap County area, if anyone near us has an extra we could take off their hands for cheap. Thanks again, everyone!

[Tommytradix]

Thanks everyone! I appreciate the welcome and tips! We think we found the problem. As mentioned before, our experience lies mostly with pythons and boas. As such, the tank we had lying around was a 40 long. We think it's too big for him right now and he's not getting warm enough, as we had the tank outside with just a heating pad, so he's having trouble digesting. We moved his tank inside last night and we're going to pick up a UV heat bulb today and see if this helps. Unfortunately putting him in a smaller tank isn't feasible for us right now because we don't have anything smaller and we can't afford the cost of a new tank. We live in the Kitsap County area, if anyone near us has an extra we could take off their hands for cheap. Thanks again, everyone!

you can use a critter keeper or a 15qt tub until your able to afford a 5 or 10 gallon tank.

[guidofatherof5]

you can use a critter keeper or a 15qt tub until your able to afford a 5 or 10 gallon tank.

Critter Keeper? Slits in the top and a carrying handle? If that's the case be very careful with that as some babies can wedge their head in the slits and die.

[infernalis]

Critter Keeper? Slits in the top and a carrying handle? If that's the case be very careful with that as some babies can wedge their head in the slits and die.

I had this happen before....