How long...

[kibakiba]

Mama is, of course, very gravid. I plan on using the tank she's in for when she gives birth, but I'll need to take Snakey out and clean it out really good before she does. The problem with that is I don't know when she became gravid. Her belly started growing slightly in December, but I didn't notice exactly how big she was until early last month. She's also shed 4 times since the beginning of December. Is there any way for me to tell when she might pop instead of just saying "within 2 months"? I want to have everything ready for her before it happens to help keep her happy. It's my first time ever dealing with a gravid snake, so it's obvious that I'm extremely nervous.

[zooplan]

If you could post a picture of the whole snake (not curled up),
you might get some educated guesses.
Do you know?
We love guessing

[guidofatherof5]

That's a difficult question to answer as different snakes show different signs when they are about to deliver.
I don't know the gestation period for Northwestern garter snakes (T.ordinoides) and have never bred them before.
According to "The Garter Snake", book. Oregon and Washington species had a 9 week gestation period.
If your snake became gravid in late Dec.? a due day could be just about anytime now. I think I would prepare for it now and not be caught off guard.
Better to have everything ready and not need it than to need it and not have it ready
Check out this thread as delivery observations were discussed:
http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/bree...ter-snake.html

I'm hoping my T.ordinoides will bred this year.

[kibakiba]

Richard said it was about 3 months and that it would be within 2 months I think... I have a picture of her a week ago, I don't want to bother her right now... But she's about double her normal size.

I'll thoroughly clean the tank tomorrow when I get up and move Snakey in with the babies. All of them are about his size, except for Thumbelina and Squirt. They all seem to enjoy his company, too. I let the adults visit with the babies every now and then.

She is pretty restless, which is extremely unusual for her so maybe it will be soon. Either way, I am extremely nervous about it.
Ordinoides are picky about being gravid it seems, they can hold sperm for a long time. Which is why I have no idea when she became gravid. She's mated about 6 times since I got her in June.

[guidofatherof5]

It sounds like babies are in future, soon.

[ConcinusMan]

The problem with them is that they sometimes mate (sometimes several times with several males) then ovulate later. There's no way to know precisely when she became gravid. I can tell by looking at her, and from your description that she's in the late stages. All I can say is that it's going to happen soon. Sorry I can't be more precise. 9 weeks does sound about right but without knowing exactly when she ovulated, we're just guessing when she'll have them.

[kibakiba]

Yeah... They need to make a pregnancy test for garters so it can tell you when they are pregnant
At any rate, Snakey is enjoying the babies... And he's cheating on Mama with Runt. He keeps courting her, even though shes still a baby.
He laid his head next to hers and she pulled her head away and looked at him then literally jumped and hid. It was almost as if she was like "Huh? AHHH what are you doing, old man?!" Haha. Poor Snakey got rejected.

[guidofatherof5]

[QUOTE=kibakiba;152440]Yeah... They need to make a pregnancy test for garters so it can tell you when they are pregnant
QUOTE]

Your reading my mind.
Getting them to pee on the test strip might be a problem.

[ConcinusMan]

He keeps courting her, even though shes still a baby.

If that truly is the case then that is your first clue that she is NOT a baby anymore. I've seen females as small as 10 inches, give birth to a couple of babies.

[kibakiba]

Honestly, Snakey is just horny I think. He even courted with Snap and Ember. He quit after a while and they're all just hanging out. There is also a matter of Runt's gender, the larger she gets the more she ends up looking more male than female in the tail area. It was easier to sex other snakes her size because they looked like females, large and girthy, bigger than the males. She's the same size as Snakey was when I caught him and she's looking how he was. She's only the size of my pinky finger. Snakey courted her once before, when she was only 3 inches.

Mama isn't enjoying having the paper towels as substrate, but to make her feel more pampered, I gave her a heated water dish with warm water and a towel. She really loves laying on blankets and towels, so I figured she might like having the towel in there. She took a dip in her little "hot tub" and rested there for a while before exploring and snooping around her towel.