I just got my little snake yesterday and am trying to find out all i can. Right now he's crawling all over the log in his cage and seems to be reasonably happy/healthy and I'm trying to keep it that way so I have a few questions.

1-What is your substate of choice? I know what you CAN use but what do you PREFER to use. I just have paper towels down now b/c its all we had and it just looks trashy. Plus he likes to hide under them.

2- I have yet to see him anywhere near his water, should i put him in there to make sure he knows where it is?

3- He is a baby, i forget when they told me he was born but he is maybe 7inches long at the very very most. How much and how often should i feed him? I'm going to start with earthworms b/c they're free (my boyfriend sells bait in his store and is bringing me some tonight). I know thats not a complete diet but at least he won't starve to death before i can get something else.

4-How do i know if he has parasites?

5- I'm pretty sure he is an eastern garter but can someone take a peek at these pictures and tell me if i'm right?





6- I know you can't tell from these pictures, but is anyone on here decent at telling sex visually? Even if its just a guess I'd like some idea.

7-Can they be kept in groups? Should they be kept in groups? Would he be happier with a friend? I would be but I'm not a snake and don't want to come home to find my snakes warring with each other.

Thank you all SO much! I love forums and was so happy to find this one b/c its real life, real people, real experiences...no animal lives "by the book" and its nice to have people's brains to pick!