Hey guys !! Im new to snake some help ?

[RedSidedSPR]

Jesse...what size tank is that? That platform is awesome! I would love to build one for my tanks but I don't know if there would be enough room. That tank is sweet...

Thanks, it's a 10 gallon, soon to be upgraded to a 20

[EasternGirl]

It sounds like a joke but people have actually accidently fried their snakes misusing lamps and heat mats and the like. Wayne is right...it is easier to burn a snake than to freeze one. It takes pretty low temps to freeze a snake. No, it isn't difficult to get a snake on a fish/pinky diet....you want to aim for a varied diet...that is best for health. A diet that is a variety of worms, fish, and pinkies is good. If you get your snake from a breeder, the breeder will tell you what they have been feeding the snake, then you can introduce the snake to new food by scenting and mixing. You can scent the new food by rubbing whatever the snake was eating before onto the food...or mix the old food and new food together.


Jesse...that tank looks huge...is it extra tall or something? PM me and tell me how to build that platform if you don't mind. Thanks.

[GarterGuy17]

Oh I know it was a serious matter just sounds a bit odd. So i guess that's what i'm going to do because I really don't think I can find night crawlers where i'm at so I think fish fillet and the pinky's are my way to go I have to look into the worms , but I know for a fact that I don't now want to feed live fish. I feel as if the whole parasite thing is to risky.

[EasternGirl]

Yeah...it's hard to find safe live fish and some snakes won't eat them. My first snake had no idea what to do with them when I was first learning what to feed garters. Your best bets for fillet are Alaskan salmon, steel-head trout, and tilapia...the latter being the cheapest. You want to make sure it is from the U.S. and wild caught...not farm grown or from out of the U.S. from what I have been told...to ensure it is safe. I just go to the seafood counter at my supermarket and buy it...I get a small piece and feed a small dish of cut-up thawed pieces...but still raw...then I freeze the rest. A good way to thaw is to cut up small pieces while it's frozen and put it in a zip lock baggy and run it under warm water. Now you will want to feed pinkies too because just feeding fish will not give a well-rounded diet. There is a vitamin supplement you can buy...but you should try to feed pinkies too. You can buy frozen pinkies at pet stores and you can cut them up while they are frozen for baby snakes. It isn't as gross as it sounds. Then you can thaw them the same way you thaw the fish...you can mix the fish and the pinkies if you want. When you get your snake and you know how old it is you will know how often to feed...the breeder will tell you how often the snake is eating. Here is a pic...not a great one...of my whole set-up for my snakes:

000_0007.jpg I just bought wrought iron shelves for all my tanks. I need to get a better pic now that I got a new camera for Christmas!

[GarterGuy17]

The thing is the fish I can get easy and free my family has their own fish market about 1/4 mile away from where I live so its easy to get fish and for pinky's I can go to my petco. Just are the worms necessary for the diet or not ? because I am not available to them at all.

[EasternGirl]

Well that's awesome if your family has a fish market! Necessary? No...I don't think they are necessary. Not all people can get worms all the time. Where are you in New York? There are no marine or bait stores near you? Because I get mine at a bait store. But if you can't get them the snake is not going to die or anything. The important thing is that the snake gets nutrients like calcium and vitamin D...which they can get from the bones in the pinkies. Some people like to supplement with a supplement like http://www.amazon.com/Rep-Cal-Calciu.../dp/B00076HTQA but I don't think it's necessary if the snake is eating pinkies on a regular basis. My snakes go through weird phases in which they only like to eat fish...and then I sprinkle some of the supplement on the fish every 3-4 feedings. Certain types of garters...like my two easterns...eat worms primarily in the wild...so when I first found my two easterns...both were found in the wild...they would only eat worms until I gradually introduced them to pinkies and fish. The more rounded the diet the better...but I think you will be fine with pinkies and fish.

If anyone knows of anything I am telling our new friend here that is incorrect, please jump in and correct me!

[tress29]

I really don't think I can find night crawlers where i'm at

Canadian night crawlers, @$3 for 20 at my local Walmart, back by fishing poles...

[GarterGuy17]

That's the thing I live in the city we don't have a Walmart here , I know shocking. I'm going to have to get the supplement than. I use it once every 3-4 times they eat ?

[EasternGirl]

Theresa...did you check with other members and make sure those nightcrawlers are safe? I know someone was talking about Walmart and nightcrawlers...there are safe kinds and then sometimes they mark some kinds of worms as nightcrawlers that are not or something like that.

John...you don't need supplements if you aren't feeding worms...I think you only need it if you aren't feeding pinkies...but supplements won't hurt as far as I know. Every 3-4 feeding lightly dust the food with the powder. The snake may notice and may not want the food...you may have to get creative. Depends on the snake...my girl Cee Cee is a pig...you could put poo on her food and she would still eat it. But Seeley will smell the supplement and refuse the food. I think some people put a little in water but I am not sure. Start a thread asking specifically about supplements. Ask in the thread if you need the supplement if you are feeding pinkies and fish. Ask how to use the supplement...other members can help more with that.

[GarterGuy17]

Thanks I will do that right now .