Why is my Eden still little?

[kibakiba]

But not all snakes are like that, you have to remember. Runt was impossible to feed when I first got her. It took not holding her for a loooong time just to get her to eat under her hide.

[EasternGirl]

Oh no...you're absolutely right, Chantel. I still have to feed Seeley under his hide with a towel over his tank...if I can get him to eat at all. And both Cee Cee and Seeley do not like to be held still. Hermes is not thrilled about being held yet...and I try not to handle him too much because I don't want to stress him.

[tress29]

Where's this friend's yard located? Are you sure this is a checkered? I say this because if it was found in MI, it's not a checkered. Most likely it's an eastern garter with a checker pattern.

My erythristic eastern has a very checkerdy pattern. He's also very small. He seems to have grown in length but is still not very girthy!

[Selkielass]

Hello!
I'm from Michigan also, but I'm on the eastern side, over near Detroit.
Getting a little snake thru winter can be hard- they are more sensitive to low humidity than adults. Less light and lower temperatures can also make them slow down a bit.
Make sure temperatures in the cage are 70 to 80 degrees, but his light on a timer and make sure he is getting at *least* as many hours as there is daylight outside, and offer food more often.

I have a little guy who I'm feeding every other day- every day if all he eats is a worm and is looking for more the next day.
Take a night crawler (Small if your source offers a size choice.) and cut it into 1/2 inch pieces with small scissors or a knife. Serve up in a large, shallow bottle cap Like gatoraid) with a few drops of water added to keep the bits nice and moist.
He will probably gobble the whole thing down and be left with a nice bulge in his middle section.
When he poops and the bulge has subsided, he will probably be ready to eat again.
Exactly how soon depends on tank temperature, metabolism, etc.
Just watch for him to lose the bulge and start hunting again.

Where was the back yard where you caught him?
If in Grand Rapids, you probably have a young Eastern Garter.
If caught elswhere in Michigan, you may have a young Butlers garter, but these are concentrated on the east side of the state in my area. They stay small. Males around 15 inches, females 20 or so.
If he starts eating 2-3 times a week and you have good temperatures and humidity, he could reach 12 inches (or more) by the time summer is out. My young ones shed every 2-3 weeks while in their fist year growth spurt, then slow down.

If he is eating regularly, but not growing, consider finding a vet that will do a fecal float to test for parasites.

He will probably also enjoy fish and pinky mice. Guppies are good, and so is cut up salmon and tilapia. Frozen fish and/or mice can be mixed with cut up worms to increase calcium and vitamins. offer bits of food not much larger around than the thickest part of his body.

If he is a male, he is never going to get really large. 20 inches or a bit more. Michigan Eastern females can easily get over 30 inches after a couple years of good living in captivity. My Abby is over 30 inches long and still growing, although much more slowly. I believe she is around 3 years old now. (1 year wild, 2 years as a pet.)

[EasternGirl]

I'm in Delaware and both of my easterns are wild caught. My eastern male also has a very checkered pattern. He is probably around 2 years old and about 2 1/2 feet long...but very small in diameter. My eastern female is almost 3 feet long. She is much bigger in diameter. I have no idea how old she is.

[ConcinusMan]

I didn't know that handling babies too much or handling them improperly could kill them...could you expand on this please, Richard?

They're delicate. It's very easy to injure them by improper handling, especially if you try to restrain them. It's a very critical time in their development. Too much handling, causing extreme stress, can kill them, just from the stress alone. Stress kills if it goes on too long. I've seen it happen. Young boy finds small garter snake. Handles it constantly, day after day. Snake drops dead.

[mikem]

yep, i've seen it happen too. stress kills everything, even us humans.

[EasternGirl]

Ain't that the truth...

[RedSidedSPR]

Now cue a discussion about the proper term for male genitals. Cuz that's how we do what we do

[EasternGirl]

You can't say the proper term on here...it gets bleeped out!