Baiting snakes

[adamanteus]

Beautiful little snake Terry.

[mikm]

hey there Terry ... while we do love garters I think we 'all' appreciate the beauty of all the creatures in your sun room. That little milk snake is just too sweet ... May your sun room continue to prosper, lol ...

best wishes & thank you !!
marian

[Thamnophis]

I love all snakes, so do not hesitate to show pics of other species that invade your house.

[stonyloam]

Good morning: Got my taxes done, so I decided to go through the photos I took yesterday to see if there were some interesting ones. After taking the photos of the baby milk snake I turned on the lamp for him (I am a little concerned about the wound on his tail, and thought a little heat might do him some good). He settled down pretty quickly for a nap, and let me snap away (he is so nice I am half tempted to keep him for a while). For a size comparison, the ladybug shell in the photos is about 5mm in diameter. After a while he stretched out in the groove in the insulation, and by coincidence the one that I fed did the same thing a few feet away. He looks pretty contented.

[adamanteus]

I can't be 100% sure Terry, but it looks like the Milk Snakes has failed to shed the skin from his tail (from the wound to the tip). You could help him get that off, if you wanted. And maybe a touch of Pevidine or similar on the wound, while he's in your hands anyway.

[stonyloam]

James: The skin on the end of the tail did look a little dull. In fact it may not be a wound, it might just be a clump of old skin that failed to come off. If I see him again I will take a close look, and see what I can do for him. Thanks!

[Cazador]

I was going to recommend a touch of Neosporin, but Pevidine or Betadine would work well if there is a wound. If it's just skin, hold his tail in water for 30 seconds or so, and it should peel right off. You might have to use tweezers to grab it, though. I'm sure the snake would be fine either way, but wild snakes very often lose a bit of their tail. I think it's a good idea to do what you can for it.

P.S. I recognize that little garter by the suspicious lump in its belly .

[KITKAT]

Of course I realize this is not a captive... but I have had good luck with unshed tails (which this resembles) by placing a warm damp washcloth in the enclosure with the snake. They go rub around in it and VOILA!

[stonyloam]

In case you are wondering what has been going on in the sunroom…. For the last 4 or 5 days, nothing! Had no sun and cold weather. Sun came out today and so did my resident friend, he curled up under the lamp in his place and stayed there all day. I found a timer and was going to put it on the lamp so it would cycle on and off by itself. Made the mistake of putting it on the table where my wife spotted it and said “I can really use this, what are you planning to do with it”? My mind raced to come up with a way to explain that I was going to use it for the snakes. So I came up with the perfect answer “uhhh nothing”, and that’s the last I have seen of the timer. It worked out OK though because when I went down to turn the light off the lampropeltis was coming out. I left them alone for a while, and this happened. Guess they are drinking buddies now. Glad they are both about the same size.

[Pinky]

I know you all love garters, but this little beauty (Lampropeltis t triangulum) showed up this morning and I could not resist. He has a little ding on his tail but otherwise looks perfect. Guessing he is from late last summer. Last count, I have identified at least nine different individual snakes, three species.

Now I'm not much of a snake lover myself (husband is the one that is more interested in keeping Pinky lol) But this little guy is adorable!!!