brumating question

[big J]

do garters do better with a longer brumation or a shorter brumation. I have heard many different suggestions of length of brumation from 6 weeks to 3 months. this was my first year attempting to breed garters after having kept them for 2 years. Mine were in brumation for 7 weeks at 50* to 60*variable temp.. One out of 4 females succsesfuly bred. she has refused food for the last week and a half and just shed 2 days ago so I"m expecting young ones soon(Checkered garters). but I was wondering if anyone has better luck with a longer brumation period.

[Snake lover 3-25]

mine stop eating usually in Aug.... unfortunately... but i brumate them from Christmas eve till march 1 then they shed and immediately begin to eat... but i have never bred......

[Spiritwolf]

I've wondered about brumation too...how necessary is brumation? Do garters in areas where the climate is warm year-round, such as Florida, southern California, etc, brumate at all?

[reptileparadise]

I've wondered about brumation too...how necessary is brumation? Do garters in areas where the climate is warm year-round, such as Florida, southern California, etc, brumate at all?

They are likely to rest. Not eating or eating very little. Little to no movement etc.
I personally think brumation IS necessary. Its for a reason that garters stop eating

[anji1971]

Since I'm not into breeding, I've never brumated my snakes.
Nor have I ever had one refuse food, so that issue has yet to arise.
Deejay is nearly 3 years old now, and her mom before her was around for the same amount of time, and there were never any problems encountered from not brumating.

[adamanteus]

I think brumation is the best way to go. Many Garters (as Sjoerd has stated) will cease to eat anyway, if they are not brumated the higher temperatures and increased activity levels might cause unwanted weight loss and stress to the animal. Also, brumation increases the chances of a successful mating, although they can breed within it.

[Spiritwolf]

My garters must be weird then, LOL. They ate well all through the winter. I worry about trying brumation, what temperature they need, how to keep them from getting too warm or too cold (Indiana weather is notoriously unpredictable and what may be ok one day in an unheated place may be too warm or too cold the next day). How should their tank be set up for brumation, how deep should the substrate be, etc?

[anji1971]

Basically, the reason I've never done it is because I simply don't have the necessary setup for proper temp control. I don't have a spare fridge, nor a colder corner in the basement. At least not cold enough.
So as long as they seem to be healthy and eating well, I'm going to keep on going and hope it's alright.
I haven't had Chili long enough to see how she behaves when the weather changes in the fall. Who knows???

[Garter_Gertie]

Ripley, at the park, 'self brumates.' He goes into a slow mode and won't eat for like 3-4 months +/-. We have always watched him and recorded his eatings. We offer food to him, but if he doesn't want it, that's okay and we note such.

We let Ripley tell us what's right.