Canned Cat Food for a Garter..?

[Ryachanira]

As I was sitting here mulling over Silv's eating problems, I had a thought. The one thing I have not tried with him is fish fillet, since I don't want to buy a lot unless I have a reasonable hope that he will eat it. I am like 99% sure he wouldn't, but I thought I could potentially give him a bit of my kitties' salmon food a try...? My cats eat high end, all natural cat food - no commercial pasty stuff. They are totally spoiled rotten, haha. It is nice chunks of meat in a light broth with vitamins/minerals added in, nothing else. Here is a link to the particular salmon variety I am thinking of:

Petropics - Tiki Cat, Tiki Dog, Tiki Bird, Tiki FurBalls - For the Pets We Love

I was wondering if it would be safe to try giving Silv a few of the smaller pieces when I feed them tonight? I also have tuna and chicken varieties, but I know salmon has been specifically mentioned for garters so I thought it would be the best bet. I searched online a bit and saw some references to using cat food, but thought I would check with you all first!

[ConcinusMan]

This has been discussed many times before. The answer is a big fat "NO". Don't feed that to your garters. It's not good for them. I also question whether or not it's even good for cats.

[Ryachanira]

Well I am of course willing to listen to you all on whether it is good for the snake. I can assure you that it is some of the best the cats are going to get, aside from feeding them totally raw which I am not willing to do because.. ew. Haha. But it is very high quality, human grade and all natural cat food, so the kitties are going to be just fine on it.

The other reason I had considered it may be safe is that, aside from the fish itself, most of the vitamins and minerals supplemented seem to be the same as what is in Carnivore Care, which is what I am currently tube feeding Silv per my vet's recommendation. The biggest difference perhaps is the addition of Taurine to the cat food - essential to cats and not to snakes, however I did not think it would probably hurt the snake.

I just thought it might be another option to see if I could get him to eat... anything.

[Stefan-A]

Should be significantly less risky than canned fish intended for human consumption, but I'm not convinced that it's the best thing you could feed your snake, if there's anything unprocessed available at all. Lacking alternatives, I'd only use it until there were alternatives.

But if nothing genuinely better is available, I guess it's what you'll have to use. Regarding buying large quantities of fish, I don't suppose you or anyone else in your household would eat it?

Regarding taurine, I have no idea what quantities would be toxic for snakes. It's probably safe, but it's just a semi-educated guess at 3 AM.

[guidofatherof5]

As a rule I would say no to any cat or dog food.
With that being said Jenny is in a unique situation with Silv. This injured snake hasn't eaten on its own in a long time. Force feeding has been done.
In this case I think if Silv would take a small piece just to get the self eating process going it could be acceptable. Only until a switch could be made to a better food source.
Silv is alive because of Jenny's kind and caring heart.
Best of luck. Keep us posted.

[ConcinusMan]

Good point Steve. If this could get Silv eating on her own, a little cat food shouldn't hurt. Like fish containing thiaminase, a little once in a while usually doesn't cause any obvious problems.

[Ryachanira]

Well I just now tried it after reading the last couple of replies. I held a really small piece out to him with the tongs. He did not eat it. But he did seem interested in it - moved up towards it with lots of tongue flicking, and even got it in his mouth at one point! I would definitely not say he struck at it, it was more like he opened his mouth like he always does, and then slowly moved up towards it until it was in his mouth. It was there for, oh.. 1 second? Then he promptly left and proceeded to ignore it and all of my attempts to re-interest him. However this is the most interest I have seen paid to any feeding attempt to date so... maybe that is a good sign? I am of course ever the optimist.

I had not been planning on using it as a primary food source, just a gateway food. Plus I figured if I could get him to eat this, then the lovely juices left in the can after I scoop out the meat into the kitty bowls could be very useful for scenting those pinkies in my freezer....

I will have to give it another go at a later date. Perhaps I will cave in and go get him some fish from the grocery store tomorrow, since he did at least show some interest, more than I can say for any wiggly worm, flopping fish or cut up pinky.

Thanks for the advice!

[Jeff B]

I would try a freshly killed rosie (yes you will have to kill it, pinch its head quickly between your fingers, it's important that it is freshly killed so that it smells right) placed on a small plastic bowl overnight undisturbed untill mid-morning you could check then, in my experience that would be your best bet to start with and worth a try. Best of luck

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I would try a freshly killed rosie (yes you will have to kill it, pinch its head quickly between your fingers, it's important that it is freshly killed so that it smells right) placed on a small plastic bowl overnight undisturbed untill mid-morning you could check then, in my experience that would be your best bet to start with and worth a try. Best of luck

I do that all the time! It works really, really well for a finicky snake. Especially the babies that you start to worry that they may starve.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Also... to the cat food, I say no... it's a bad idea. If it's in a can, it's processed and it's not good for a snake to eat.

BUT. and this is the but.... if it gets to the point where he seems like he may die of starvation, and that's the last resort.... only then would I do it. The problem is that he may get hooked on the stuff and refuse to eat real food.

Good luck.... seriously!