Meet Wendy

[Tim C.]

Named for the red pattern starting to form on her head that looks like a patch of hair with pigtails. These pictures don't show it but I'll post an example when I can get her to pose. She has an incomplete frontal scale (between eyes) that lets light that hits the top of her head illuminate her eyes. I am looking for a young male to keep with her to breed and for lifelong company. I would like suggestions on a type of male that would produce something interesting with her. Right now I'm thinking granite or flame but would like to hear suggestions. I have cared for many wild garters, ribbons, northern water, brown, ringneck, etc, I have caught gravid snakes that bore in my care but were released as soon as the young were eating well, but have never purposely breed one and would like to give it a shot. I'm considering releasing all the normal babies when they are ready in hopes to repopulate our area and also for the possibility of seeing a wild albino in the coming years. Does anyone else release cb babies? Is this a bad idea? Anyone who has any suggestions or knows who I could deal with to get a healthy male at a fair price please let me know.

[Stefan-A]

Welcome aboard.

Does anyone else release cb babies? Is this a bad idea?

It is a very bad idea. The worst case scenario is that you introduce an invasive species. It can also spread diseases from the captive population to the wild one. Among other things.

[RedSidedSPR]

Welcome to the forum!

[kibakiba]

It's not a good idea to repopulate in a lot of cases, especially if you don't know what's causing it. there has to be a balance kept in nature, and if snakes are dying off, it's likely for the better of keeping the balance, or there is a problem.. and releasing the babies would be sending them to their deaths. Also, don't release them if they aren't native to your area.

[Stefan-A]

It's not a good idea to repopulate in a lot of cases, especially if you don't know what's causing it. there has to be a balance kept in nature, and if snakes are dying off, it's likely for the better of keeping the balance, or there is a problem.. and releasing the babies would be sending them to their deaths. Also, don't release them if they aren't native to your area.

Yeah. The best thing to do if you want an area repopulated, is to restore habitat.

[Tim C.]

Ok scratch that idea, it looked good on paper though. How about some pairing ideas?

[RedSidedSPR]

Why do you want to breed if you don't want the babies?

[kibakiba]

Well, any unrelated checkered garter snakes. If she's a checkered, at least. It looks to be to me. Don't mix species, hybrids are highly frowned upon.

[Tim C.]

Because I feel that if you give a snake healthy food, fresh water, fresh air, a clean secure realistic environment and let it go through its normal life cycles and functions at minimal stress your giving it a better life then it would have had in the wild, if you deny any one of these things then your being cruel. I would have to keep them in a plastic tub and what kind of existence is that? I don't have the time or interest in keeping a lot of snakes so the normals would have to go. I would like to donate or sell the nice ones.

[kibakiba]

There arent many people who would take them. So many have been produced this year that people have been giving them away for free apparently.