Taming the beast

[dannijean]

Hey all you helpful herptile folks, I have a little prob I could use some advice about. My dear friends, knowing how much I adore my little Murdock, decided that she needed a friend so on a camping trip they caught a very pretty dark brown and yellow stripe with orange scales on the sides garter (ribbon?) snake and brought it back to me. I would like to keep it but it is very fiesty, musking and striking when I hold it. I understand why it's doing this I just need to know if it can eventually be tamed and what is the best way to go about that? Thanks in advance for your help!

[Spankenstyne]

Regular brief handling sessions. Make sure that it's calm before you put it back into it's home and in time you'll gain it's trust.

Please quarantine the new one. Keep it as far away from Murdock as possible, preferrably in a separate room & make sure you do any cleaning, feeding and handling of Murdock before you deal with the other one. You want to limit any exposure as much as possible for at least a couple of months (preferrably longer if possible) until you're sure the new one is healthy. In a perfect world you'd also take some stool in to have checked for parasite load but I understand that not everybody will do this so at the very least try to give it time to make sure it's eating well, is alert and active, and it's excrement at least looks normal. You don't want Murdock to catch anything the new one might have or be carrying.

Looks like a very nice Red Sided garter you have there (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis)

[guidofatherof5]

T.s.parietalis. Great snakes.
Time to learn and trust you is all your new snake needs.

[ConcinusMan]

It certainly looks nice and healthy.

[ssssnakeluvr]

T.s.parietalis. Great snakes.
Time to learn and trust you is all your new snake needs.

Hey Steve...parietalis doesn't extend to Idaho, its a t s fitchi, valley garter.

they love to musk... can be flighty. got a bunch myself (expecting babies also in a month)

[guidofatherof5]

Hey Steve...parietalis doesn't extend to Idaho, its a t s fitchi, valley garter.

they love to musk... can be flighty. got a bunch myself (expecting babies also in a month)

Thanks, Don.
I didn't think about the range I just looked at the snake.

[Snakers]

Looks like there is babies on the way!

[ConcinusMan]

Hey Steve...parietalis doesn't extend to Idaho, its a t s fitchi, valley garter.

they love to musk... can be flighty. got a bunch myself (expecting babies also in a month)

I thought something didn't look right. Of course, fitchii are variable so I didn't say anything. The fitchii that can be found about 30 miles east of me, outside of concinnus range are waayyy prettier than that one though. (neener neener)

Like this one:

Looks like there is babies on the way!

I think so too.

[ssssnakeluvr]

I need some fitchi from there

[ConcinusMan]

Some day.. perhaps. But yeah, I know what you mean. They're gorgeous.

I never took any home before because I already had my lovely loveable concinnus pair and those fitchii's were downright mean and nasty! Of course, these days that wouldn't bother me.