Omg omg omg

[lauwersp]

Well imagine my surprise when I looked into the tank of my Eastern and saw a bunch of little ones running around! Holy crap! I didn't know. She's been with me for at least a couple months.

I'm gonna need immediate advice! I'm about to separate them... babies out of tank or mama?

[Invisible Snake]

I would take the mama out since it's easier than taking out several babies. I'm not that experienced with garter births, so I can't offer much help, but I know you have to keep them hydrated, some damp moss or paper towels should help with that, also their water dish should be a shallow one, one that is easy for them to get in and out of. And you can try offering them food about 24 hours after birth although some may not eat until a couple of days later. Congratulations!! Post pics when you can =]

[lauwersp]

Ok...

So more the the story and some pics. So back on May 28th, I found a fairly mid to large (by my standards) garter going out to dinner for some frog legs. After a fairly comical capture, which is documented here: Today's addition to the family, I brought him/her home to a nicely waiting tank.

My girlfriend has always thought she was BIG... and she is a little bigger than my previous two garters, but she had a healthy supply of frogs and it really just seemed like she was a bit bigger.

Aside from a healthy appetite, I didn't see anything out of the ordinary until earlier today (meaning yesterday actually). My girlfriend and I are standing there watching her discussing how big she thinks she is and how she nervous about feeding her. Well of course I think that's humorous, but when I put my finger to the tank glass, she totally struck at my finger! She had been recently fed, so I didn't jump to the conclusion that she was really hungry, but a couple more tests of finger to the glass each resulted in getting struck at, so I decided to just leave her be for the moment.

Right at midnight I took a half hour nap and my girlfriend glanced into the tank. At first she kinda freaked out thinking something had gotten INTO the tank but when she took a closer look she saw the babies!!! She knew I would be awake shortly so she held back from waking me up.

So it looks like 7 healthy (looking) Eastern Garters, 2 stillborn, and perhaps one jelly thing. I wasn't convinced she was done... there were two largish looking lump and she was still contracting... but now she's calmed so I took the 7 babies out and put them in my travel container which is lined with damp paper towel and a water bowl. As it's NOT inescapable, that is sitting squarely in the middle of a large tupperware bin... kinda like alcatraz. The whole shebang is sitting right next to me so they're under constant supervision.

I think I'm going to leave mama alone until maybe tomorrow. She's had a long day and performed SO SO well. I'm proud as punch and she's gonna get a special treat. Suggestions welcome. I'll clean her tank out then.

I'll probably give it a couple days before the 7 lil ones and I start figuring out things like college plans... careers... etc. No need to rush it.

One more thing... as I read the vast majority of posts in the breeding area... y'all are regular breeders and are rarely surprised when you see your little ones. I am not... not because I don't have the interest or intelligence... but this was definitely an unplanned pregnancy. All advice is welcome and appreciated.

I'll take more pics, but here are the first few.

Happy b day 01.jpgHappy b day 02.jpg

[Light of Dae]

You'll need to put them somewhere the CAN NOT get out of... Wet little ones can climb straight up! Don't lose any!
Cute little ones ain't they.

[guidofatherof5]

Congrats on the babies.
It's very important that the babies finish their first shed. Access to a low water dish and plenty of fresh water.
You can always release the babies back into the area the mother was found.

[lauwersp]

Good morning.

First things first... nobody escaped (I'm pretty sure). I can't really base it on head count because NOW THERE ARE THIRTEEN!!!! That good little mama. She really seems back to her old self now... peppy... still skittish... I'm thinking she's really done now.

As much as I tried, I never SAW anyone born. After my last post I came over to the couch because I moved the tank onto the coffee table. Nothing was happening so I just laid down and watched mama. Then suddenly... a little guy comes into view from the left... Where did YOU come from??? Then on the other side of the tank on the other side of mama I see another one! That took the count from 7 to 9. She still didn't look done so I continued to watch. Nothing... Then a little while later There are two together on one end... Where did YOU guys come from??? Took them out too and put them with all the siblings in my little plastic travel container which is now out of Alcatraz and next to the tank... now we're at 11. A little while later I'm watching mama again and suddenly I see a little someone moving over to the glass right next to the travel container... like... "Hey guys... how'd you all get over there?" I facilitated a reunion for him at that point. An even dozen now. Mama didn't look quite done, but it was about 6a and I needed a half hour nap. When I awoke mama was moving around the tank and looked, finally, quite done. I talked to her for a bit and then I spotted Mr. Lucky 13.

As I haven't taken mama outta the tank yet and cleaned it, it's POSSIBLE there's a straggler (or more), but I'm thinking 13 is our winning number. They all seem happy and healthy (based on physical inspection and energy level). Some are more orange than others. Maybe that's normal... maybe some are more like dad (whom I have obviously no idea about), maybe it's blood yet to be washed off...

The cats are being REMARKABLY good. They are really good as it is... I have another story to put in a forum about how they let mama out about 6 weeks ago. They have looked into the tupperware container where they all are and then walked away. No cat twitchiness, no chirping... of course I wouldn't leave them ALONE with them... but that's just common sense.

Chuckle... just now I see they all balled themselves up together in a corner but scattered when I came in for a picture.

I kinda wouldn't mind checking/cleaning the tank, but mama has gone under the Carefresh and I'm thinking maybe I should let her rest a bit if that's to her liking.

One last thing... After birthing was complete... mama did like 5-7 barrel rolls.

Thanks everyone.

[lauwersp]

Hey Steve

They've had access to, and are enjoying, plenty of fresh water. Thanks for the heads up on that.

Here are my thoughts on where they go. I've personally never been opposed to a larger collection of garter snakes. I hadn't imagined going from 1 to 14 in the span of a couple hours, but as babies they are very manageable... enough to leave time to do the right thing.

I will say this... whether they end up permanently residing here or being released back into the wild, I DO think I plan on keeping them until they are at least young adults. I can't imagine it's as easy for them to survive at this point in their lives on their own. I WOULD considering selling some, but only to members of this group I think. My first and foremost concern is, and always will be, their well being.

I have designed a rather large enclosure in my head... and this is encouraging me to put it on paper. My girlfriend owns a blacksmith studio/shop so she can and would do the metalwork. As the enclosures will not be meant to ever be filled with water, I plan on getting glass cut and building it into the enclosure instead of buying prefabricated tanks. It'll be cheaper and more flexible. I'm SURE I'll be posting details as I put them on paper... this groups input is always valuable to me.

One thing I would LOVE to do is trade for different region garter babies. If anyone is open to this please let me know.

Thanks Steve. Anything else I need to know about newborns?

I plan on feeding each one individually... small cut up pieces of worm... perhaps tomorrow...

I'm going to photograph each one independently as well, although I'm not sure if I can tell ALL of them apart.

Enjoy these first, real pics. Thanks to Nikon for making these possible... camera phones still have a LONG way to go.

Happy Birthday 03.jpgHappy Birthday 04.jpgHappy Birthday 05.jpg

[guidofatherof5]

Good looking little scrubs.
You will get two sides to this coin but I think group feeding babies is better as it will encourage more of them to eat. Competition is good for them. Group feeding stimulates a feeding response in others and also shows you which babies maybe struggling(shy eaters).
Just my opinion.

[EasternGirl]

Congrats on the eastern babies! (my favorite ). If you have any more questions about the babies...please let me know. My female eastern had babies in April...she only had 3 babies...she had a litter of 40...but only 3 survived...and I gave one to a forum member. But I have a parietalis baby and a concinnus baby now...so I am caring for 4 scrubs. 13 live is a great bunch! Feed those babies every couple of days at first...they need the nutrition! If you decide you don't want to keep them...I would post a thread...forum members may want to take them. Then, if you can't find homes...you could release them.

[Mandi0284]

They are so cute.