Eastern Garters

[lestat]

When i was at the pet store getting my new vivarium i enquired about Eastern Garter Snakes as they had said they could get them along with Red Sided Garters. They cost £25 pounds each and i want to ad a new variety to my collection but was shoked to find out that the Garters in question are adult wild caught and not captive bred.

[adamanteus]

It's a sad fact that the bulk of the parietalis you will see for sale in UK shops are wild caught. There is just too little interest in captive breeding Garters, most reptile enthusiasts seem to choose the less interesting but more expensive alternatives.

Before you part with your money for a sirtalis (Eastern) I would recommend that you check the ID is correct. We see very few Easterns in the UK.

[zooplan]

The more important fact is maybe that wildcaught garters are still cheaper and easier to purchase than captive bred for a pet shop.

[adamanteus]

Good point, Udo. It always comes down to dirty money in the end!