Page 1 of 8 123 ... LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 78
  1. #1
    Pyrondenium Rose kibakiba's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Western USA
    Posts
    5,527
    Country: United States

    Hungry, hungry Mama

    So I have a female garter who I'm assuming is a year old. She's a little bit older than my male snake who is a year old... She's been eating a lot lately, 4 pinkies in 2 days and it's getting to the point where the bulge is just gone the next day... it's getting too expensive to feed her pinkies, and I really hate feeding her nightcrawlers because it stinks up my "critter room" which happens to be where I am all day... Lol, so she's a little less than 2 feet long and I have 2 fuzzies in the freezer but their too big for her to eat whole... Is there a way to cut it in half or in fourths without making feeding time a big bloody mess? If I added a calcium supplement to worms would that be okay for her to eat and make it a bit less stinky? I have a calciumhosphorus supplement that someone told me was good to put on worms for baby snakes to help keep their bones strong but when I was reading it, it said it was for turtles and lizards... it's from Flukers if that maters. The only reason I ask about the worms is, I literally have 100+ nightcrawlers and they keep breeding, so I have an unlimited supply of them.
    Anyways thanks for any information you can give me!

  2. #2
    Banned
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Posts
    12,873
    Country: United States

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    I wouldn't worry so much about supplements. A light dusting on a worm once a month is plenty if that's all you're feeding them. I agree, worms are a PITA 'cause they go right through the snakes and make a big stinky poopy mess.

    I don't have any problem feeding my snakes cut-up fuzzies. I simply cut them about in half while still frozen, then thaw in a ceramic dish. There's very little fluid/blood loss. If you're feeding your garters on rodents, you don't really need any supplements at all, and it's OK to give them a very good feeding of rodents and then let the snakes go without food for a week, provided that the snakes aren't rapidly growing babies. If you can find any kind of trout at the supermarket, many garters will go for that, and it's fairly inexpensive.

    Rodents are by far the best food because they are nutritionally dense, produce less stinky mess, and you can feed much less often. If your snakes eat them readily, go for it and feed them worms and/or fish as only an occasional treat.

  3. #3
    Pyrondenium Rose kibakiba's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Western USA
    Posts
    5,527
    Country: United States

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    Well Mama's been eating so many that I've spent over 40 dollars this month on them. I cant afford to do it again, and I only have 2 fuzzies left. I was thinking that a worm dipped in the calcium sup,. would make it a little more solid when it comes out and less stinky, but i don't know how that works. Next month I'm buying some mice to breed so I can get whatever size I need for the snakes, but I don't have enough pinkies to hold me off until I'd have any ready to feed to them. I've got 2 very hungry young garters that love to eat and only 10 pinkies left. I guess I'll have to handle the stink of worm until I can buy more pinkies. I've looked at different types of trout and tilapia(?) around here and it's almost as expensive as buying pinkies, and Mama is a stubborn eater... It took me a couple months to get her on pinkies :P
    Anyways, thanks for the reply

  4. #4
    Ophiuchus rhea drache's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Eastern US
    Posts
    8,129
    Country: Germany

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    have you tried just giving her a whole fuzzy?
    she may surprise you
    rhea
    "you cannot depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus" Mark Twain


  5. #5
    Banned
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Posts
    12,873
    Country: United States

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    I've had 20 inch garters take fuzzies. It's really enough food to hold them over for 2 weeks. Shame you can't get them cheaper. I get fuzzies and pinkies for $1 each so it's not expensive at all. (check craigslist thoroughly for feeder rodents) Any of my garters that will take fuzzies get them just 2-4 times a month and I feed them farmed steelhead trout in between. It's cheap too. For $3 I got enough to feed 4 very large girls for several weeks.

  6. #6
    Pyrondenium Rose kibakiba's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Western USA
    Posts
    5,527
    Country: United States

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    Ahhh yeah I just looked at my boxes again, my mom had bought 2 boxes of fuzzies and one box of hoppers, no wonder they looked too big haha. But I do think she could easily eat a fuzzy now that I've seen one. Where we buy them we get a box of 3 pinkies for 6 dollars, and fuzzies were 15 dollars. It's grossly overpriced. Hopefully getting 10 mice to breed will hold off my 3 garters and have some extras for when I get more

  7. #7
    Pyrondenium Rose kibakiba's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Western USA
    Posts
    5,527
    Country: United States

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    I just tried feeding her one of my fuzzies, she seems scared of it. She strikes at it and then lets go and stares at it and slithers off. I figure maybe if i cut it in half it might be a bit less "scary". Right now I have it in a little dish in the tank... She's still pretty skittish so she may take it without me hovering over her tank with the tongs.

    As I'm typing this she's opening her mouth and moving her jaws a bit it seems, and examining the fuzzy. Is that normal? She just dragged it out of the dish and left it, lol.

  8. #8
    "Preparing For Second shed" Laura's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2010
    Location
    Kent- Sittingbourne
    Posts
    221
    Country: England

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    Cut it up, she probably thinks it's too big :P
    The world is a joke when out of love, please come back to us <3

  9. #9
    Pyrondenium Rose kibakiba's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Western USA
    Posts
    5,527
    Country: United States

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    Yeah I ended up cutting it in half, she's on the second half now haha. She's finally got a bulge in her belly... the pinkies just weren't cutting it for her

  10. #10
    "Preparing For Second shed" Laura's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2010
    Location
    Kent- Sittingbourne
    Posts
    221
    Country: England

    Re: Hungry, hungry Mama

    I have the same issue with Lola, she is clearly big enough to eat what I'm giving her but she can't be assed with the effort so I have to cut it up for her :P
    The world is a joke when out of love, please come back to us <3

Similar Threads

  1. One Hot Mama!
    By aSnakeLovinBabe in forum General Talk
    Replies: 15
    Last Post: 08-31-2011, 01:54 AM
  2. Rip big mama!!
    By charles parenteau in forum General Talk
    Replies: 17
    Last Post: 05-03-2011, 08:20 AM
  3. Mama Says
    By guidofatherof5 in forum General Talk
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 04-26-2010, 02:29 AM
  4. I think she might be hungry Hungry??
    By TwistidMutations in forum General Talk
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 05-26-2009, 06:27 PM
  5. Big Mama atratus
    By Mexicofan in forum The Garter Snake Lounge
    Replies: 25
    Last Post: 05-20-2009, 07:13 AM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •