New garter snake...questions

Discussion in 'Other Colubrids' started by Hamburgler, Oct 15, 2003.

  1. Hamburgler

    Hamburgler Embryo

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    A friend of mine recently had a garter in her garage (in connecticut) looking for a place to hibernate possibly, so i took it in. Its about 8 inches long. I have it in a 10 gallon, with the right setup and such but i'm wondering about feeding. I have had it since monday, i offered it slugs and earthworms so far. It has not eaten that i know of, there are some slugs in the cage. How long should i wait to try feeding again? it doesnt looks skinny or anything. I was thinking of trying guppies, but if he doesnt eat it, what do i do with the fish? any suggestions?

    thanks a lot
     
  2. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  3. Axe

    Axe Well-Known Member

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    Well, you could setup another 10 gallon with a cheap pump. You can pick up a basic filtration system for about 10-15 bucks at most pet stores. You don't need any other ornaments for the tank, it's not like they're gonna be pets. Of course, you could go for something elaborate as a room decoration, and just pull the guppies out as you need them.

    You could put the fish in a little bowl of water while they're in the snake's tank. Use a small cereal bowl, or a small-ish ceramic food bowl (like a 3-4" diameter), something he can see the fish swimmin around in. You might need to sink it into the substrate a little bit if you can.

    If the worms & slugs are still alive in the tank, I'd just leave them in there so he can get them when he's hungry. Just try to make sure the slugs aren't going to crawl out of the tank & escape :D

    Good luck!
     
  4. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  5. Hamburgler

    Hamburgler Embryo

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    thanks for the input, his current water bowl is that size, and is buried into the substrate, so thats not a problem. the slugs are pretty secure in there, they arent able to get through the screen top, they stay in one area pretty much anyways. i dont really want to have to set up another tank for the fish, should i wait any certain amount of time so it will be hungry? or should i go pick some fish up soon?
     
  6. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  7. Axe

    Axe Well-Known Member

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    If you've only had him a couple of days, and he's gone from the wild to a tank, it might take a coupla weeks for him to settle in, if ever. So I wouldn't say there's any real rush to give him a guppy.

    Plus, if he was getting ready to burrow down for a couple of months, he might've just prepared himself to not eat for a while anyway.

    Just give him a week or so to settle in, keep weighing him every few days (just use a deli cup on the scales to weigh him, but make sure you zero it WITH the deli cup on, or remember to weigh the cup separately so you can subtract it). If it appears like he's losing weight, then either just release him back to the wild, and he'll find his way again, or pop down to the vet.

    Wild caught reptiles will often not do well in captivity, refusing food, etc. So releasing him may end up being in the best interests of the snake if he keeps refusing food and starts losing weight.
     
  8. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  9. Hamburgler

    Hamburgler Embryo

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    releasing would be what i would most like to do, but is it too late? its already cold here, low 50's daytime high and 30's at night.
     
  10. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  11. Axe

    Axe Well-Known Member

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    Well, if you do end up having to release it, try possibly near an air conditioning unit that's fairly active. That should keep it warm long enough for it to get its bearings and decide what it wants to do.

    When it starts getting cold here, we see MANY anoles hanging around the AC unit at the side of the house to keep warm - as well as one of our iguanas when he escaped last year, hehe.
     
  12. Hamburgler

    Hamburgler Embryo

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    i just let it go, at a nearby mountain. it seems warm enough in the sun, thanks for the help.
     
  13. Axe

    Axe Well-Known Member

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    ahhh cool.. If you want a snake, try looking into a corn snake. They're a great snake to have, are easily available, and have adapted well to captivity over the generations of breeding.

    There's also a wide range of colours & patterns available these days.
     

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