I acquired my Michigan wild-self-caught baby eastern garter snake during the first week of August 2008 from my neighborhood. He was approximately 8 inches in length upon his capture. I am estimating that he was no more than a few weeks old.
He was put in a 10 gallon terrarium filled with virgin wood pulp bedding. Pulp bedding is scent-free, super absorbent, and dust-free. These are essential qualities to ensure a healthy garter snake environment. Also, fresh water is supplied twice a week. The water bowl should be big enough for the snake to submerge his whole body.
I made sure he had two hiding places on each side of the tank. Also, I made sure I had a secure lid and a good source of heat on one side of the tank. Garter snakes like a temperature gradient since they are ectotherms. I used a 75 watt infrared bulb with a UL ceramic fixture on the left side of the tank. It rests right on the metal-screen lid. The heated side achieves a temperature of about 82F. The unheated side remains a balmy 68F.
Within 24 hours of capture, he was eating live garden worms by hand. His appetite was ravenous. I did this for a month and then switched his diet to frozen pinky mice cut length wise in quarters. I had to scent the mice with live worms to encourage feeding. I only had to do this once. After that, he aggressively ate dead unscented pinky mice with fervor.
I fed this rapidly growing snake one garden worm every other day. Once he was transitioned to mice, I was feeding him every 4-5 days. As a rule, the food particle should be about 1-1.5X the diameter of the snakes thickest body girth.
Cleaning the tank is easy. I just spot clean weekly which means I remove the soiled-pulp areas. The pulp acts as kitty litter. So, I just remove a few pieces of pulp per week. Every month, I do a comprehensive cleaning. This involves a complete exchange of bedding and a 10% solution bleach wipe down. Be sure to rinse all the bleach free.
After a couple of months, the snake had grown 2 inches. However, his appetite dropped off considerably. By October, he stopped feeding all together. My snake was preparing for brumation. In return, I let his digestive system clear 2 weeks from his last feed (NO FEEDINGS during that interval.) After that, I started the brumation process. I removed the heat source, and let the terrarium cool to room temperature. Then, I positioned the tank in the corner of the basement. Temperatures ranged from 55-58F during brumation. I changed the water once a week.
I would see him on occasion during this brumation process. I would find him frequently in the water bowl, but most of the time he just remained buried in the bedding. Be sure to check on your snake weekly and offer fresh water during the brumation process. I did not change the bedding since there was no defecation.
After 3 months, I brought my snake out of brumation. I made sure that the daylight cycle was increasing when I decided to end brumation (OCT 18th-Jan 18th.) The tank was removed from the basement corner, and placed at room temperature of 65F for 24 hours. Then, I added the heat source. The 68-82F tank temperature gradient was reestablished. 2 days later, I offered him 1/2 of a pinky. He refused. One week later, I tried again. This time he ate the 1/2 pinky with little hesitation.
And so the cycle continues. Garter snakes are really neat pets. For the most part, they are easy to domesticate. They are especially easy to maintain. I really enjoy the feedings. I use a set of small tongs to offer the snake the pinky-mouse. Hand feeding the snake worms is purely awesome. We play tug of war with the worm.
Be sure to wash your hands before and after you handle the snake. Also, never handle the snake during the feeding process. As a guideline, wait a day before/after feeding to handle.
I must admit, this whole process has been a very rewarding experience. Catching, domesticating, feeding, and brumating the snake has been a super-cool experience for me and my children.
Currently at the time of this publication, our snake has grown 4 inches in 6.5 months (3 months of which were in brumation.) As you can see, he is eating whole pinky mice. Stay tuned for frogs, fish, and more worms/mice.
We hope to have our pet eastern garter snake for a long time. I am in the process of making a custom terrarium. He will out-grow his 10 gallon fixture in no time. An 18X36 inch foot-print should be perfect for one adult garter snake.
bitter
(Getting bit does hurt, but this snake has never bitten me. It is the big water snakes that hurt.)
Duration : 0:2:10
what worms do u …
what worms do u feed it and were do u get it from
its ok now, it is …
its ok now, it is eating little worms, and i got your other thing that they can eat pinkys, im just curious, could i find a pinky mouse at a pet store, such as petsmart, if you have them where you are, and if not where could i get one? then would a pet store sell under tank heaters?
if it doesnt eat in …
if it doesnt eat in a week, let it go.
some snakes do not transition to domestic life well.
better to let it go, and find another.
but it is late in the season in the northern USA, find your snake next year if you are in northern USA.
the snakes are preparing for brumation, and hence, may not be eating.
bitter
yes, a foot long …
yes, a foot long garter can eat small pinkie mice.
feed live if the snake is having trouble taking the dead pinkie mice.
worms are easy. follow my care sheet to help transition to pinkie mice.
live frogs and fish will work, but try to transition to pinkie mice.
read my care sheet, it is all there.
i have a little …
i have a little garter snake, it is about a foot long, and not very wide, i think it is still a baby, im not sure what to feed it, and i havent had much luck feeding it earthworms, i leave a bowl for it to soak in, and to fish in for little minnows i found in my neighborhood creek, havent seen it eat anything out of there, i put him in the water and he wiggles out as fast as he possibly can, i dont know if he will learn to fish for them, what do i do?
would a foot long …
would a foot long baby garter snake be able to eat either pinkys, little frogs, earthworms, or minnows? and with minnows should i keep them live in a water bowl for him whenever he wants it.
i was gunna get a …
i was gunna get a garter snake from camping but i had to let it go
eco earth is pretty …
eco earth is pretty much soil that holds moisture..
I’ve always loved …
I’ve always loved these guys; I’ve been catching them since I was about 8 yrs. old. They acually can become quite tame and friendly.
no. but mice offer …
no. but mice offer complete nutrition. in the wild, they eat frogs, toads, worms, and fish.
i know they love frogs and baby bluegill.
bitter
i dont know what …
i dont know what eco earth is? bedding should be dry, dust free, scent free, and suber absorbent. pulp is hard to beat. it is cheap and abundant.
bitter
one more thing does …
one more thing does he have to have pinky’s?
i just got one …
i just got one today. is it okay for him to be on eco earth?
nice vid
nice vid
Aw so cute!
There …
Aw so cute!
There waayy cuter then Ball Pythons.
No offense but they look weird to me. o_O
He he I can’t wait to get my snake! =D
k thanks
k thanks
yes, your 19 inch …
yes, your 19 inch long snake can eat pinkies!!!!
use garden worms to feed your babies. becareful if feeding them in a group.
bitter
so can i feed mine …
so can i feed mine pinkies then, hes 19 inches long.
and what should i feed to my babies theyre like 4-5 inches long
LMAO! the …
LMAO! the imagination movers song!!!!!!!!!XD
helped me alot
helped me alot
ive had a two foot …
ive had a two foot garter snake all i had to do is catch a 1 1/2 inch leopard frog for it and the next morning it would be gone
Sweet. I have a …
Sweet. I have a Creamsicle Corn. Beautiful little snake you have there, Mr. Bitter. Awesome videos. 5 out of 5 stars.
Mark
for a full grown …
for a full grown garter, i recommend a 36 inch by 18 inch foot-print. catching a full grown garter snake may present some feeding challenges. they eat primarily fish, frogs, and toads. some eat mice. sounds like you have to go catch him some food. if he is hard to feed, let him go.
catch a baby garter instead, and start with worms, then transition to mice. read my care sheet which is on the info section on the right hand side of this web page.
bitter
what can u feed …
what can u feed these guys full grown i caught one today, i never been bit by a snake so im quite nervous to pick him up cuz he bit the poll i caught him with what size enclosure do u reccomend?
Nice! Awsome snake!
Nice! Awsome snake!
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