Garter Hasn't Shed Yet?

[bigsnakegirl785]

So, I've had Draco for just a littler over 3 months now and he hasn't shed yet. I'm not too worried, I'm just wondering how often baby garters shed? He's about 9in now (I finally managed to get him to stay still long enough to get a mostly accurate measurement). Because of his coloration, it's difficult for me to tell if he's going into blue. It doesn't help that he also goes through regular color changes. Some days he looks super pale, with "snow-tipped" scales, some days he looks as bright as the day he arrived, and some days he looks dark and his eyes look the color of dried blood. They're so dark, I can't even see his pupil or normal eye pattern. Then, the very next day he'll look completely different. I talked to one person who says her babies never shed during the winter, so could he just be holding out for spring? I'm just excited to finally see that little strip of skin in his tank. Other than that, he appears to perfectly fine. He's eating and pooping regularly and is highly active, coming out once the light turns on and stalking the people of the house like he usually does. He doesn't look like he's retaining a shed, and he feels super soft to the touch like Bud and Cloud feel when they're shedding, whereas he's always felt sort of coarse. I thought that meant he was shedding, but he's been like that for several weeks now.

Here's what I mean by "snow-tipped." You can see how the edge of each scale is tinged with white:
http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/IMG_0800_zps1f1ede72.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/IMG_0800_zps1f1ede72.jpg.html)

[drumcrush]

Mine actuall shed recently. Maybe a couple weeks ago. What are you feeding and how often?? Cause when they are small and feeding on nightcrawlers, they don't really grow that fast so they don't shed that often. As soon as you put them on pinkies, they grow rapidly! Mine has had her 4th pinky the other day and she has definitely been growing a lot!

[bigsnakegirl785]

He gets fed 2 live guppies every week. He won't eat anything else. I've been offering him scented pinky parts in an attempt to switch him, but he freaks out like it's trying to eat him or something. He won't eat earthworms or fish filet, either. He has grown a decent amount since I got him. I couldn't accurately measure him, but I'm guessing he was 6-7 inches, 8 at most.

[drumcrush]

He gets fed 2 live guppies every week. He won't eat anything else. I've been offering him scented pinky parts in an attempt to switch him, but he freaks out like it's trying to eat him or something. He won't eat earthworms or fish filet, either. He has grown a decent amount since I got him. I couldn't accurately measure him, but I'm guessing he was 6-7 inches, 8 at most.

Have you tried cutting up nightcrawlers? I would definitely try to get some nightcrawlers in that diet cause an all fish diet isn't very good in the long run. Male garter snakes will probably also have a slower growth rate, knowing that they stay smaller and skinnier. I just continued to feed my garter guppies and nightcrawlers until she was big enough for pinkies. I had to brain the first 2 though. Now she takes them, and actually gets aggressive with them lol.


Oh, and as far as the color changes go, mine seems to do that too:/ not sure what it is.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Yes, I've tried cutting them up, I've tried small whole ones. I've tried everything I can think of and everything I've ever read on switching garters...nothing has worked. Scented, un-scented, it doesn't matter. I have managed to get a few pinky and worm pieces in him by pushing them in his mouth behind the fish. Unfortunately, he swallows the fish so quickly I can't always do it. Either way, he isn't taking them voluntarily.

[drumcrush]

I've heard of people mixing cut up worms and fish together. Maybe try that? Then maybe try adding pinky parts later

[bigsnakegirl785]

I can try, but I'll have to find the smelliest fish I can and see if that will get his attention. I've only tried tilapia and salmon filet so far. There's certainly no way I'm stuffing a guppy with worms....

[drumcrush]

I can try, but I'll have to find the smelliest fish I can and see if that will get his attention. I've only tried tilapia and salmon filet so far. There's certainly no way I'm stuffing a guppy with worms....

Alrighty, well do what you can and give it a shot

[wrecker45]

I feed my garters every 3 days. They digest faster than other snakes.

[drumcrush]

I feed my garters every 3 days. They digest faster than other snakes.

What are you feeding it? Different foods = different digestive rate

[wrecker45]

The bigger one pinkies. The smaller on nightcrawlers salmon fillet.

[drumcrush]

The bigger one pinkies. The smaller on nightcrawlers salmon fillet.

I feed my albino 1 pinky a week. When she was on worms, I would feed every other day.

[wrecker45]

Going to try the smaller one on pinkies tomorrow.

[drumcrush]

Going to try the smaller one on pinkies tomorrow.

Good luck!

[bigsnakegirl785]

I feed my garters every 3 days. They digest faster than other snakes.

It depends on what you feed them. The care sheets I read agree pretty close to this:

6-8 days for live fish
3-4 days for fish filet w/ supplements unless on a mixed diet
every other day for earthworms w/ supplements unless on a mixed diet
1 week for rodents

He is of a pretty good weight and he's grown visibly.

[drumcrush]

It depends on what you feed them. The care sheets I read agree pretty close to this:

6-8 days for live fish
3-4 days for fish filet w/ supplements unless on a mixed diet
every other day for earthworms w/ supplements unless on a mixed diet
1 week for rodents

He is of a pretty good weight and he's grown visibly.

^^^^^ perfect

[bigsnakegirl785]

Good news! As long as he isn't playing tricks on me again, I think he's finally in shed! I picked him up and he was so soft I could barely hold onto him. I brought him into some better lighting, and his eyes have a blueish tinge to them like he's in the middle of shed! I'm keeping my fingers crossed. :D

[drumcrush]

Good news! As long as he isn't playing tricks on me again, I think he's finally in shed! I picked him up and he was so soft I could barely hold onto him. I brought him into some better lighting, and his eyes have a blueish tinge to them like he's in the middle of shed! I'm keeping my fingers crossed. :D

Yep, must be in shed then :) it was hard for me to tell when mine was first going into shed, couldn't see any blue but now I see tints of blue. Good luck!

[bigsnakegirl785]

Yep, must be in shed then :) it was hard for me to tell when mine was first going into shed, couldn't see any blue but now I see tints of blue. Good luck!

I've gotten good at seeing the blue tinge. lol Cloud never gets blue eyes, at least not like Bud. His pupils stay clearly visible, even in the deepest part of shed. His belly also usually doesn't go pink, so I look for the bluish tinge at the very edge of his belly.

[drumcrush]

I've gotten good at seeing the blue tinge. lol Cloud never gets blue eyes, at least not like Bud. His pupils stay clearly visible, even in the deepest part of shed. His belly also usually doesn't go pink, so I look for the bluish tinge at the very edge of his belly.

I've had my king shed without going blue once, I thought it was pretty strange lol

[bigsnakegirl785]

Well, the shed is confirmed! He is even more blue than he was yesterday, and there's no mistaking it now! My mom couldn't see it, though. lol

In his tank
http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1014_zps51ba4ec1.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1014_zps51ba4ec1.jpg.html)

Full body
http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1011_zpsa86ac621.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1011_zpsa86ac621.jpg.html)

It was hard to focus on his eyes, but I got a few good photos
http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1015_zps4578cc33.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1015_zps4578cc33.jpg.html)

http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1019_zpsc8e43412.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1019_zpsc8e43412.jpg.html)

[drumcrush]

Oh yeah, def. in shed!

[bigsnakegirl785]

Well, this was the shortest amount of time between going blue to shedding out of all my snakes. He just shed today. I caught him right at the beginning around 3pm or so, when I saw he'd barricaded his hide entrance with bedding. He popped his head out, and had his shed sticking up. lol

http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1054_zps42c50c31.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1054_zps42c50c31.jpg.html)

It was interesting getting a shed with no pigmentation, but cool at the same time because where the bedding isn't sticking to it it's clear as cellophane. :)
http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1063_zpsa54a8c67.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1063_zpsa54a8c67.jpg.html)

http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1066_zps7c6f35a2.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1066_zps7c6f35a2.jpg.html)

http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1061_zpsbf932446.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1061_zpsbf932446.jpg.html)

http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p600/dtr_2009_/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1069_zps8b3e1924.jpg (http://s1157.photobucket.com/user/dtr_2009_/media/My%20Snakes/Draco/IMG_1069_zps8b3e1924.jpg.html)

I also took advantage of the snake after-shed hunger and tried out some mouse pinky parts. I cut the legs off a pinky at the shoulders and hips and dipped them in fish water. He took the first one gently, and just about ripped the second piece out of my tweezers. He didn't want anything to do with the third one, though. He fear-struck it and tried to wriggle out of my fingers. I would have tried the mouse head, but....It was around 3x bigger around than he was and he would never have gotten it down. I will get him one guppy tomorrow rather than two like I normally would, since the two legs by themselves won't be enough. There's no guarantee he'll take it later, but I'll keep my fingers crossed.

[StudentoReptile]

That was weird, because my water snake didn't shed for like, 5 months. And he ate and grew like a weed.

[bigsnakegirl785]

That was weird, because my water snake didn't shed for like, 5 months. And he ate and grew like a weed.

I guess it varies by species. I was always under the assumption baby garters shed every month. Cloud shed just about every month while he was growing with some going longer than others, and now he's down to about every 2-3 months. He's not a garter, though. haha I can post in here again next time Draco sheds to see how long he'll take next time.

[drumcrush]

Really Nice, good to hear he shed alright:)

[bigsnakegirl785]

Really Nice, good to hear he shed alright:)

Goods news is it looks like he's finally taking mouse parts! I couldn't go out and get a guppy yesterday because of weather, so I thawed out the other pinky I had and cut some pieces off. He didn't want to take them from my hand, but I scented them and left them in his enclosure on a piece of styrofoam. A few minutes later they were gone. :D That should do him for awhile because he has a slight bulge now, and I'll give him some more pieces sometime next week.

You should have seen him while I was thawing out the pinky. lol He was going berserk, doing laps around his tank and looking around. He settled down once he ate and I put the rest away. ;)

[drumcrush]

Goods news is it looks like he's finally taking mouse parts! I couldn't go out and get a guppy yesterday because of weather, so I thawed out the other pinky I had and cut some pieces off. He didn't want to take them from my hand, but I scented them and left them in his enclosure on a piece of styrofoam. A few minutes later they were gone. :D That should do him for awhile because he has a slight bulge now, and I'll give him some more pieces sometime next week.

You should have seen him while I was thawing out the pinky. lol He was going berserk, doing laps around his tank and looking around. He settled down once he ate and I put the rest away. ;)
That's awesome! He should start growing faster now if he stays on the pinkies :)