Feeding diamondback water snake

[toddnbecka]

Went to the Baltimore repticon, didn't see any MBK's there, but I did bring home a baby diamondback water snake. WIth an ever-growing population of endler's livebearers spread among several aquariums (and for only $10) I figured why not? Easy enough to maintain and won't cost me anything to feed for some time, though it will eventually outgrow the endler's (think guppies if you aren't familiar with them) and need larger feeder fish like rosy reds. The seller said he had had it for 4 months, I don't doubt his word, but I've seen bigger nightcrawlers than this little guy/girl. I set it up with a water bowl large enough to actually swim in and tossed in some fish. Seemed right at home when he/she was swimming around, mouth agape, chasing fish. I seriously think almost the snakes body mass worth of fish were eaten over 5-6 hours. I thought there would be enough for a couple days given the small size of the snake, but there were only the 2 smallest (actually fry) remaining when I last looked in on the new arrival, finally just lying on the paper bedding instead of chasing more fish. Any clue how much/often the greedy little snake should be fed? It's hard to weigh live fish...

[FWK]

I recommend switching it to rodents straight away. An all fish diet is not ideal and there is a whole list of fish that shouldn't be offered to reptiles. If you do want to stick to fish you'll need to occasionally mix it up with amphibians and other prey items as fish alone do not represent complete nutrition for a Water Snake. Diamondbacks are relatively large Water Snakes that average around 4-5 feet in length depending on the local, I've personally handled quite a few around the six foot mark and I've heard of specimens exceeding seven feet. You Endler's will be outgrown in short order. I've heard of Water Snakes taking rodents with little effort but mine was not so easy to switch. If you can get it on rodents it can be fed and cared for about the same as most colubrids. Oh, and you next post should include pictures lol, baby Diamondbacks are cute little devils.

P.S. You are probably going to get flamed (as you should be) for taking on this snake without doing your due diligence, but I will leave that for the others. "and for only $10 I figured why not" is not a good reason to take on an animal you do not know how to properly care for.

[fishingfool]

Sounds like you got a good feeder on your hands

[jjhill001]

Water snakes are fun to watch eat.

[reptiledude987]

Dont know much about these guys. But would love to see some pics of him and his setup.

[toddnbecka]

I've kept adult northern water snakes before w/out any problems, figured the diamondback would be similar enough on care requirements. I realize babies will eat more often, just not certain how much/often would be best. There aren't many care sheets on diamondback water snakes to be found. The only one I did come across mentioned feeding them pinks occasionally, but this one looks too small for them yet. However, given that it ate so much, and the fact that adult snakes take down adult bluegills, I'm thinking it may have a more python-like eating capacity than a corn.

[toddnbecka]

Couple quick pics of the stuffed snake. Not literally the size of most nightcrawlers, wider now that the belly is full, but still looks small enough to go on a big fish hook lol. For reference the side of the enclosure is 10" long, so the snake is maybe 10" total length. It will be moved into a taller tote tonight, though doesn't seem inclined to climb so far. Would have handled for pics but not so soon after feeding:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/toddnbecka/Snakes/P1060621_zpsfthq50l0.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/toddnbecka/media/Snakes/P1060621_zpsfthq50l0.jpg.html)


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/toddnbecka/Snakes/P1060619_zpsmauwm147.jpg (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/toddnbecka/media/Snakes/P1060619_zpsmauwm147.jpg.html)

[Derek1]

That's a great looking DBWS! Most common snake I catch and see here. The wilds musk really bad and are very aggressive, but still fun to watch and catch. I would try to switch to a rodent diet too, but won't to hurt to mix in worms and fish too. Wilds here live off bullfrogs and perch/bluegills. Seen lots of juvi's eat small bullfrogs. Guess that is where they get their bone diet, like recommending switching to rodents?

[toddnbecka]

This one musked then pooped on me when I picked it up last night. Not much of either, just a baby, and apparently not accustomed to handling. Not defensive but a bit flighty, and moves quickly when it does. I'll likely switch the substrate to cypress mulch for humidity. Seems to like the water even when there aren't any fish in the "pond", not sure if it's feeling too dry or just likes the water.
The northern water snakes I kept briefly back in college days were adults, used newspaper bedding and a large water bowl. They mainly hung out under cover, and only went swimming to chase fish.This one seems fine out in the open, and more at home in the water.
Will be happy to switch to rodents when it's large enough to eat them, but at 9" I think it's still a bit small. I'd think fish would actually have more bone content than newborn mice though, their skeletons aren't very well calcified at birth.