1st Snake

[EwokNinja]

I found a California Red-sided Garter snake. I have a wood box with a glass front I got from my friend TeaNinja. It threw up a frog when we captured it. So that is what I have been feeding him. I don't have any base covering for the cage yet(any suggestions)? I put a water dish in careful not to over fill it because the snake is still very small. I don't have a heat bulb yet but the cage has a fixture built in. the snake feels pretty cool to the touch so I put a folded up towel in the cage to hopefully help him stay warmer. Anyone else have a Red-Sided garter? I'll upload a picture as soon as I can. I know nothing very little about how to care for a snake, any help is greatly appreciated.:D

[infernalis]

I keep Infernalis myself.. get it on fish ASAP, frogs are prone to worms.

An adult can be kept comfortably in a 20 long with a screen cover.

Repti bark or aspen works well for bedding.

[marvelfreak]

Hello and welcome! Wayne (Infernalis) breed them so he can answer all your question.

[stephanbakir]

Great choice for a first snake!

[TeaNinja]

keep in mind this is a w/c snake. he needs advice on what to do/not to do with a w/c, and garter husbandry because i know next to nothing about garters. i figured giving him the wooden enclosure is better then nothing for now.

[EwokNinja]

I am really embarrassed to say this.. but between the time I posted this morning and when I got home this afternoon the snake has manage to escape! : /

[TeaNinja]

ugh.....did you put it in the wooden enclosure without buying a latch? -.-

[EwokNinja]

Ya, I wedged it shut though.. and I left it in there with a frog (before reading the above posts) it was still wedged shut when I got back. I am still pretty amazed it got out.. I live in a barn so I doubt it is still in the stall I live in. Its probably back out in the wild..

[EwokNinja]

It was stupid though, I should have waited to get the latch.. I wanted to get it out of the 5 gallon bucket so it could warm up a bit.

[TeaNinja]

if the door was still shut i would check the entire enclosure really well because they can sometimes find crazy places to hide and people think they're gone when they're not. secondly, that was dumb leaving it in the unlatched enclosure lol.

[EwokNinja]

Yea, I know. I am not going to trip on it though. I mean, I'm bummed out but hella people where kinda giving me crap about taking it from the wild and putting it in a cage anyways. Maybe, I'll try to get another snake that was born in captivity or something soon and make use of this cage.. I mean I would really like to keep a snake and learn how to care for them. I am just going to say that it wasn't meant to be because that makes me feel better about being a dumbass.. ok. Talk to you guys later thanks for the help.. even though I am an idiot.

[SnakeyJay]

Mistakes happen lol... hopefully u may find a nice captive bred friend for yourself soon... read up on care and get the cage ready first tho :)

[Lankyrob]

I think most of us have an escapee at some point in our "keeping career". Dont beat yourself up too much as long as you learn form the experience and dont make the same mistake again! :)

[infernalis]

Don't let people give you crap about collecting a snake.

I keep select specimens I find, The real problem is commercial collecting.

Keeping a personal pet snake is not a major crime, Pursuant to California law, you may capture and keep up to 3 Infernalis without any special permit.

I have a friend in California that keeps one and he told me the low down on that.

Just don't accidentally catch a Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia, San Francisco Garter snake, they are illegal to collect.

[shaunyboy]

Yea, I know. I am not going to trip on it though. I mean, I'm bummed out but hella people where kinda giving me crap about taking it from the wild and putting it in a cage anyways. Maybe, I'll try to get another snake that was born in captivity or something soon and make use of this cage.. I mean I would really like to keep a snake and learn how to care for them. I am just going to say that it wasn't meant to be because that makes me feel better about being a dumbass.. ok. Talk to you guys later thanks for the help.. even though I am an idiot.


sounds like one of the people giving you crap may have returned it to the wild without declaring it mate ;)

cheers shaun

[marvelfreak]

Hey don't beat yourself up 90% of all snake keepers have a escapee at one time or another.

[Nismo89]

I thought my snake escaped the first day I got her and I knew there was no way to get out of the cage but I was still stressing and ended up finding her completely burrowed under the cypress mulch in the center of the enclosure.

[SnakeyJay]

So true... the amount of times ive emptied everything out n moved the substrate around looking for my corn n im like "huh im sure i had a snake in here".. then find him wrapped up n wedged in a log lol.

[unknownclown]

Look high and low you never know where they can be hiding at...