wild caught garter snake

camille · 06-05-05, 03:16 AM

hey guys i was woundering since theirs alot fo garter snakes in my back yard. i know its hard to get a wild garter snake to feed but is the care pretty much the same as a captive bred snake? Just woundering because i wanted to try getting a wild one to eat and if i could id keep it. of course if i cant ill let it go again.

HerperHelmz · 06-05-05, 12:57 PM

Getting WC garter snakes to eat is not hard at all.

Infact, I caught a 9" eastern garter snake yesterday for a kingsnake, so I threw him in a small container. Later on in the day I found a worm, and since I needed some for some snakes, I threw it in there. A couple minutes later, he was eating it.

Getting them to eat is not difficult at all. I have 1 WC melanistic eastern, that I switched over to unscented mice. I have a Hypo Eastern that I switched over to unscented mice.

I can't even say it takes time. Because it doesn't, you just need to know what you are doing.

Mike

http://www.freewebs.com/mikesnake

Bighead · 06-05-05, 02:17 PM

i agree. you shouldn't have any trouble getting one to eat. earthworms, slugs, and minnows are all favorites.

camille · 06-05-05, 04:03 PM

yeah i dont want to feed him wild food though. id try earthworms cause i can buy some that are clean of pesticides and such. mayb try fish. but not goldfish.im reading up on it. since the garter snakes ares out completely right now so i have time

DragnDrop · 06-05-05, 04:11 PM

I think you should check if it's even legal to keep natuve species in your area. Chances are there's a law against it, so check first.

Next, if you keep a native for any length of time, you stand a chance of it 'catching' cooties that it can pass on to others in the wild if you release it. It's especially true if you have other captive snakes in the house.

What's the worry about feeding a wild caught snake from your back yard with wild caught food from your back yard? I'd be more afraid the bait shop is selling tainted worms since they're not really meant as food, just bait for a fish that will soon be in the frying pan.

Bruce · 06-05-05, 04:14 PM

I have a farm located 20 kms north of Vermilion Bay, Ontario. This is probably slightly north of Winnipeg, There's a 5 acre swamp just to the west side and two, 1-2 acre ponds on the east side of the barns. The other day my girlfriend spotted what she said was a black snake moving across the sand paddock, between the barns, heading towards the ponds.
She said it appeared to be 5 feet long, black and as thick as her
wrist. She's seen, possibly the same snake, last year.
I'm thinking it has to be a huge female garter snake. I don't think
water snakes are this far north... Any thoughts?
I'll go searching on my days off. Lot's of frogs, fish, mice for food sources.

Chris

snakehunter · 06-05-05, 04:24 PM

Keeping wild animals is immoral........

peterm15 · 06-05-05, 04:38 PM

agreed, espically when you cought it yourself.. its not so bad when its an import.. you know thoes are gonna be sold anyways so may as well be to a good home.. but most ppl wont catch a snake themselves and keep it...

Lrptls · 06-05-05, 05:30 PM

if i were you id just buy a snake at a pet store, its most likely free of parasites, its been in a cage its whole life. would you like to live free and then some one put you in a box to live for the rest of your life? it cant be fun being caught by something HUGE compared to you and all your thinking is its going to eat you and then you have to live in the box in some house with it. to me its terrible but do whatever you want.

BoidsUnlimited · 06-05-05, 11:40 PM

Hard to feed? Maybe I'm lucky....my Garter will eat daily if I offered him and I've had him for about a month now....BABY too =P

camille · 06-06-05, 08:08 AM

im still not really shure of getting one though. im moving to the city and going to work so i might just buy myself a corn snake as ive always wanted a candy cane cornsnake

HerperHelmz · 06-06-05, 03:44 PM

Ok... for educational reasons, here are feeding records for my adult Male Eastern Melanistic Garter Snake last year. These records were not altered in anyway...

June 12th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 f/t nightcrawlers
June 14th, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 nightcrawler
June 15th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 worms
June 16th, 2004 - Mel. ate f/t nightcrawler
June 17th, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 worm
June 18th, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 f/t nightcrawler
June 19th, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 f/t nightcrawler
June 20th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 f/t worms
June 22nd, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 nightcrawler
June 23rd, 2004 - Mel. ate f/t nightcrawler-scented pinky
June 24th, 2004 - Mel. has blue eyes
June 29th, 2004 - Mel. shed, ate a f/t nightcrawler and a nightcrawler scented pinky
July 1st, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 f/t nightcrawler-scented pinky
July 3rd, 2004 - Mel. ate unscented pinky mouse
July 4th, 2004 - Mel. regurgitated pinky(too hot!!??)
July 8th, 2004 - Mel. ate unscented pinky
July 9th, 2004 - Mel. ate unscented pinky, he has fully switched over
July 10th, 2004 - Mel. ate pinky
July 12th, 2004 - Mel. ate pinky
July 14th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 pinkies
July 17th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 pinkies
July 19th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 toads
July 20th, 2004 - Mel. ate 1 small f/t worm
July 21st, 2004 - Mel. ate green frog
July 28th, 2004 - Mel. shed and ate pinky mouse
July 29th, 2004 - Mel. ate frog
August 2nd, 2004 - Mel. ate fuzzy mouse
August 4th, 2004 - Mel. ate fuzzy mouse
August 10th, 2004 - Mel. ate frog
August 17th, 2004 - Mel. ate fuzzy mouse
August 25th, 2004 - Mel. shed
August 26th, 2004 - Mel. ate fuzzy mouse
August 27th, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 pinky mice
September 12th, 2004 - Mel. ate salamander
September 14th, 2004 - Mel. ate fuzzy mouse
September 21st, 2004 - Mel. ate 2 pinky mice
October 6th, 2004 - Mel. ate a nightcrawler
October 14th, 2004 - Mel. ate pinky mouse
October 19th, 2004 - Mel. ate pinky mouse
November 19th-24th, 2004 - Mel. ate 5 rosy reds
December 17th, 2004 - Mel. entered brumation

Mike
http://www.freewebs.com/mikesnake

peterm15 · 06-06-05, 04:23 PM

a corn is still your better bet..

HerperHelmz · 06-06-05, 07:00 PM

^ Not all corn snakes are "perfect pets". I keep a variety of snakes, mainly snakes that will never reach 20" long in their whole lives. I'd rather have any of those, than a corn snake. I had a corn snake last summer, never ate, you know what I call that? Quick feeder food.

Mike

http://www.freewebs.com/mikesnake

peterm15 · 06-06-05, 07:38 PM

what snakes rarely reach 20" ive only heard of hognose that are that small... amd maybe rough grass

and yes.. there not ALWAYS better but imo a wild cought snake should not be kept in captivity its just not nice..

but a well established yearling corn with beauty colours and a great temperment cost me 60 bucks.. never refused a meal perfect shed and never tried to strike.. so hey.. alot of ppl get snakes like that..

you could also look into a cbb.. you MAY be able to find one... depending on where you are.. isnt also against the law to keep gartes.. and once again i believe its imoral to keep a wc in captivity...