Demigod

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-10-15, 01:31 AM

The long-awaited arrival of Demigod has come! And no, this is not some prophecy I am warning you of, this is merely a young eastern garter (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis) that I have been waiting to receive since mid-2013. I asked his previous owner if she would grow him up until he was large enough to eat whole pinkies, so she wasn't able to ship him until last summer. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to ship him before the weather got cold last summer, so we waited until this spring. So here he is!

I went ahead and offered him a mouse pink a few hours after he got here, and he took it with no hesitation. He's been exploring since he arrived here yesterday at 11am, and didn't stop even after he ate. He's been resting off an on, but comes out to check what's going on if he detects movement. His previous owner said he recently developed a biting habit, and I did get chewed on getting these pictures, but he didn't even scratch the skin and gave up fairly quickly.

drumcrush · 04-10-15, 05:50 AM

Sweet addition! I love easterns, see them alllll the time here.

reptiledude987 · 04-10-15, 02:07 PM

Havent seen one of them in a while. I used to catch them all the time as a kid.

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-10-15, 10:51 PM

Yeah he's got some really nice coloring, the crazy thing is quite the biter though. haha He'll chase down my hands and nip me several times while I clean up his poop or go to get his water dish, and tries his best to mimic a cobra sans hood. >.> First garter I've met that actually bites, but he'll probably end up growing out of it. Idk why he randomly picked it up while with his old owner, though.

**EL Ziggy** · 04-11-15, 10:02 PM

Nice looking garter bsg.

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-12-15, 12:31 AM

Thanks! He's definitely lovely, I like the blue he's got between his skin and the yellow tinge he's got. He's also got pinkish-brown sides about halfway down his body.

sharthun · 04-12-15, 10:01 AM

Congrats! Beautiful garter.

Albert Clark · 04-13-15, 07:22 PM

Good looking specimen. No quarantine period?

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-13-15, 10:06 PM

Yes, there's a quarantine period, as much as one can be obtained within the same household though. Both the new arrivals get their own utensils (weighing containers, tongs, etc.), they are kept away from the others, and are handled last, or if handled first I do not handle any of my established animals until I shower. I would have them at someone else's house like I did when I lived with my father (I kept them at my mom's until their quarantine was up), but I live with my mom now and don't trust my father and no one else is comfortable having two snakes in their home for 3-6 months. What made you think there wasn't a quarantine period?

Albert Clark · 04-14-15, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigsnakegirl785

Yes, there's a quarantine period, as much as one can be obtained within the same household though. Both the new arrivals get their own utensils (weighing containers, tongs, etc.), they are kept away from the others, and are handled last, or if handled first I do not handle any of my established animals until I shower. I would have them at someone else's house like I did when I lived with my father (I kept them at my mom's until their quarantine was up), but I live with my mom now and don't trust my father and no one else is comfortable having two snakes in their home for 3-6 months. What made you think there wasn't a quarantine period?

Well, the reason I posed the question about lack of quarantine is bc you fed him hours after receiving him from the shipper. I thought that was a little atypical for new additions. Okay, got it!

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-14-15, 05:56 PM

Yeah, I usually offer food a few hours after my new arrivals come home. If they eat then they eat, if they don't then I offer again the next week. The only reason people tend to wait is to allow them to settle in and start eating, but if they're willing to eat when they first get here then there's nothing wrong with it.

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-15-15, 08:25 AM

He's now housed in the 5 gallon tank that I started Draco out in.

bigsnakegirl785 · 05-18-15, 05:41 PM

Well he now weighs 20 grams, and other than the first feeding, he's been receiving 2 pinks a week like Draco.

Here are some photos from last Friday, he had some fun just threading through my fingers.

RAD House · 05-19-15, 12:37 AM

I am curious as to why you waited so long to have him shipped to you? He is a cool looking snake. Did you name him after the Behemoth album?

bigsnakegirl785 · 05-19-15, 01:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MesoCorney

I am curious as to why you waited so long to have him shipped to you? He is a cool looking snake. Did you name him after the Behemoth album?

His previous owner was growing him up for me until he could take whole pinks, because baby garters are really tiny (I'd like to avoid having another baby if I get another one - they're just too tiny). She wasn't able to ship him before the weather got cold last year, so she shipped him out once the the weather warmed back up.

I didn't name him, his previous owner did, I just kept his name because I saw no reason to change it. I'm not sure why she named him Demigod.