Rather than repeatedly interjecting on other peoples threads, I felt it would be better to just start a discussion for the sole purpose of "setting the record straight" concerning some peoples beliefs of keeping garter snakes as captives.
I see comments made all the time that I have to resist the urge to hijack a thread to make a point...
1. They smell bad. - This is almost always based on a personal encounter with a wild garter snake that was picked up as it was trying to flee.
These small snakes have virtually no defense against predators aside from musking, Whenever any colubrid feels threatened it will emit a foul smelling fluid in an attempt to gross out the predator, they will perceive you as a predator when you just reach down and pick one up off the ground.
My captives rarely musk me, unless I screw up and spook them. And quite honestly, I would rather wash my hands than bleed from a python bite.
2. They are boring. - I have to disagree here, They are the most active snake you could hope for as a "pet" and will move around in their environment and swim in the water bowl, climb up on on things and pace the cage often staring out at whatever is going on in the room around them.
3. Nothing special to look at. - Once upon a time I thought so too, However there are so many morphs and sub species available that one could spend a lifetime trying to see them all in person. and how many non venomous blue snakes can you ever find regardless of species?? (anyone can purchase a blue garter snake for around $100)
Gartersnakes - some stunning morphs in my collection
4. Never house multiple snakes in one cage. - This is about the only exception to that rule. The population densities in the wild are normally so thick that these snakes can quite often be found in the wild sharing space and resources. Nearly every Thamnophis keeper I know keeps them in multiples per cage, this reduces costs and space requirements drastically. Each year when I get a new batch of babies, either from my breeder friends or from litters I produce myself, The whole litter only requires one tank for about the first year.
5. Garter Snakes are for children and beginners. - I hear this one a lot, and nothing could be further from the truth. Once upon a time garter snakes were gathered up off the ground and sold in pet stores for $5 each, so people never took them seriously.
If you purchase a morph from a breeder, you are buying a delicate little baby snake no bigger than a pencil and your new baby will require that you feed it 2-3 times a week, and you will be chopping up the food, since they are so small. Or setting up a guppy tank so you can keep feeder fish handy.
Other perks - If you just don't have much space, one to three males can spend their entire life in a ten gallon aquarium, females do nicely in a 20 gallon, and since they do not require "jungle" or "rain forest" humidity levels, an aquarium with a mesh top does fine for housing.
If you don't want a snake that eats mice, these are perfect, Even though we can "condition them" to eat mice, their natural diet is primarily earth worms, fish and amphibians. So if you are one of those soft hearted types that cannot sacrifice a mouse to feed your snakes, A garter can be kept for it's entire life by feeding it fish.
No "extra" heat source is required.. These snakes live from Alaska to Mexico, they have a very wide range of tolerance to temperatures, They do enjoy a nice basking spot, but their overall health will not deteriorate at all if they do not have one.
I'm sure I will think of others, in the meantime feel free to ask any questions.
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