Looking for help feeding snake

[nightsnake]

Hello all,
I was recently gifted a small Coast Nightsnake from a friend who's girlfriend wanted to kill it. Early on (I've had it roughly a month) I got it to eat the tail of a Western Fence Lizard, which proved to be a big meal for it. Since then (roughly 3 weeks) it hasn't eaten. I've tried Fence Lizard tails roughly once a week and its never been interested again. Ive also tried very small pinkies, crickets, waxworms, and even a newly metamorphized Baja California Treefrog (I raise tadpoles). It took none of them. I've been reading and it seems in the wild, they primarily eat baby Side-Blotched Lizards and Fence Lizards. However Ive been unable to find any near me. I guess my question is two parts:

1. Does anyone else have experience with this species and have tips on feeding?

2. If anyone in the San Diego area breeds/could catch a baby lizard, I'd be grateful

Thanks!

[ReptiWorldWide]

Hey!
First of all, i do not have any experience with this species, so what i say, is just applying the knowledge from other species.
Also, assume by your description, that your friend found it in the wild, and kept it. If so, i just want to warn you that in many states it is illegal to catch and own a wild animal, so beware.

Back to the subject though, assuming it is wild caught, it can be very, very difficult to feed. I have heard of stories of them never feeding and just dying of starvation from being wild caught, as well as being loaded with parasites. If this is the case, parasites may make a snake not interested in food. If things get too bad, you may want to attempt to force feed it, but always keep this as a last resort, as this is very difficult to do, and if done wrong can be very dangerous to the snake.

If i misunderstood, then my apologies, it is simply how i take what you said. I hope my information helps, and that it starts eating soon. Good Luck!

PS I am on the other side of the world at the moment... so that is why I didn't even mention you second question...

[chairman]

Per the website of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, it is only legal to possess reptiles native to California if you:

a) possess a valid sportfishing license (possession of no more than 2 of a species), or;
b) possess a Native Reptile Propagation permit (a number of conditions apply)

The Coastal Nightsnake is one of the reptiles that can be collected and possessed with the sportfishing license.

The lizards that the snake eats can also only be legally collected with a sportfishing license, you can only have two at a time, you cannot breed them without the Propagation permit, and only licensed individuals may sell them.

It is important to note that reptile keeping in general, and snake keeping in specific, is not wildly popular with the general public. It is important for all reptile keepers to be good ambassadors of the hobby and follow all rules and regulations that apply.

If you are going to keep the snake, step one would be to make sure you have the appropriate license or permit to keep it. Step two would be a visit to a veterinarian where you should have some lab work done to identify the parasites your snake is carrying so you can treat the parasites. Step three would be identifying a source for captive born and bred lizards to feed your snake. Wild lizards carry parasites that can pass to your snake, there's no point in stressing the snake with unnecessary parasite loads. You can usually find young anoles or fence lizards for around $10 each that can be used as feeders.

It would be a good idea to establish a mourning gecko colony with which to feed your snake. A dozen mourning geckos should produce enough lizards to feed the snake and maintain the colony, but it'll be 4-6 weeks before you have baby lizards large enough to feed your snake with. You can either establish breeding colonies of insects or purchase them from suppliers to feed the geckos.

If you think this is a little over-the-top then perhaps you should just return the snake to the place where you found it. Generally, keeping wild snakes is an exceptionally difficult and expensive task. It is best left to experienced individuals that are using wild caught populations to establish healthy captive bred populations. This is especially true for snakes that won't eat mice or rats and require specialized food like lizards, snails, quail eggs, termites, other snakes, etc.

Personally, I'd return your snake to the wild. Then do a little research and pick up a captive snake as a pet. It is MUCH less expensive in the long run than keeping a wild snake. In addition, wild snakes typically just die in captivity, which could leave you with bad feelings about keeping pet snakes. The people on this forum enjoy keeping snakes and want to help other people enjoy keeping snakes, including yourself. Take a couple pictures of your nightsnake, return it to the wild, make some plans for a future snake, and then find a captive bred one that suits you.

[nightsnake]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. First off I'd like to say that I did my research prior to accepting the snake. First I made sure to check into the legality and I do have a sportfishing license, so I'm glad to hear I didn't miss any other requirements. Secondly, I am a huge snake fan and have had other pet snakes throughout my life, though never one so small. In the past I've always had ones large enough to eat pinkies or mice, but this snake is so small it's new territory for me. I'll likely end up releasing it at a local wildlife refuge where I've spotted them before, but I thought I'd attempt it at least. it's a very fascinating snake!

[nightsnake]

I forgot to add, but I do plan to see a vet once they reopen, but currently the ones near me are only accepting emergency visits due to the corona virus