Care Sheet for Garter Snakes and Ribbon SnakesAverage Rating Given To This Care Sheet Is 4.39 (1=lowest, 5=highest) Last Updated: 04/13/2005 |
Main Category: | Snakes |
Sub Category: | Garter Snakes and Ribbon Snakes |
Care Sheet Submitted By: | Timber Rattler |
Years Experience: | 3 to 5 Years |
Species: | Eastern Garter Snake |
Other Species or Phases this Care Sheet May Cover: | Most Garter Snakes
Ribbon Snakes |
Sexing and Characteristics: | Female is longer and has a wider girth. Male is skinnier and shorter. |
Mostly Active During: | Day |
Substrate and Water Needs: | Use aspen shavings or reptibark, cage carpet, and most anything but sand because it could be swallowed and lead to impaction. Provide a water bowl large enough for swimming and fill it with chlorine free water. Rinse it out every day. |
Lighting and UVB: | No special lighting required. UVB might be beneficial to your snake. |
Temperatures and Humidity: | Basking spot of 85 or 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Cool side around low 70’s.
NIGHT: High 60’s to low 70’s should be fine |
Heating and Equipment: | Use an incandescent bulb or ceramic heat emitter on top of the cage or use a under tank heater on one side of the tank. |
Caging Provided: | 20 gallon long tank is good for a full grown garter |
Diet: | Carnivorous |
Description of Diet: | They eat night crawlers and other worms. I prefer to feed fish as the staple diet with treats like worms or crickets to provide the nutrition not found in fish. DO NOT FEED GOLDFISH! Goldfish contain chemicals harmful to snakes. To feed live fish, just dump a few right into the garter snakes water bowl and he will have a great time fishing them out. It is very fun to watch them hunt down the fish. Some people feed garters mice. I do not like the idea of feeding mice but it keeps them on a regular schedule that they only need to be fed about once a week. |
Supplements, Nutrition and Usage: | You should dust the fish, worms, or insects with calcium and vitamin powders at every other feeding. Mice do not need to be dusted or supplemented. They have enough nutrition in them already. |
Maintenance: | Garters are pretty easy to maintain. Scoop out the feces when spotted and put fresh de-chlorinated water in the bowl every day. Garters like to defecate in their bowls so don’t let it sit to long without being cleaned. |
Some Words on this Species: | Garters are a great pet snake to have. They are very active in their cages so they are fun to watch. Sometimes they can be a bit nippy at first, but they get used to you very quickly. They can grow up to be very docile and good around kids. |
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