Posted by:
chailatte
at Sat Oct 2 23:35:21 2004 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by chailatte ]
A fourteen inch garter could be left without food for a week with no effect. The question is why it wouldn't eat for a week if offered food. An unusually large meal might satisfy a snake that size for a week. And as I said before, snakes often go off food a few days pre-shed. I wouldn't be too worried yet. As for the temperature, ideally you want a gradient so the snake can move from place to place and regulate its temperature itself. Proper temp is particularly important for digestion. I try for 85 at one end of the enclosure and 75 at the other. Another thing to consider with garters is that sometimes they decide they are ready for brumation regardless of your intention. Sometimes you can coax them out of it, sometimes its better to hibernate them if they're determined. The only time I've had force-feeding do any good is with snakes that wouldn't eat because they didn't recognize the food they were being offered as prey. After a few times they adjust to new scents and take food on their own. A previously feeding snake that quits could have a disease, injury, intestinal blockage, etc, and force-feeding won't help and may hurt. A really starved snake will shrink to the point that the scales on either side fold into ridges. At that point its in trouble. Wait a few days and see what happens.
L'Chaim
[ Hide Replies ]
|
RE: How long can a Garter snake go without eating? - chailatte, Sat Oct 2 23:35:21 2004