Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello all! I've had three plains garters for almost two years now, and for the past month or so they've gone on a hunger strike that I can't quite explain. There is an older female, a younger female, and a male in the same big tank. None of the females are gravid. They don't appear sick as they're still very active, have good muscle tone, and the male's about to shed. I've fed them everything they've taken readily in the past, with no response. They'll perk up and get excited when there's food around, but they'll give it a sniff and then ignore it. I've never had to force feed them before, so I don't really want it to come to that. Don't want them to starve either though! How long should I wait before I step in?

Odd thing is that I have two recently caught wild plains garters rehabbing in another tank, and they're eating like little piggies. They've only been around for a few days so I don't think the other three could have caught anything from them. *shrugs*

I'd get a postage scale and start tracking their weights if you're worried. Unless you notice something like unusual excrement that could indicate parasites and the need for treatment, or changes in terms of weight and behavior, I'd try waiting them out. Force feeding is extremely stressful and unless you notice a significant drop in weight it would probably do more harm than good. ALso think back to the last time you fed them and how exactly the food was presented. I had one of my garters stop eating last summer for quite stretch and couldn't figure out why. Then I remembered that the f/t fuzzies he'd last eaten had their abdominal contents exposed. I offered him a "gutted" fuzzy and he ate it right up.

-Alice

The male that's about to shed will probably have quite an appetite after he sheds but is unlikely to resume feeding before doing so. Sometimes snakes just want a change of diet and stop feeding on items they've done quite well on for extended periods. If you've already tried changing their diet to worms/fish from (I assume) mice and it hasn't helped, you might need to put them into brumation for around three weeks, particularly if they haven't recently brumated. This would be most likely if they're kept in a room without direct, bright sunlight, and they're experiencing a short photoperiod. If they have plenty of bright light, then brumation probably isn't the answer. I use a small refrigerator in my garage for brumation. At any rate, I wouldn't do anything with the male until after he sheds. Best of luck,
Rick