Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello - my name is Paula and I got "Garfield" my Garter about 4 months ago, he is now about six months old.

I have a couple of questions and if anyone can answer them for me that would be great.

Just how often should I be feeding him and how much do I give him? I currently feed him 2/3 times per week on a mix of pinkies and lance fish with the occassional fuzzy. Each time I give him about 4 full lance fish and 2 pinkies and he eats it all, is this okay?

Also he has shed twice in 2 months is that right?

Thanks very much for taking the time to read this post.

Paula & Garfield
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Welcome, Paula. Sounds like your new snake is doing great. If you just feed fish, several times a week is a good idea. If your garter is eating rodents, you could probably feed him once a week or every 5-6 days. You may decide that a staple diet of rodents is easier in the long run, especially if you are feeding frozen/thawed. Lots of folks stick exclusively to rodents if and when they are able to switch them over. Both my garters are on an all-rodent diet now.
Like I said: Sounds like you're doing a great job. If your snake wants to keep gobbling down all that chow, he's probably OK for now. May very well slow down in the fall.
Shedding sounds fine also. Duffy

Hello Paula,

I have 30 Garters representing 14 varieties ( 1 is a Ribbon Snake.) All but a few feed on rodents. I'd feed him the largest size rodent he is comfortable with. If he can eat a fuzzy you can probably feed him every 5 to 7 days as a rule of thumb. It sounds like he is growing so this should be fine. If you get a complete shed you can measure it and keep track of his growth and feed accordingly. I do not recommend feeding him all he wants every few days. I belong to the school of thought that a snake should be power fed to get it to grow faster. My personal rule of thumb is babies on small fish get fed every 2 to 3 days, those on pinkies every 4 or 5 days, those on large pinks about every 5 days, and those on fuzzies every 5 to 7 days. Adult snakes on hoppers or weans feed every 7 to 10 days depending on the snake. I have one adult fish eater (T elegans terrestris) that I feed every 7 to 10 days. Sometimes I let him go a bit longer and I am still trying to convert him to rodents. He fasts at times but he holds his weight. Anyway, if Garfield will eat rodents I would stick to that and skip fish all together. What kind of Garter is he?

Randy

Re-read your post...Did you mean to say that snakes should NOT be power fed? From the rest of what you have said (which makes sense), I assumed that was what you meant to say. Just wondering. Duffy

You are correct. I missed the typo. I believe a snake shoul NOT be powerfed. Thank you for pointing that out.

Thank you so much for your replies, I am glad to know that I am doing ok with Garfield.

He is a checkered garter (thamnophis marcianus - I Think that's right).

Thanks again

Paula & Garfield