Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Greetings,
I tried to feed my baby garter snake some worm-scented fish but it wouldn't eat it. I smeared the worms all over the fish, even squeezing the worm innards out but still no luck. However, I fed the snake the worms I had scented the fish with and the snake ate those fish-scented worms. The reason why I am trying to get my snake to eat both worms and fish is because I won't be able to get worms during the winter and my snake will have to eat fish instead. Any suggestions on how to get my snake to eat fish?
Thanks,
Nor

Get a clear glass water bowl and keep a few live fish in it. Don't offer your snake any other food items, and it'll usually decide to dive in after the fishies. This worked for my WC garters and I'm sure they never saw a fish before I had them. Be prepared to give him some tough love, it sometimes takes about a week for them to get hungry enough to try something new.
-Alice

Thanks for the reply!
I have a little plastic water bowl inside the snake's tank, would that be good enough? (I don't want to contaminate another container and I am prone to breaking glass objects).
Also, how do I keep the fish alive in the water? Do I have to feed them?
Nor

Alice gives good advice that will often work as many garters hunt by sight, others by smell, and some by both. Another trick is to put the fish in shallow water (in a shallow bowl or saucer) so half the fish is above the surface. My theory is that this method partially simulates terrestrial hunting for snakes not conditioned to aquatic hunting. I have used this method successfully on wc Wandering Garters that would have never hunted in water before and refused fish in a water bowl. It only takes a time or two and the snake learns there is food under water and will “sight” feed. Interpreting and adapting to peculiarities in snake behavior is much of the rewards of the hobby. Good luck and experiment with it. The best thing will be to get it to take pinkies when its large enough to.

Randy

Thank you for that advice, I will get to the nearest pet store as soon as possible and get some feeder fish. The water bowl inside the snake's tank is quite shallow already, and my snake is starting to venture out from underneath its rock to inspect its surrounding after a week of hiding. It shed its skin yesterday and now the skin is in a little jar!

I talked to my Dad about the pinkie mice and he thinks that is a good idea to start feeding the snake those once it is big enough. We were able to convince my Mom to let us put rodents into the freezer as long as they are wrapped up and clean. So, when we buy the feeder fish we will check out the prices and selection of pinkies.

Thanks again for all your help, I will keep you posted on my progress.

Nor

Do you know what kind of Garter Snake you have? There are a couple like the Short-Headed and I believe also the Butlers that only eat worms. Most varieties however do eat fish, and most of those will switch to pinkies. I have a few individuals that will not eat pinkies even though others of their species will. I have close to 40 garters of about 12 varieties. If your snake does not switch over to fish and continues to insist on worms, it will need a calcium suppliment. Also, if your snake starts acting like it has a neurological problem it may be a due to a thiamine deficiency cause by an enzyme in the fish and you will need to switch its diet. I have never seen this in any of my snakes but others have reported it. Keep us posted and let us know if we can be of any more help with your pet.

I'm not too sure but I believe it is an Easter Garter Snake. It has a checkered pattern on it and not well-definded stripe down the middle. My parents are very busy and can't go to the pet shop to look at feeder fish until the weekend. i tried the fish fillet again today and was not successful. The snake did bite the fish but immediately recoiled and went back under its rock. i tried giving it the worm i had smeared the fish on but it wouldn't eat that either until a couple hours later (I didn't feed it anything else). Should I try again with the fillet tomorrow?
Nor

I would just feed it some worms then let it go without food a couple of days before you try whole feeder fish.

I will not feed the snake anything until we get the feeder fish this weekend. Will I have to tell the pet store people I want very small ones or are feeder fish very small already? What do I do if the fish are too big? Cutting them up will cause them to die and they won't swim around the water bowl after that. If the snake won't eat fillet it probably won't eat half a feeder fish. What to do?
THanks.
Nor

Hello,
Today I found a worm and mixed it with fish fillet and my snake ate it! Success at last! What I did was I put the worm and fish into a piece of plastic wrap and wrapped it up. Then, I pounded the mix into a pudding-like mass and presented it to the snake. It ate it fish and all! The worm was very long and the meal was big, so I will wait a few days before feeding it again. Maybe now I will not have to buy it feeder fish regularly if it will eat the fillet, maybe i will just offer feeder fish as an occsional snack.
Nor

It took my babies about 9 days after their birth to finally eat fish.

It required lots of minnows & guppies (many died, thank god I work at a pet store), patience, and a REAL shallow bowl.

I had no more than 1" of water in the bowl with MANY fish. They would NEVER eat with the lights on, HAD TO BE DARK.

For the first time today, 4 weeks after they were born, I've gotten to see how they work their magic and can ingest fish 2-3x thicker than themselves.

A couple of the big ones shoot into the water bowl which is now pretty big (5" round, 4" deep, fully filled), the minnows jump out in either fear or shock, and then it's feeding time. All 6 crowd around the bowl waiting for fish to flip onto the bedding, once they hit the cypress mulch it's a field day. Unfortunately, there's two runts who just don't join the party and I have to put minnows seperate from the others in a corner with the snakes, they will then eat. Fortunately, they are growing, slowly.

It's just a matter of patience, that's all...