Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Small litter (9) but nice little snakes. All eating unscented defrosted pink mice. Mom has the most red of any Oregon red-spotted garter I've ever seen. Dad has beautiful deep crimson markings. Waiting to see what these babies look like in a few months.

Congratulations those are some of the best red spotted garters I have ever seen!!!
They're just bursting with color and it's only going to intensify!!
Do you have pics just after they were born, and pics of the parents?
Also when were they born? Sorry about all the questions but I just love these snakes!
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Charles Koutris

No pix of the babies just after they were born, alas. They looked tiny and unimpressive but they have stunning parents so I expected them to get gorgeous soon, and was not disappointed. No pix yet of parents, who are very wiggly--I'll have to wait my chance to get shots of them, maybe while they're eating. The babies were born June 19, 2010. They started out eating bits of cut earthworms, then transitioned to tiny pink mice scented with worm aujous. They are now all eating unscented defrosted pinkies and gaining size and color every week.

I also have some Pickering's garters, the bright blue ones. Just two nice females at the moment, still looking for Mr. Right. My female Pickering's also eat unscented mice. Hope to breed some dandy babies of those one day. Imagine a display with high-end red-spotteds and high-blue Pickering's under intense full-spectrum light. Think we might get the public to appreciate garters more?

In garters I also keep some Butler's garters, just the cutest snakes ever. They also eat defrosted small mice. I have a pair of het for albino checkered garters which have produced a mixed litter of het and albino; I kept one of each. Not much interested in albinos but audiences like them. All mouse eaters.

I try to get my garters to stink up defrosted mice so I can offer those to baby kingsnakes as snake-scented food, but my garters are all so tame they don't even musk. The universe loves to play little games with us poor mortals--we don't like getting musked until we need it, then we can't make it happen.

When I get pix of the parents of these baby red-spotteds I'll post them. I have to feed the adults this weekend so maybe I'll get some then.

Thank you so much for the info I really appreciate it!!!
Can't wait to see pics of the parents I bet they are amazing!!!
I have wanting to get my hands on a pair of Oregon Red Spotted Garters for a while now, either I missed out or haven't found the right ones. It's been a long time since I kept garters. I have kept and worked with just about everything under the sun at one point or another both privately and working at the Reptile House at the National Zoo through the 90's. I now just work with Red Amazon Tree Boas and Green Tree Pythons but nothing really compares to the personality of a Garter. I obviously love red hence the Amazons so the red spot's really caught my eye. I also would love a pair of infernalis but since I live in CA now those are out of the question.
Thanks again!
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Charles Koutris