Quote:
Originally Posted by aSnakeLovinBabe
I can't see justification in feeding those things when there are plenty of other readily available and more natural sources of food for our snakes.
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Nitpicking can be taken to the extreme in this case, too. Amphibians are the main food for most garters, not fish, worms or rodents. Most fish, rodent and worm species we feed garters aren't even their natural prey.
Mus musculus and
Lumbricus terrestris aren't native to North America. Neither is the natal rat, the brown rat, the gerbil or the hamsters.
The snake's body won't know the difference between natural and "unnatural" food items, as long as there isn't something about them that makes them unsuitable as garter food. Such as thiaminase, present in certain fish species that one could assume would be a part of the wild garter's diet. Or parasites, which amphibians can be expected to carry.