Scott Felzer definitely has a good reputation, although I don't have any personal experiences to share. But he definitely seems to be one of the more well-known reliable sources.
Beginning garters.. Well, my personal recommendation would be wandering garters (
Thamnophis elegans vagrans). The ones I have are very easy to handle and feed and they don't seem to respond to perceived threats the same way as my two
T. sirtalis. When they get scared, they flee, but wandering garters seem to just curl up flat against the ground and try to stay unnoticed. Makes them much easier to deal with, when you don't have to worry about them going ballistic the second you look at them funny.
Having said that, I did myself start with a very calm red-sided garter, which is still my all-time favourite.
