Garter snake food - fish questions.

[Ameivaboy]

platys,mollies, and swordtails would be a much better route to go than your standard dirty goldfish, but as always variety is key

[AliciaG13]

One thing that I think worked with my snake was remembering that "variety is the spice of life." Unfortunately, he didn't seem to like anything with feet (like crickets) but earthworms and rosy-reds were his favorites. He never got very big, though, so I never had the chance to try him on mice at all. He preferred his food live but would eat just about anything floating in the fish dish.

[KITKAT]

Originally Posted by AliciaG13

One thing that I think worked with my snake was remembering that "variety is the spice of life." Unfortunately, he didn't seem to like anything with feet (like crickets) but earthworms and rosy-reds were his favorites. He never got very big, though, so I never had the chance to try him on mice at all. He preferred his food live but would eat just about anything floating in the fish dish.

I have had pretty good success with a frozen/thawed pinkie that I float in the dish together with 2 - 3 frozen/thawed minnows.

[Lee]

Well he loves to catch the live fish so after looking at different petstores I found one that sells live pinkie rats/mice. The pinkie rats where just smaller than an adult mouse. Got 2 today to test them out see how he takes to em. Great success thus far. Only got it in 30 mins ago. Went straight for it, kind of gets at ya hearing them squeel but I'll get over it sooner or later.
Any thoughts on if this will improve his life ??

[crayguns]

Hello, I've gotten minnows at the bait station. This works fine and is much cheaper than pet shops. I've dropped them on the floor of the cage or put them in the water bowl. It's interesting to see the snake "harpooning", or trying to get in the bowl with them. Bait stations are usually open year round.

[Lee]

Originally Posted by crayguns

Hello, I've gotten minnows at the bait station. This works fine and is much cheaper than pet shops. I've dropped them on the floor of the cage or put them in the water bowl. It's interesting to see the snake "harpooning", or trying to get in the bowl with them. Bait stations are usually open year round.

No real good bait shops around. I only have fed fish because they are alive, dead food doesnt intrest him much, he ignores it half the time.. I know they have live fish but I thought rodents are a lot healthier for him?

[adamanteus]

Lee, as he's taking live pinks I think you could soon wean him onto dead ones. He won't care, and it's a little less unpleasant for you (and the pinkies!)

[Lee]

Originally Posted by adamanteus

Lee, as he's taking live pinks I think you could soon wean him onto dead ones. He won't care, and it's a little less unpleasant for you (and the pinkies!)

Oh he will take dead but its a pain to thaw one and go to the store for one, not to mention it takes like 3 pinkies to fill him up which is more expensive than 1 live rat pup that fills him up. Are there any advantages to feeding dead nutrionally? I don't mind feeding live I'll get used to it..

[adamanteus]

Nutritionally speaking I guess it's the same. I was just thinking dead/frozen/thawed is more convenient and less stressful for the feeder. In the UK it's illegal to feed live rodents.

[Cazador]

Lee,

One could make an arguement that they're more nutritional if they lack tapeworms, and live rodents are a major source of tapeworm. If you freeze them for at least three days, it's said to take care of the majority of parasites. Even though you're feeding babies, the larvae migrate at random through the mother, so it's not safe to assume they're not parasitized.

Rick