Sexing garters

[OregonHerpaholic]

Hi all.. Question: do garters probe the same as other colubrids??

I just picked up a (supposibly) trio of Checkered garters.. Albino female, het female and normal male.. the females are clutch mates..but the het female is 3 times the size of the albino..no joke.. length and width(fat sucker)..

The albino was probed by seller as female.. I watched her probed, but took word at it.. The albino female is the same size as my albino male..which is normal size for male...

Is it possible one is just a better eater?? The lady kept them and fed them all together..and normal male is scrawny.. but what would be reason for the albino to be so much smaller then sibling?? Other then being MALE...

Granted I paid in MICE so not out too much money, but...

Billie

[adamanteus]

I know it's standard practice, but I hate probing! Most good Garter breeders could accurately tell you the sex of a snake just by looking.
Billie, I bet if you post a couple of tail/vent photos, the guys on here will be able to give you a definative answer as to the sex of your new trio.

[Sid]

Billie, it is my understanding they all probe the same. If you visually check the specimens you have from vent to tip of tail, the males have longer tails that taper much more gradually while the females tails are shorter and they taper rather aburptly just past the vent.

[infernalis]

I'm no fan of probing either.

I'd get really upset if my snakes probed me

Thankfully Garters are the easiest next to Dekayi snakes to tell by looking at them.

[OregonHerpaholic]

that's what I thought, but this supposibly female is so much smaller than the sister. I have another pair and the female simply stands out.. even the head shape is different..

I will check tails and post if I can get IT to sit still for a cell phone... Snake porn anyone??

Billie

[GartersRock]

I have never had to probe a single snake in my life. And have gotten only accurate sexing so far.

[OregonHerpaholic]

Good news... albino is female.. had 3 different snake experts agree!!!! Just under fed.. that will change..

now i just need the albino male to get a wee bit larger..

thanks all

billie

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I own a set of probes, I carry those, alcohol sterlization pads, and lubricant in my purse at all times. Every day people look at me weird, but I see them as a necessity. Garter snakes are easily sexed by eye, for the MOST part. Juveniles are the hardest for me because they are too large to pop and they are at a stage where their tails do not look definitely male or female. I pop babies. I can tell what an adult garter snake is even before I turn it over to look at it's tail. As for most other species of snake, such as corns, rats, milk snakes, kingsnakes, sometimes you will get a female with a big chubby tail, or a male that is not-so-well-endowed. These are the cases where it's good to have probes, and if you sex purely by eye you are bound to make a mistake at some point. It happened with a grayband that I bought a few shows ago. was sold to be a female, and the tail DEFINITELY looked female to me. But i started having my suspicions when my "female" grayband chased my male around the cage. Sure enough I bought my probes and he probed male.

[OregonHerpaholic]

I am usually the person who gets to sex the garters around here.. I can pick up a wild garter and correctly judge sex, and if gravid or?? Not with this snake.

With the size difference on the albino female compared to her het sister..(these snakes are clutch mates) The het is a normal FAT, LARGE 3 year old female. This albino is thin, the 3rd of the length(of sister) and smaller then the 2 year old Male...

But she popped clean.. (Went to a boa breeder friend who pops his adult red-tails).. no sign of hemipenes.. Guess I just wanted to make sure I didn't get cheated..