genetic issues wth albinos

[k2l3d4]

Yeah.. I know about the stress issues.... At first I think that is what cause Little Dude to go on a shed like that (last year when he lost the tip ) but since he was a baby at that time, maybe he never learned how to shed properly, and probably did not help that I babied him and helped him every time after that...whoops.
And my albino checkered avoid water at all costs.... they are completely backwards from all other garters that I have read about... they seem to hate water. and only go in it when I give them a bath to help with shedding..... I will try upping th ehumidity for them on the next shed though... see if that helps. I know that my green checkered soaks himself and seems to have no problems like the albinos do.....

But the huge question that I asked at the beginning that no one has answered..... Are there any problems that a person needs to keep an eye out for with albino checkered garters?

[ssssnakeluvr]

I don't know of any issues with albinos. if the little one lost a piece of tail, there will be scar tissue...that would be the probable cause of the shed problems with the tail....it might not be able to separate normally like the rest of the skin.

[DrKate]

Are there any problems that a person needs to keep an eye out for with albino checkered garters?

I'm not sure either of these is exactly the kind of problem you're talking about, but...

Albinos of *any* species are going to be more easily burned by UV light. It seems that the benefit to garter snakes of a UVB bulb is controversial and I honestly don't have an opinion on that. But with an albino you probably either don't want to have a UVB bulb, or only turn it on for a short time each day if you're a strong UVB believer.

Also, albino mammals (including humans) tend to have poor eyesight. They're not blind, they just don't see quite as well as normals. I don't know if the same thing happens in albino reptiles, but I also don't know that you'd really notice it in a garter. (Come to think of it, this may be why your albinos don't hunt fish in a bowl - they can't see them well enough, and in the water they can't hunt by smell. You could try changing the color of your bowl to improve contrast with the color of the fish.)

Off the top of my head I can't think of any other problems strongly associated with albinism, of the kind you need to "watch out for" in the future. Doesn't mean there aren't any, of course, but I can't think of any.