Several questions

[GarterGuy]

Hey Donna,
Ok questions as aksed 1) You can used the Flexwatt heat tape or some of the commercial sealed undertank heaters like Cobra heat mats or UltraTherm heat mats. There are several dealers online who sell these and you should be able to find them at petstores in you area as well. 2) I wouldn't really use wood and would go with ceramics instead. They're much more durable and easy to keep clean. Something you could consider are the molded resin dishes that are sold for reptiles, if you prefer a more natural look. 3)Ok this is a toughy....freezing pinks is actually just about as humane as gasing them. Yeh, I'm on that side of the debate. If you buy them from a reputable dealer, you can be assured that they're taking good care of the parents as well. Yeh, shipping sucks....but if you've got any local reptile shows around you can go and pick them up there (that's what I do). Passing on the mice, you can give your garter fish fillet as well. You can buy farm raised trout at just about any grocery store. Just cut it up and freeze it. It's ok to do this, trout doesn't have any thiaminase in it,so it won't harm your snake like some other frozen fish. Worms are a good "supplement" food, but they make for usually very messy stools and depending on the source, they can be a source of parasites for the snakes. I will end with one final thing.....snakes are predators, they kill and eat other living animals. If you really want to get a snake, this is something that you're going to need to deal with, if you want your snake to be happy and healthy. I'm also a animal rights person myself, so I can understand what you're going through, but I also know that snakes are what snakes are and my view point can't change that. Just wanted to throw that out there....see I also work with a reptile rescue and I see way too many snakes that are "discarded" because people got them and then couldn't deal with what was needed to care for them. I'm always thinking of the welfare of the animals first. So I hope this doesn't discourage you, but I just wanted to make sure you don't get a snake and then can't care for it. Good luck on your decision and feel free to ask as many questions as you need answered.
Roy

PS....Yeh, I think earthworms do feel pain, that's why I won't step on them when it rains.....it's just me.

[Stefan-A]

PS....Yeh, I think earthworms do feel pain, that's why I won't step on them when it rains.....it's just me.

I won't step on them either, but I will pick them up and feed them to my snakes, letting their stomach acids kill them more slowly.