Omg omg omg

[guidofatherof5]

Congrats on the babies.
It's very important that the babies finish their first shed. Access to a low water dish and plenty of fresh water.
You can always release the babies back into the area the mother was found.

[lauwersp]

Hey Steve

They've had access to, and are enjoying, plenty of fresh water. Thanks for the heads up on that.

Here are my thoughts on where they go. I've personally never been opposed to a larger collection of garter snakes. I hadn't imagined going from 1 to 14 in the span of a couple hours, but as babies they are very manageable... enough to leave time to do the right thing.

I will say this... whether they end up permanently residing here or being released back into the wild, I DO think I plan on keeping them until they are at least young adults. I can't imagine it's as easy for them to survive at this point in their lives on their own. I WOULD considering selling some, but only to members of this group I think. My first and foremost concern is, and always will be, their well being.

I have designed a rather large enclosure in my head... and this is encouraging me to put it on paper. My girlfriend owns a blacksmith studio/shop so she can and would do the metalwork. As the enclosures will not be meant to ever be filled with water, I plan on getting glass cut and building it into the enclosure instead of buying prefabricated tanks. It'll be cheaper and more flexible. I'm SURE I'll be posting details as I put them on paper... this groups input is always valuable to me.

One thing I would LOVE to do is trade for different region garter babies. If anyone is open to this please let me know.

Thanks Steve. Anything else I need to know about newborns?

I plan on feeding each one individually... small cut up pieces of worm... perhaps tomorrow...

I'm going to photograph each one independently as well, although I'm not sure if I can tell ALL of them apart.

Enjoy these first, real pics. Thanks to Nikon for making these possible... camera phones still have a LONG way to go.

Happy Birthday 03.jpgHappy Birthday 04.jpgHappy Birthday 05.jpg