Minnows?

[Didymus20X6]

Small lizards and snakes.

[ConcinusMan]

I don't think so. In fact, I know they don't. The only exception I can think of would be certain locality wandering garters. But yes, they do eat a variety. Some people insist on feeding fish only, or worms only, or pinkies only. I say if your snake will eat all three, then give them all three and rotate often, or give them two or three different foods at each meal. I'll usually give them tilapia and pinkies or silversides and worms... etc. Either that or pinkies for a week or two, then back to fish and worms for a week or two, etc. I still don't get why people insist on messing around with fish that contains thiaminase. I have purchased baby snakes before that were fed only rosies for months. I get them home and they happily take tilapia, silversides, trout, salmon, and in some cases, worms and pinkies too, so there was absolutely no reason at all to be feeding them minnows or any live fish for that matter.

[RedSidedSPR]

The best thing, I have found, is to vary the diet. Don't feed them an abundance of minnows, if you have to feed minnows at all. I feed mine minnows, but I change it up with nightcrawlers, and I make sure the nightcrawlers get a good intake of B vitamin rich food before giving to them to the snakes.

That's exactly what I do, but i don't think feeding reptiles is very good. I can't do it anyway.

I still don't get why people insist on messing around with fish that contains thiaminase. I have purchased baby snakes before that were fed only rosies for months. I get them home and they happily take tilapia, silversides, trout, salmon, and in some cases, worms and pinkies too, so there was absolutely no reason at all to be feeding them minnows or any live fish for that matter.

Well, for one thing, I can't feed him any other kind of fish. I think I'll start feeding him fillet, and frozen silversides (I know where to get those.) as well as worms.

I've always tried to mix it up too. I don't choose minnows over anything else, but when I first got my garter I didn't know any better. I knew they ate fish, so I got him minnows. After I learned, he wouldn't eat anything else (not even worms) for awhile. I'm confident I can get him to eat anything, so whatever is healthy.

[Mommy2many]

I alternate my dinners for my snakes. It could be salmon, earthworms, silversides or pinkies. whatever is around Kinda like the human dinner menu! Now that spring is here,my kids can go fishing for the dace minnows. That will be a treat for all of them. Those pesky fish like to jump out of the bucket. They usually don't last the day, snakes or not!

[Didymus20X6]

I JUST GOT LITTLE DUDE TO EAT TILAPIA!

She took the first two pieces of frozen/thawed tilapia from the tongs. After that, she started just picking them up off the brick, and off the nightcrawler lid. Now she's a fat little snaky, stuffed full of non-baitshop fishy!

Scarlett showed interest, but seemed a bit apprehensive about taking a piece from the tongs. Maybe later.

[ConcinusMan]

I alternate my dinners for my snakes. It could be salmon, earthworms, silversides or pinkies. whatever is around

Pretty much what I do. Some foods have stuff that other foods don't. Good to give them variety. And of course, like the snakes, I'm opportunistic when it comes to acquiring food for them. Last night the rain started again. Found a few big snails outside moving around. So naturally, I snagged them up and de-shelled them. Snakes (northwesterns and radixes) went nuts for them.

I JUST GOT LITTLE DUDE TO EAT TILAPIA!

That's good. Tilapia is high in protein and not as fatty as some fish. It does have significant sodium though so don't get overly reliant on it. Feed them a variety of foods but don't overdo one food or the other. In other words, don't feed them just tilapia for months on end. For one thing, it's not whole fish, and then there's the sodium. Make sure the tilapia you feed them is just that. Tilapia meat and nothing else. When I feed cut pinkies, I use some tilapia pieces to soak up the blood and fluids and feed it to them. Like biscuits and gravy. Yum.

[Didymus20X6]

My plan is to continue alternating between nightcrawlers and tilapia, and to dust them both with ground-up calcium. And the occasional frog, when I can catch them. But at least if I want to feed them fish, I don't have to truck down to the bait shop anymore.

Well, except maybe for Scarlett. She still hasn't touched her tilapia yet.

I can't get mice around here, frozen or live.

The tilapia I'm using is frozen. I cut it frozen into thin strips and soak it in water until completely thawed.

[ConcinusMan]

Calcium doesn't do much good without D3 and phosphorous in just the right proportions. I would recommend that if you're going to use calcium supplement, go easy on it and use reptical. It's formulated correctly for reptiles. I would also freeze the frogs at 0 degrees F or colder, for at least two months. Otherwise, they are an excellent source of tape worms. The kind of tape worms that target reptiles and birds as their final host, hatch and go to larval stage inside an amphibian or fish first. Deep freezing kills the larvae.

[RedSidedSPR]

Can I ask what the best fillet fish to feed is? (salmon, trout, tilapia etc.)

[ConcinusMan]

Whole f/t fish is best. I highly recommend silversides. Any fish is going to be quite fatty so I would try to get them to eat worms and/or pinkies and cut down on the amount of fish they get. However, if you're going to use fillet, I prefer to use tilapia. It's firmer (denser) meat and seems less fatty to me than others. I don't know about your stores but I get mine at Fred Meyer (a northwest variety store chain which is owned by Kroger) and right next to the fresh seafood there's a freezer. I find frozen vacuum sealed tilapia fillets in there for about 1/3 the price of the fresh stuff.