Garter snakes are safe for children to own as pets. They do not bring any harm or danger to children at all. The one danger they can pose to their owners is the salmonella they could carry with them like most reptiles before them. Yes, baby garter snakes make great pets for children.
Let’s take a closer look at garter snakes and baby garter snakes so you can decide if you’d like them as your children’s pets. Read on and find out more about them.
What do baby garter snakes eat?
Baby garter snakes mainly eat worms. They do not eat insects like feeder crickets commonly used to feed other reptiles like them. Baby garter snakes need food packed with a lot of protein for their growth and good health.
You can feed your baby garter snake food such as cut-up worms, guppies, pieces of plain chicken or tilapia, and nightcrawlers. Make sure these worms and more are in tiny pieces they can easily swallow. Other than their food, you have to make sure they have water to drink, too.
Can a baby garter snake hurt you?
Garter snakes belong to a group of reptiles collectively called colubrids. These are a family of snakes that are nonvenomous. Baby garter snakes are, therefore, not dangerous at all. They bring no harm to their owners. They are perfectly safe for those who would like to breed and care for them at home as pets.
Other snakes that belong to this family of reptiles are the milk snakes, watersnakes, ratsnakes, racers, and the king snakes. There are more, of course, but these are the most common after the garter snakes.
Expert Tip: Colubrids like garter snakes can easily be found in the wild. They, however, cannot survive in the icy regions of Antarctica and other regions of Australia, and others with high latitudes.
Is it safe to pick up a garter snake?
Like most snakes, garter snakes have their own defense mechanism. Generally, they are harmless and helpful to have in the garden. They can bite or nip you when picked up, however. They also emit a foul smell. Garter snakes are known to react this way when threatened.
They are, however, colubrids and are venomous. They are safe for anyone to pick up.
What do newborn garter snakes look like?
Newborn garter snakes are born 12.5 to 23 centimeters long. Their look is similar to adult garter snakes. Kids fond of reptiles are often attracted to baby garter snakes because they come in different patterns and colors.
What time of year do garter snakes have babies?
Most female garter snakes can carry and give birth to 4 to 80 baby garter snakes between late July and October. The size of a garter snake’s litter depends on how big the female is. Large females give birth to larger litters and smaller ones to smaller litters.
Baby garter snakes are independent and are responsible for finding their food once they are born. If you own adult garter snakes and with at least one pregnant female, it’s best to prepare a space for her to give birth to as many as 40 baby garter snakes.
There are some things to remember when you have a pregnant female garter snake. One of these is that baby garter snakes shed their skin upon birth. You do not have to wait to feed your female’s baby garter snakes until after they have first shed their skin.
It’s best to group baby garter snakes into smaller groups of 10 or less. They aggregate in the wild when they hibernate. Garter snakes are not entirely asocial. Having them in small groups in containers or their housing can make it easier for you to care for them, too.
Getting baby garter snakes to eat or recognize food can be difficult at first. Baby garter snakes’ reactions to food given to them can vary. Some will know and eat live fish and cut-up plain chicken. Others would rather eat worms. There are also baby garter snakes that can not identify food at all.
Expert Tip: Naturally, some baby garter snakes will not eat after being born. You must remember that food for common adult garter snakes may not be easy for baby garter snakes to eat. One example of this is the mice. Most baby garter snakes will not recognize pinky mice at all as food.
Baby garter snakes look like they are tough to feed. If you have a lot of small worms in your garden, however, you catch those and give them to your baby garter snakes to eat instead.
Before giving them the longer worms to eat like the bait-store nightcrawlers or adult earthworms, you can settle with giving them small worms from your garden instead.
Be aware that finding food small worms, live fish, cut-up fish fillets, and plain chicken can be hard when you have as many as 40 something baby garter snakes to feed. You might consider giving your baby garter snakes a mix of these to eat.
It costs a lot of money to feed and care for baby garter snakes. The cost of caring for baby garter snakes is why not many people breed them at home. Some baby garter snakes are picky with their food. Others are not fussy at all.
If you’re caring for an adult female garter snake that just gave birth to more than 40 babies, some of these baby garter snakes will perish due to desiccation, and others like cannibalism as well.
