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    Care Sheet - Garter & Ribbon Snakes

    Uploaded by

    John Gamesby
    Garter and ribbon snakes require an escape-proof enclosure between 24-30 inches with a temperature gradient from 70F on the cool side to 84F on the basking side. They need a hide box, pool for swimming, climbing branches, and UVB lighting promotes their health and colors. These snakes eat a varied diet of earthworms, redworms, insects, fish, and mice and require fresh water daily while their enclosure needs periodic cleaning and disinfecting.

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    Care Sheet - Garter & Ribbon Snakes

    Uploaded by

    John Gamesby
    255 views2 pages
    Garter and ribbon snakes require an escape-proof enclosure between 24-30 inches with a temperature gradient from 70F on the cool side to 84F on the basking side. They need a hide box, pool for swimming, climbing branches, and UVB lighting promotes their health and colors. These snakes eat a varied diet of earthworms, redworms, insects, fish, and mice and require fresh water daily while their enclosure needs periodic cleaning and disinfecting.

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    Garter and ribbon snakes require an escape-proof enclosure between 24-30 inches with a temperature gradient from 70F on the cool side to 84F on the basking side. They need a hide box, pool for swimming, climbing branches, and UVB lighting promotes their health and colors. These snakes eat a varied diet of earthworms, redworms, insects, fish, and mice and require fresh water daily while their enclosure needs periodic cleaning and disinfecting.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    255 views2 pages

    Care Sheet - Garter & Ribbon Snakes

    Uploaded by

    John Gamesby
    Garter and ribbon snakes require an escape-proof enclosure between 24-30 inches with a temperature gradient from 70F on the cool side to 84F on the basking side. They need a hide box, pool for swimming, climbing branches, and UVB lighting promotes their health and colors. These snakes eat a varied diet of earthworms, redworms, insects, fish, and mice and require fresh water daily while their enclosure needs periodic cleaning and disinfecting.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    of 2

    Care Sheet - Garter & Ribbon Snakes

    Coast Gartersnake (Thamnophis elegans terrestris) San Mateo County


    Common Name: Garter, Ribbon, Water Snakes
    Latin name: Thamnophis spp.
    Native to: North and Central America
    Size: Up to three feet in length
    Life span: This group of snakes can live for 10 years or more with proper care.
    General appearance: All members of the genus Thamnophis are slender-bodied
    snakes and are usually striped with a solid or chequered body. Males generally
    have a thicker base of the tail than females.
    Housing requirements:
    Enclosure: Most single snakes can be housed in a 24 vivarium or plastic pet
    containers like the Fer-Plast or Exo Terra Faunariums. It is important that the
    enclosure is escape-proof as these snakes excel at escaping from their
    enclosures.
    Temperature: Like most snakes, members of Thamnophis like a temperature
    gradient. The cool end on the enclosure should be around 70 F with a basking
    spot of around 84 F. At night the basking area should be turned off.
    Heat/Light: It has not been proven whether these snakes require UV light or not,
    though they should be provided with an appropriate photoperiod. Basking areas
    can be achieved by using incandescent basking bulbs, infrared heat bulbs or

    ceramic emitters. Timers and thermostats can be used to control photoperiods


    and temperatures in the enclosure.
    If the lighting is of the UVB type the colours and general health of the snakes is
    better I have found personally.
    Substrate: A variety of substrates can be utilized for these snakes. Newspaper
    or paper towels can be used for young snakes then after a year use orchid bark
    and moss.
    Environment: A suitably large enough pool should be provided for the snake, to
    allow it to swim. A hide box should also be provided. Branches for climbing can
    also be provided.
    Diet: These snakes eat a varied diet. Items such as earthworms, red worms, and
    other insects will usually be readily accepted. Fish such as guppies, sand eels
    and Lance fish can also be provided in the pool along with strips of trout. An
    exclusive diet of just fish is not nutritionally complete and should be fed with other
    prey items such as earthworms. Many specimens can also be converted to
    appropriate sized mice, offer pinkie/fuzzy mice that have been rubbed with fish to
    scent them.
    Maintenance: Fresh water should be offered daily. If using newspaper then
    clean as required. Wood shavings or a soil mix should be spot cleaned as
    needed. Periodically, the enclosure should be disinfected. A 5% bleach solution
    makes an excellent disinfectant. Be sure to rinse the enclosure thoroughly after
    disinfecting. As always, be sure to wash your hands thoroughly after handling
    your snake or any cage accessories.
    Dusts the food in a vitamin supplement every other feed.
    John Gamesby

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