Common Garter Snake — Fact Sheet

Thamnophis sirtalis · Common Garter Snake · Gewöhnliche Strumpfbandnatter

📋 At a glance

🏠 Enclosure

• Indoors: locked, front-opening enclosure for one animal.
• Minimum for an average adult: 120 × 60 × 60 cm; increase for a large female.
• Seal door tracks, cable ports, vents and lid corners; use a positive latch.
• Substrate: 8-10 cm additive-free soil/coir with a little sand; paper during quarantine.
• Avoid cedar, aromatic wood, sharp gravel and permanently wet bedding.

🪨 Enclosure furniture

• Snug warm and cool hides plus a ventilated humid hide.
• Stable swimming basin on the cool side with an easy exit.
• Cork tubes, low anchored branches, plants, leaf litter and dense visual cover.
• Check every opening after cleaning; close the room before opening the enclosure.

💡 Lighting

• UVB is recommended, not mandatory when diet and D3 status are otherwise correct.
• Low-output linear UVB over part of the warm zone; target basking UVI 2-3 with deep shade.
• Replace the lamp according to measured output and manufacturer guidance.
• Photoperiod: about 10 hours in winter, up to 14 in summer; change gradually.
• No coloured or bright night lamp.

🌡️ Temperature

• Basking spot: 29-32 °C

• Warm zone: 23-27 °C

• Cool zone: 21-24 °C

• Night: 18-22 °C

• Thermostat every heater; guard internal bulbs.

• Measure the surface with an infrared thermometer and the air with digital probes.

• Cool-side air above 30 °C is unsafe.

💧 Humidity & water

• General humidity: 40-60%; humid hide 60-75% during shedding.
• Allow the main substrate surface to dry; do not keep it swampy.
• Supply clean drinking and swimming water; change immediately when fouled.
• Deep water needs a secure exit and escape-proof plumbing.

🐁 Diet

Feed freely:

• Varied whole prey: earthworms, frozen-thawed mice and low-thiaminase whole feeder fish.
• Adults every 4-7 days; juveniles every 3-5 days; newborns small meals every 2-3 days.

In moderation:

• Prey variety adjusted to locality, size and body condition; meal usually near 10% of body mass.

Avoid:

• Goldfish, rosy red minnows, raw fish fillet, wild amphibians/fish and live rodents.
• A single-fish diet: repeated thiaminase exposure can cause vitamin B1 deficiency.

Supplements:

• A balanced whole-prey rotation normally needs no powder; correct the menu with a reptile veterinarian.

💤 Brumation

• Optional breeding tool only for healthy, locality-appropriate adults under experienced supervision.
• Typical controlled range: 8-14 °C after digestion, health and body condition are confirmed.
• Never cool juveniles, new arrivals, underweight or sick animals.
• Monitor weight and hydration; stop and seek veterinary advice if condition declines.

🩺 Health — warning signs

• Repeated rubbing or escape attempts → insecure, exposed or overheated setup.
• Tremors, poor coordination or weakness → possible thiamine deficiency or other emergency.
• Retained shed → dehydration, missing humid hide or illness.
• Red abdominal scales or blisters → wet, dirty substrate.
• Wheezing, bubbles or open-mouth breathing → respiratory disease.
• Weight loss or abnormal faeces → parasites, infection, stress or incorrect temperature.

Use a reptile-experienced veterinarian for persistent appetite, shedding, breathing or neurological problems. Never release an escaped or unwanted animal.