# Wounded Garter Snake, need help



## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

Found a medium sized garter Snake on the front concrete porch, coiled and cold. Seems to have a fracture in his back spinal area but able to move around. It is not an open wound.
I put it in a 10 gallon tank on Aspen shavings with a hideout and a small dish of water, some leaves and in a warm area of the house. What do I feed it? Or wait until he has warmed up?
Do I have to keep him over the winter? He is pretty feisty, so that is a good sign.
Any advice greatly appreciated.


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## Daize (Jun 8, 2013)

The best thing to do is to set him free. 

If the injuries aren't that serious, it will heal without your help. If they are serious/life threatening, it will simply die over the winter. 

Where spinal injuries are concerned, in snakes, they're either fatal or they're not.


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

Daize said:


> The best thing to do is to set him free.
> 
> If the injuries aren't that serious, it will heal without your help. If they are serious/life threatening, it will simply die over the winter.
> 
> Where spinal injuries are concerned, in snakes, they're either fatal or they're not.


If it were summer and nice temps, yes I would set him free but he is now awake in cold weather so how do I take care of him now? I want to give it a better chance than setting him free to die in the cold. If I knew his hibernation spot I would put him there but he was out in the open in a coil. He seems to be warmed up, now he is inside so how do I go from here? I am willing to take care of him until spring temps are warmer. I need to know what to feed him and how much and when.


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## Gannyaan (Dec 7, 2012)

That is kind of you... Here's a website  http://www.gartersnake.info/care/feeding.php


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## Daize (Jun 8, 2013)

Gannyaan said:


> That is kind of you... Here's a website  http://www.gartersnake.info/care/feeding.php
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


I still say to set him free. 

You can't set a bone in a snake. Snakes used their muscles and skeletal system for eating. It's how they push the food down to their stomach and it's how they capture/kill/hold their food. Every time you offer him food, he could re-injure himself. It could cause more bones to crack or even internal bleeding. He can injure himself when he coils his food or during swallowing. Snakes have a very slow metabolism. If the injuries aren't immediately life threatening, they could take "months" to die from an injury. Sometimes even years if someone is giving them a quick easy meal...... such as a human feeding them. It's a slow painful way to go. 

Obviously it's was warm enough for him to come out into the open. So, he hasn't started brumation yet. During brumation they stay pretty still and this will allow him time to heal. They don't exactly "sleep". It's different for reptiles. You said he's "feisty" so he's probably going to be able to find a place. Just take him to a secluded or wooded area and let him go. 

If you insist on keeping him. DON'T KEEP HIM WARM and DON'T FEED HIM!! Allow him to go into brumation. BTW if you give him food and then allow him to go into brumantion..... That will "KILL HIM". They need 2 to 3 weeks after their last meal before brumation. They need to fully digest and pass what they've eaten. If they don't. The bacteria from that last meal will build up and poison them. That's a pretty lousy way to die too.

Anyway, Simply keeping him in a darkened area and allowing the temps to drop to between 60-65 degrees would be enough. Just make sure water is available. They don't eat during brumation, but they have been known to drink. He'll need to stay cooled for 12 weeks. Then warm him up


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

Thanks Daize: we live in westen Oregon. If I put him in the garage in that same tank with a shallow dish with water. would that be OK to leave him there for 12 weeks and then set him free on a warm day? He hasn't had any food. That was helpful info. 
If I were to set him free now, where would I be able to put him? I have an open barn with a bale of straw on the dirt floor. Is that a good spot to put him underneath?


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## Gannyaan (Dec 7, 2012)

Wow I never thought of all that... It's good Daize came along. 


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## Daize (Jun 8, 2013)

You can do either. 

The garage should be fine provided it doesn't get too cold Not sure what the Winter temps are in Western Oregon. Just make sure, if you keep him, that he's not disturbed. You can check him or change the water once a week or so, but don't touch him. The most you might see if s tongue flick or a change in breath. He needs to remain as inactive as possible to heal.

The barn would probably be a better idea and probably less stressful for him. Not sure how noisy your garage is. 

It's late enough in the year that he's eaten enough for the season and is ready for a Winter fast. 

If you do keep him. Take 3 weeks warming him up when Spring comes. Then if offer a "small" food item. Unfortunately, since he's a wild snake. You might have to give him live food. A small gold fish would work. It would be better to use a small fish out of a stream if you plan on releasing him in the Spring. Not sure if you have mosquito fish (they look like plain guppies) in Oregon, but if you do, that's better than a gold fish if you plan on releasing him.


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## ratjes (Mar 26, 2011)

I made a cubby under the straw bale, filled it with some hay, offered it to the snake and he immediately slithered in it. I covered it with stray and a piece of wood and I think this will be OK. Hope his spine will heal. I did my best.
Thanks everyone for thinking about him. I really started to like him. Never imagined something like this. Would be actually cool to have a little snake.


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## Gannyaan (Dec 7, 2012)

I wonder if he'd like to stay lol... I really like snakes, but I've never had one... I just can't imagine it being easy To determine where the little guy is most comfortable/ happy ... It's easy to tell with dogs, cats and rats .. But snakes ...?


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## Gannyaan (Dec 7, 2012)

Also If you think it won't bother him you should take a pic ! 


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