Best way to weigh a small skittish snake?

Long and short of it my girlfriend found a Young Eastern Garter Snake swimming for his life at the end September in a flooded section of an abandoned property she was working on.

She brought him home of course and since I had a glut of extra equipment I set him up with a nice live plant terrarium, not expecting him to last long as he was very young and in poor condition when I got him.

Never really been a snake owner (I'm a Chameleon/Salamander/Skink type of guy) I figured it would be a good chance to educate myself and care for this guy until the next spring where I would release him.

Two sheds later this guy has fattened up considerably and I'm looking to weigh him so I can keep track of his progress.

Problem is he FREAKS OUT when you go into his cage and I have to chase him around to get him. Once I get him he will musk and defecate on me (all normal for garters) but he will never bite. There is no way I can have him sit on a scale to weigh him. I'm thinking of putting him in a cup and weighing him in that and deducting the cup weight later but he thrashes around inside that throwing off my little scale.

Anyone have any suggestions for ornery snakes? I really don't want to handle him too much as I'm planning on releasing him.

Dominic - I think you are on the right path. I would figure out the weight of the cup with a lid, maybe like a cool whip container with lid holes. I would then put the garter in the cool whip container until it finally decided to chill, an hour or so and then weigh them both. Minus out the container and presto.

Originally Posted by Robert Walker

Dominic - I think you are on the right path. I would figure out the weight of the cup with a lid, maybe like a cool whip container with lid holes. I would then put the garter in the cool whip container until it finally decided to chill, an hour or so and then weigh them both. Minus out the container and presto.

Thanks for the quick response, I was worried about the stress of leaving him in a contain. I know in certain animals it can be deadly. I'll try it tonight!

No problem! Even though the garter won't say thanks for taking care of him, I'll say = good job to you!

I agree with Robert. But, most digital scales have a "tare" function where you put the container on, zero out the weight, then stick the snake in it. Voila! No Math!

Originally Posted by C0rocad

cup and weighing him in that and deducting the cup weight later but he thrashes around inside that throwing off my little scale.

Originally Posted by eminart

most digital scales have a "tare" function where you put the container on, zero out the weight, then stick the snake in it. Voila! No Math!

Sure, tare is a wonderful function!

I'm not sure how all scales work, but mine shuts off after about 5 minutes of inactivity. If I used the tare function for the container, but then had to wait 30-60 minutes for the garter to calm down, then once I turned it back on, it would tare (if that is actually a verb) for both the container and snake giving me zero, thus having to math again.

My scale really doesn't care if the animal moves about, but it sounds like the OP's scale isn't working great with movement.

As the keeper of two evil little garters, I'd recommend putting yours into a snake bag instead of a cup where he may not feel as secure, and then just subtract the weight of the bag. Once my garters think they're hidden they settle right down; if they can see out of the container they may still thrash around and throw off the scale.

Originally Posted by bcr229

As the keeper of two evil little garters, I'd recommend putting yours into a snake bag instead of a cup where he may not feel as secure, and then just subtract the weight of the bag. Once my garters think they're hidden they settle right down; if they can see out of the container they may still thrash around and throw off the scale.

Hrm.. a snake bag huh? What can I use for that? Keep in mind he's tiny.

Originally Posted by bcr229

into a snake bag instead of a cup

Good idea, better than a cool whip container.

Originally Posted by C0rocad

Hrm.. a snake bag huh? What can I use for that? Keep in mind he's tiny.

Plain Jane human tube sock with a zip tie to close it or tie the end in a knot. Be careful that you don't tie the snake up as it tries to thrash out of the bag.

Originally Posted by bcr229

As the keeper of two evil little garters, I'd recommend putting yours into a snake bag instead of a cup where he may not feel as secure, and then just subtract the weight of the bag. Once my garters think they're hidden they settle right down; if they can see out of the container they may still thrash around and throw off the scale.

Hey, since I got you here I have a question about these guys, I'm currently feeding him earthworms and it's a pain in the ass due to the top soil of his enclosure and him being skittish the worm just digs down before he can get to it. So I have to put him in a feeding container so he can find it then put him back into the terrarium. Lots of Internet sites say I should start feeding him mice and I would greatly prefer to but he's only 12 inches and very thin and even when I mixed mouse parts with worms he ignored them.

When should I attempt to feed him mice and what's the best scenario to do so?

Originally Posted by Robert Walker

Plain Jane human tube sock with a zip tie to close it or tie the end in a knot. Be careful that you don't tie the snake up as it tries to thrash out of the bag.