Northern-Water-Snake Diet

The northern water snake is a nonvenomous, beneficial snake commonly found around lakes, streams and freshwater marshes ranging from southern Ontario to North Carolina. Although they don't display the brilliant colors of a corn snake or gentle nature of a ribbon snake--in fact, they can become agitated and bite when handled--northern water snakes do enjoy some popularity as pets, and owners report they can eventually become tame. They usually are easy to feed in captivity, and with a little preparation and some simple techniques you can make sure your northern water snake gets a proper diet.

  1. Diet

    • Water snakes, like all snakes, are carnivores. In the wild, they eat a varied diet of fish, frogs, crayfish, worms, insects, turtles and even birds and mice. In captivity, they do well on a diet of frozen mice, augmented by live guppies, earthworms and the occasional frog. Because furred animals don't form a large part of their natural diet, your water snake may prefer "pinky" (newborn) mice. Some water snakes can be persuaded to take strips of salmon or tilapia that have been frozen, thawed and cut into minnow-sized strips. Because these strips lack the calcium-rich bones that fish would provide, you should give a calcium supplement with the strips.

      If your snake is eating mostly mice, you only need to feed him once a week; if his diet leans heavily toward fish and worms, he should be offered food twice a week. Make sure you give a vitamin and mineral supplement monthly.

    Feeding Tips

    • Many water snakes sold in pet stores have actually been captured in the wild, and may or may not have adapted to a captive diet. Consider asking for a feeding demonstration before you bring her home. If she won't eat at first, don't be discouraged; there are many things you can do to pique her appetite.

      To encourage feeding on guppies, put the guppies in a tub of water and let the snake have the stimulation of hunting them. To encourage feeding on the fish strips, float them in with the minnows; your snake may grab one and develop a taste for it. Strips can also be temptingly waggled on tongs. Frozen mice should be thawed in cold water, then warmed in warm water to make them more palatable. If your snake is still reluctant to eat them, you can rub fresh guppies against them to give them an appetizing scent.

    Warnings and Precautions

    • Although goldfish would seem a logical addition to a water-snake diet, they should never be given because they interfere with thiamine absorption. Don't feed your snake anything that isn't smaller than the widest part of his girth, and never feed him live rodents; he could be badly wounded.

      Use tongs rather than dangling food by hand, and consider feeding your snake in a separate cage so the snake can experience a "hunting" habitat; this makes him less likely to strike at your hand when he's in his usual habitat. If you have two snakes, feed them individually; a water snake doesn't have qualms about putting another snake on the menu.