Do garter snakes move sideways???

Sorry to make another thread, but now I'm freaked out a little and can't sleep. Whatever is loose in my house looks like a harmless garter snake, but it moves sideways. I'm not well versed in many species of snakes, but I read it's more common for venomous snakes to sidewind. I have hardwood floors so maybe it was just induced to sidewind because of that??

It may be because of the floor but I have never seen a garter sidewide but I've never seen one on a wood floor.

It got away from you?

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Originally Posted by KMG

It may be because of the floor but I have never seen a garter sidewide but I've never seen one on a wood floor.

It got away from you?

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After looking at some videos it wasn't exactly sidewinding, but moving in that "S" movement garters do I suppose. My python doesn't ever move like that either way lol.

Yes a wild garter wandered into my home, my mom freaked and now we can't even find it haha.

Yeah with the snake on a hard surface, they cant gain any friction other then the part of the body that is making contact with the surface, so it may appear to be a sidewinding motion. Hope you find the little guy, and until you do, keep reminding Mom it's one of the most harmless snakes in your area.

Yeah, my teachers garter snake slides sideways. No worries on my part.

Op,
If it has not been verified as a garter snake please do not give false information to anybody in the house. Tell them it is very possibly harmless but still needs to be left alone by inexperienced people to avoid a terrible situation in the event it is not a garter snake.