Garter vs. Bull vs. King: Which is the best display snake?

I know it's a broad topic, but I'm trying to decide which colubrid to add to my collection and I've decided that what my collection is lacking is an active display snake. I would prefer something that is out and about during the day and isn't overly sensitive to temps / humidity (I'd like to setup the enclosure in living space with regular room temps, but provide a hotspot via UTH). I know garters have weird dietary requirements, so I'd prefer one that will typically take f/t small rodents and / or fish (if the diet is easy to prepare / provide, then I'm cool with a little prep work or unusual prey needs).

Of the Colubrids I've been browsing, the neon blue and "flame" garters, the albino / hypo bulls, and California kings have caught my eye so far, but I'm very open to other suggestions. Corns and anything native to GA are off the table (which *may* include the flame garters.. I'll have to research that).

I'd like to be able to handle the snake as well, but it will primarily be a display animal. I haven't decided on enclosure size and wlll tailor that to the species I choose.


I'd appreciate any input you guys have, I have zero experience with colubrids except my hognose (who is a very problematic feeder).

Not a colubrid, but what about a GTP?

I'd say go with a bullsnake or garter. Garters are going to be the most active. But I don't know exactly how the species is broken down so not sure if you can keep them in GA or not though. And the Bulls are just a personal favorite of mine so I'm biased there. Also staying with colubrids there are king rat snakes.


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I haven't kept garters since I was a kid, but I do keep kings and bulls now. I'd say my bulls are a little more active than the kings. The bulls are bigger but the husbandry is pretty similar and straightforward for both. The bull's warm sides are kept a few degrees cooler. They're both great snakes to keep! I don't think you'd regret either choice. If you're looking for more of a display animal have you considered a jungle carpet python? They're beautiful too!

Here's a side by side comparison of an albino bull snake, an albino whiteside bull snake, and a cal king.
http://i1319.photobucket.com/albums/...psm4mdpgm6.jpghttp://i1319.photobucket.com/albums/...psxdwje6yj.jpghttp://i1319.photobucket.com/albums/...psdqp7g1vq.jpg

Bullsnakes can be intimidating. Mine would hiss and tail rattle but once out of her cage was dog tame. But they do tend to hide and will manhandle any decorations that arent nailed down. So for a display, maybe if you dont mind a plainer tank with only heavy decos. But they are very cool, and a nice handful when full grown. Also they poop alot, I swear mine would poop twice for every rat she ate.
Sadly I had to rehome my bullsnake and my pine, because we moved to a smaller house and didnt have the room for the larger colubrids.
EL-Ziggy your albino bull is gorgeous.
We had a kingsnake years back and he was a hider, only saw him late at night. But was easy to handle.dont know anything about garters but they have some really pretty ones here in the wild.

My garters hide. I have a CA high-white king male that is always out and about. Same for my female MBK.

Thanks for your input and the great pics! Sorry for the late reply.. Mothers day weekend was extremely busy.

Tsanford- A GTP is "on my list" for later, but I've heard they are very picky on temps and humidity. I do want to pick one up eventually, but in this case, I am looking for a good display snake for our den, and I think it would be too hard to control exact ambient temps for a GTP in that room.

ChrisS- Thanks for the info! I will look into king rat snakes. I think I'm leaning towards either a bull or garter myself.

El Ziggy- Thanks! I actually have a carpet now, but he's still a wee little guy and tends to hide a lot. Because this is for a display tank in our main living room, I am hoping for something that needs lower ambient temps than a carpet. Great pics btw! They all look great, but I'd have to say that the albino bull is my favorite. :)

Miranda- Thanks for the advice. I guess the pooping would be a negative? lol Seriously though, I'm thinking a fairly simple setup with aspen, some large climbing branches, and a couple hides. Maybe some fake foliage, but nothing fancy.

bcr229- Interesting information. Most of what I've read claims that garters are very active and kingsnakes are less so... But again, I guess it depends on the snake. With my luck, no matter which species I pick, I'll get a shy hider for my display animal lol.

Art- If you do decide to go with a Bull, or other Pit, I'd highly recommend Jason Nelson at Envy Reptiles. He produces some amazing Bull and Gopher snakes. I'm in GA too and never see any of the Pituophis species at any of the local expos. Best wishes with whatever you choose.

Thanks for the info! I'll look him up. I've never seen any at the Atlanta expo either.. Some cal kings and milks, but those were sold by resellers only (that I knew of).

I have a Brooks king and now that he is older he people watches from his paper towel tubes. I got him when he was around six months old and he would hide most of the time. He is out and about a lot more now and is easy to take care in regards to feeding, temp and humidity.

I am in Georgia as well. Brooks are a sub or locality species of the Florida king but as far as I know you can keep them in Georgia.

Here is a link to my king's thread.
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=212994

Thamnophis vs Pituophis, sounds like a win either way you go. While bull snakes are rather active, using every bit of space you give them, garters are even more so. It probably has something to do with their natural diet. I reckon the leaner prey preference of Thamnophis requires a higher level of foraging to sustain themselves.

Thanks guys!
I'll look into the brooks kingsnake. They are definitely cool snakes. I checked the list and they aren't on it (black, eastern, mole, and scarlet kings are on the illegal list).

Hmm.. On the illegal list it lists "garter snake" and doesn't specify species. Looks like I'll have to call them to see which species are prohibited. I'd think the easterns would be out, but hopefully it's not illegal to own any garters here. Although I love the eastern "flame" garters, the California neon blues are awesome looking too.

I am also considering gopher snakes, particularly applegate albino gophers (which are gorgeous).

Hey Artgecko, I'm moving to the Atlanta area in late July so I've been doing loads of research, calling around, etc to get the specifics on these laws.

The understanding I was given is that venomous snakes are considered at the species level, while NONvenomous are considered at the subspecies level. That means that all Agkistrodon contortrix are treated equally under the law for example. For the nonvenomous snakes though you are only barred for Georgia specific subspecies; you can't have Lampropeltis getula getula but you CAN have Lampropeltis getula californiae. Same with garter snakes. I think that list is written for the general public and is very unprofessional for not specifying this OR using scientific names. But again while you cannot have Eastern Garters (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis) you are allowed to have California Red-Sided Garters (Thamnophis sirtalis infernalis).

The whole point of the law is to make it impossible to pass off a wild collected animal as domestic(Which is why there's the blanket ban regardless of morph or captive bred status) while simultaneously allowing rattlesnake roundups to continue operating. Stupid? Yes. But it doesn't do the state of Georgia any good to outlaw animals that simply do not occur there, so non-native subspecies are allowed. If you really want to cover your butt try to find the most recent taxonomic designations as well as whether or not the animal in question has historically occurred in GA. If it's historically been in GA but extirpated I'm staying away from it; DNRs in many states list animals as "protected" that may not have been found in the wild for decades or a century.

samong- Thanks for the information! I'll do more homework on the specific subspecies I'm looking at just to be safe. I *think* I may have narrowed it down to either the neon blue CA garter, the applegate gopher, or a hypo / albino red bull, but I will also check out king snakes and some other species just in case I missed anything.

That Albino Red Bull is smokin! The Applegate Gopher is pretty sweet too.

Yeah, it'll be hard to make a choice. I have a lot more research to do, but at least I've got a short list now. :) Thanks again for the advice!

Indigo












Jk, bull or king


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My mecican black king is super active all the freaking time. On a side note a super dwarf retic or brazillian rainbow boa are nice medium sized snakes that tend to be very active. Or at least the SD retics are, both snakes also handle very well and don't have super crazy husbandry requirements. The boa does need a bit higher humidity but both snakes are well worth it. Another cool colubrid would be creabos (sp?) They get a bit bigger but are super tame from what I've heard.

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Citrus- I think Indigos are not legal to own in GA (at least the eastern ones). The prices I've seen on Texas ones are insane... at least for what I'm looking to spend at the moment but they ARE a very cool snake.

Artemisace- Thanks for the info on the MBK. I had heard that BRBs aren't very active and hide a lot, but I'm not sure if that is true for all indivicuals. Although an SD retic would be awesome, I' m waiting until they breed more morphs into higher percentage SD retics.. Then I might get one. At the moment, I'd have to spend well over $1,500 to get the SD morph that I want (and that isn't even high percentage SD), so that will have to wait. They are very nice snakes though.

Yeah the morphs in SD retics are a bit pricey right now. My BRB when not full of food is pretty active. Maybe it's just my snake though. Retics are the highest energy snake I've ever worked with well them and my anaconda, but she thinks her water dish her home.

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I think a bull snake would be an interesting pet.

Not sure it's been mentioned yet, but any of the anteresia would be a great smaller snake. The maculosa or spotted python only gets about 5 foot and they're the "big" ones

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