feeding newborn garter snakes?

What is the best food for newborn garters, and at what point should they be first fed? :confusd:

They do good on broken up pieces of earthworm or fish (something like trout or salmon NOT GOLDFISH). And as far as when to feed Im. Ot 100% sure but I would assume just like other snakes, after their first shed.

Can't speak for garter snakes, but some of my snakes (rosy boas & rat snakes) have sometimes eaten PRIOR to first shed, so if they seem hungry, I'd offer.
I mean, it can't hurt...

Too bad you're in the desert, Ben...I've got little worms all over my yard with the frequent rain we get here in the mid-South. Hope they do well for you.

I knew someone that would put thawed pinky mice in the blender and serve a paste.

Not sure if that would work but pinkies head is also a solution.

I start fussy eaters on guppies allways works 1st is baby nightcrawlers chopped as they start eating well begin to mix chopped pinkies into it and slowly get them to eat only pinkies this is a tuff at times process but the law of nature unfortunately sorts out the ones who just will not eat. I'm a breeder and keeper of only garters. Hope this helps

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I used guppies as well. Some will not take pinkies. Raising fish was too much trouble: I don't breed garters anymore.

I use a combo trick I put guppies into a petri dish mix pink pieces with live guppies in shallow water they grab pink pieces it works

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I bred california red-sided garters for a few years so here's my limited experience input. Most of the babies shed immediately after birth(talking minutes after being born here) and I start offering food within 24 hours. I'd offer a mixture of freshly chopped earthworms and finely chopped f/t pinky mice. The wiggling bits of worm get them over to the feeding station and once they start scarfing food, especially when competition arrives, there's no stopping the frenzy short of a cleaned plate. Providing food daily or every other day, I'd reduce the amount of worm and have most feeding on 100% prepared rodent within a week or two. I noticed a strong competitive drive with these to where raising them in groups simplified things greatly. You only need 1 from each group to make it to the feed station and the rest quickly follow suit.