Hoarseness is generally caused by irritation of, or injury to, the vocal cords. The larynx (also referred to as the voice box), is the portion of the respiratory (breathing) tract containing the vocal cords. The vocal cords are two bands of muscle that form a V inside the larynx.
In some species babies are born alive. Other species lay eggs. In a strange combination of the two, some snakes have eggs that stay in their bodies until the eggs hatch and then the babies are born. Snakes can have anywhere from one to 150 baby snakes at a time.
Common garter snakes are ovoviviparous (bearing live young). The young are incubated in the lower abdomen, about half way down from the snake's body. Gestation is usually two to three months. Most females in the northern parts of their range give birth to from 4 to 80 young between late July and October.