How to keep a Blue Stripe Garter snake comfortable?

I was wondering if it is okay to use Timothy Hay as bedding (substrate) for my Garter Snake. She was wild caught by a friend of mine, and he kept her for years, but he passed away and I am taking care of her now. He was using paper towels but I didn’t know if this was a good idea or a bad one. Her name is Makayle and I’m not sure ow old she is, or anything. But I know he’s had her at least a year.

As for food, we first tried feeding her pinkie mice by warming them and then using feeding tongs to make them move. Makayle struck at it once, but she would not eat any of them! So I bought some minnows from the pet store and put them in her water dish. She ate them with no problem! So can anyone tell me what other things she can eat? My husband thinks we should catch some tadpoles from the pond and feed them to her. Is this a good idea?

Makayle is very friendly for a wild caught snake, but she is a little jumpy too. I also need to know how to make her more tame. She is not like any other snake I have handled, she seems… jumpy and nervous. What is a good way to calm her down? And how often should we hold her? I don’t want to upset her, but I do want her to get used to me. Is there a certain way to hold this kind of snake, or what???

And what else do I need for her to be happy and comfortable? Right now we have Timothy Hay for bedding, a hollow half-log for her to curl up under, a water dish made for snakes, a heat lamp with a 60-watt bulb to heat the ten gallon aquarium, and minnows purchased from the pet store for her to eat. Am I forgetting anything?