The so called "Mountain King Disease" will be a problem at one time or another with anyone working with Zonata. When I lived in Long Beach, CA I would have the "disease" pop up about once every two years with one or two snakes for no reason and I kept zonata in CA for almost 20 years before moving to AZ in 05. The "disease" varied. Bad skin and lots of shedding in short periods of time. After the skin problem cleared every snake showed signs of neurological disorder like tying themselves in nots to stretching out in a straight line and convulsing. Others would go paralyzed in the last half of their body. This has been a burden for many keepers of zonata and I can remember from my earliest years other keepers having this problem occasionally occur. No one knows what causes it. What we do know in many cases it is extremely contagious to other zonata. No other colubrids (Or any other kind of herp for that matter) are affected by it. I tried to fight it and just ended up with more sick zonata. I lost some real prized animals to it.

With that said and my years of experience with the "disease" I stopped taking chances with it and would isolate the affected snake(s) which led to the beast being put in the freezer. Even if it was one of my most prized animals that was the end result and it didn't take much time but, I also feel I saved many more zonata from the same fate.

Ever since I've been in AZ I haven't had one case of it and I have alot of zonata, all sub-species. However, if it were to hit me again (God forbid) I wouldn't hesitate to euthanize the affected snake.

PL

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