Posted by:
Carmichael
at Sun Feb 3 11:55:43 2008 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by Carmichael ]
Having kept and rescued many burms over the years at my facility, there is no doubt in my mind that exercise is just as critical a component as proper temps and humidity levels - none are exclusive and w/out close attention to each, RI can occur. This is one of the most common fallacies in proper burm care. Most folks keep their burms in enclosures that are far too small, or, receive no opportunities for regular exercise - sure, these are fairly sedentary animals but they still need to move about. Most burms kept in large enclosures with the proper thermal gradients and high humidity (with good air flow) rarely exhibit RI.
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center
Lake Forest, IL
>>Let me expound on my previous post...
>>
>>Snakes only have one major functioning lung (right), although boids have a lot of function in their left lung as well. Snakes do not have a diaphragm, so they cannot cough. They also have a long, thin trachea compared to other animals, and this makes clearing secretions and foreign bodies more difficult for them.
>>
>>I did not mean to imply that inactivity is the cause of an RI, it is a part of husbandry that can contribute to any sickness. Many of the viruses and bacteria that cause RI are things that can be in a snake's environment at any given time. Why are they not all sick? Because we try our best to keep them at optimal temps and humidity levels, and in clean environments. Activity also helps keep things moving, increases respiration, and gives large, heavy-bodied boids a chance to stretch out their bodies and respiratory tracts. It easy to keep a colubrid in a bigger enclosure, but harder to accommodate a 12 ft snake in a cage that allows it to fully stretch out. Just like any animal, they need exercise. When I mentioned inactivity as a contributing factor to RI, the vision I had in my mind was the large python kept in a too small tank that is often forgotten and never taken out for a crawl.
>>
>>Hopefully that makes more sense than my original post.
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Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL
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RE: RI due to Inactivity - Carmichael, Sun Feb 3 11:55:43 2008