Reptile & Amphibian Forums

But my snake, Samara, died today while I was at work .

I don't know what I did wrong, if anything.

I hope the pet store will give me a refund, it's been 2 weeks since I bought her. I hope so, because as lame as it sounds, she was 80$, and it took me a while to be able to afford that and the cage and her food etc while trying to pay for my car and everything else.

So thank you all for all of the posts you posted to try to help me out. I'm sure I'll be back with more eventually, and I'll stay around anyways, I really like this forum.

- Ryan

Ryan

Damn man, that really sucks. I think you did the best you could - sometimes they just die.

Please don't be discouraged - next time get one from one of the many reputable breeders right here at KS.

Sorry for your loss.

John D
-----
I am so not lesdysxic!

0.1 Creamsicle Cornsake "Yolanda"
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake "Steely Dan"
0.1 Desert Kingsnake "FATTY"
0.1 Black Rat (WV Rescue) "Roberta"

Well. I will off of here, if they give me a refund. I won't if they let me pick up another snake, but if they don't do either, I won't have enough $$$ for a while to get one.

I'm really bummed out, she was really cool .

Someone mentioned splinters yesterday or the day before, and I looked in her mouth now since she isn't squirming (I was afraid to hurt her before >_

From what I read, it sounds like the snake may have had a problem when purchased.

Some things to look for when purchasing - are they eyes sunken? if so, bad sign. Does it flick its toungue out frequently when held? if not, bad sign. Look between the fold of skin under the chin. Any mites? If so, bad sign. Is it lethargic? If so, bad sign. Any shed skin stuck to its body? If so, bad sign.

It can pass all inspections and still just be a baby not meant to make it.

Better luck next time. Sometimes pet stores have an agreement with a vet where you can get a signifigant discount from the vet on a post purchase checkup, including stool float for parasites. But often they don't tell you about such agreements unless you ask about it, which is weird, because I think it would be a selling point.
-----
3.0 WC; 0.3 CB L. getula californiae
0.1.1 WC; 0.0.3 CH Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata

Thank you.

She didn't have any of that, but it's good knowledge for today if I end up having to get one there again.

It was strange because she ate just last week.

Thank you again,

- Ryan

Ryan,
Sorry to hear about your loss. Chances are that something was wrong with the snake before you brought it home.

Somebody very wise on this board told me NEVER, EVER buy a snake from a pet shop. They don't/can't care for their animals like the good breeders you'll find here, and often times, the animals in pet shops are very stressed out/sick from all of the foot traffic, handling, etc. The people you'll find here REALLY love their animals, and go the extra mile to ensure they're healthy and thriving in captivity...

If at all possible, get your money back, and buy from a reputable breeder, instead.

//Todd

Thank you.

That's what I'm going to try to do today (get the money back) and then see what I can do on here.

Thanks,

- Ryan

What pet store did you get your snake from? Where do you live? Derek

I got it from Petco in Flint, Michigan.

I live in Flushing, Michigan.

I got a full refund on the snake, so I guess I'm in the market again.

> I got it from Petco

I had a feeling.

My local petco, I had to get pinhead crickets there because better family run pet store was out. The "reptile guy" was the only one who could bag the crickets, no one else could (or would, not sure which ...). When he was available, he asked how many. I said "six dozen" - his response was "We don't sell them by the dozen. How many is six dozen?"

I'm sorry, but 6 x 12 is rather elementary math.

Then he asked me what I was feeding them to. I said "Alligator lizards". He said "Alligator lizards need big crickets". I said "When they grow up, these are a week old".

Then ... "That's cool. We use to catch alligator lizards, but we called them blue bellies" ...

I'm not impressed with local petco and their "reptile guy" - and I hear that with a few exceptions, that's the rule, not the exception.

At least you got a refund.
-----
3.0 WC; 0.3 CB L. getula californiae
0.1.1 WC; 0.0.3 CH Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata

LOL!

That's great!

That sounds pretty much like any other PetCo I've been to...

That's the absolute LAST place I'd buy a reptile from!

If I had to buy from a reptile store, I'd buy from LLL Reptile. They've got people in both the Oceanside and Escondido stores who know their stuff, and really care about the animals...

//Todd

>>I got a full refund on the snake, so I guess I'm in the market again.

Good job man!

Now, go straight to the Classifieds, under "Other Kingsnakes and Milksnakes"...

Cheers,

John D

-----
I am so not lesdysxic!

0.1 Creamsicle Cornsake "Yolanda"
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake "Steely Dan"
0.1 Desert Kingsnake "FATTY"
0.1 Black Rat (WV Rescue) "Roberta"