Reptile & Amphibian Forums

About two weeks ago we purchased a collection of snakes from a guy we both knew and in the beginning there was to be "X" amount of snakes and about 6 extra were thrown in two of which are very large Red Tail Boas. The male was in shed and the female was larger than life (to me anyways) She was over 8ft and 24 lbs. Gave her a couple of days to get used to the enclosure and life in a new place before offering her food, she didn't take it... she did smell bad so I proposed to my boyfriend we bathe her. As we are bathing her in the tub we notice this wheezing/puffing noise, we both know that is not good. So we take her back down stairs and I call the Vet, my partner raises her temps and I make an appointment due to the sound, it wasn't little it was huge.

Today I took her in to the vet, take her out of the Rubbermaid and notice mites (*Great) and the vet who was so kind and wonderful does a full exam on her, letting me know that not only does she had mites but she has alot of loose skin, she has not eaten in a long time, she has mouth rot and when she opened her mouth to show me, it was horrific, she had a black and yellowish ball at the back of her throat the size of a small egg, she said she is in really bad condition with double Pneumonia. She wrote out an estimate and said it would cost around ~!475.00 not including the medicine afterwards but this included to hospitalize her, anaethic, to lancer her and run culture tests on her etc. but in her estimation she was not doing well and had not been for a long while. I with regret and tears chose to put her down, the vet said it was a wise chose judging by her condition.

My question to all is how or do you approach the person I bought all these snakes from? As when I bought them from him, he said he guaranteed the health of his animals, and I also know there are always unforeseen circumstances but in this case, I am still paying for the lot of snakes and I am just curious on what others would do in this case?

Advise would be more than appreciated.

And should I bring the male in see the vet as well?

You did indicate the person you bought the snakes from threw in a bunch of 'freebies' was the boa constricture part of the freebies? Or the ones you paid for? If a free one, you won't be able to get back the purchase cost, as well, you didn't pay anything for it, but since he did guarentee their health, I would request to be reimbursed for the vet bill, even if it was just for the examination and euthenasia.

If any snakes were housed with the female or in the same room, most likely one or more of your collection will have mites. Deffinitely get a can or two of PAM (Prevent a Mite) and spray all your snake cages for mites. Check all the snakes for any signs of mouthrot, wheezing etc, to ensure nobody else has respiratory infections etc. This typically isn't as contagious as other diseases but deffinitely worth checking over all your snakes.