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Constipation

Hezzy May 22, 2007 08:31 AM

Hello,
I am new to the forum.
My question is about my daughters pet Blood Python.
We got him last September and we haven't seen any signs of defication since January.
He eats one medium rat every 5 weeks. When we try to feed him more frequently, he just kills the rat but won't eat it.
He is very friendly and a joy to hold.
Yesterday he started drooling and blowing bubbles.
Is this normal behavior for a Blood Python?

I looked through the health section and found another post, http://forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=1255261,1255261
but I didn't see any replies to that post.

Should we put him in a tub of warm water?
She we take him to a vet?

Replies (4)

Herptiles_net May 22, 2007 12:38 PM

You definetly need to take this animal to the vet. Not defecating can be indicative of a serious problem with his digestive system, and a veterinarian needs to evaluate the animal to determine what the root of the problem is.

Drool and blowing bubbles is not normal. This may indicate a respiratory infection, and this also needs to be treated by a veterinarian.

There is no way any of us can diagnose your snake's exact health problems over the Internet, he needs to be seen by a qualified herp vet ASAP. Reptiles are masters at hiding their illnesses, and the sooner they get attention from a doctor, the better. When a reptile becomes very lethargic and depressed, this is often too late to save it, so it is good that you caught the problem now instead of later!

The veterinarian will probably opt to do an x-ray to try to determine the cause of your Blood Python's constipation, and whether the lungs are affected by a respiratory infection. Bloodwork may or may not be done, and a culture of the "drool" might be done to see what kind of pathogens might be there to help determine what kind of antimicrobial to use, if any.

Check out www.arav.org, the Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians, to find an experienced reptile vet in your area.

You might also want to double check your husbandry, like cage temperatures, humidity, and availability of suitable hide spots. Often small deficiencies in husbandry can cause big problems over time.

Bloods need a hot spot of about 90F, and the rest of the enclosure should range from 84-88F. Their cage's ambient humidity should be about 60%, and they need a humid hide box (like a large plastic container with damp paper towels or sphagnum moss) to retreat to.

While waiting for your vet appointment, make sure his cage temperatures are correct and keep handling to a minimum to reduce stress.

Good luck, and keep us posted!

Christina
www.herptiles.net

hezzy May 22, 2007 07:58 PM

Thanks for all that great info.

We just got back from the vet and the snake has a respatory infection. The snake was given an injection of BAYTRIL (and I was sent home with 4 more hypodermics for the next 10 days).

Surprisingly the vet wasn't all that concerned with the lack of defication. She examined him and felt that the snake will void with-in a week's time. She told us to put him in a warm bath tub, and we did.

I'll check out that web site as soon as I get off here.

Kelly_Haller May 22, 2007 11:20 PM

It is completely normal for blood pythons to go a month or more between defecations. This would be even more pronounced if they were feeding as infrequently as the one you have. My guess would be that sub-optimal temps probably caused the RI and also caused this snake to feed infrequently by slowing the metabolism, and further extending the defecation interval. Christina's environmental information is good, but 60% would be the absolute minimum on the relative humidity. Bloods are highly susceptible to drier air and subsequent irritation of the lung tissue.

Kelly

Hezzy May 23, 2007 10:48 AM

Thank you.
We bought, and installed, one of those adhesive heating pads for under the tank.
He went right over to it and coiled on it.
I think this will help his digestive system.

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