Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Please, excuse the title....But, it is my snakes name. He is the reason I am posting....In hopes someone could help me figure him out. My deepest fear is that there is something very wrong with him, however...I am not one to panic without reason. Freakaziod is a Redtail mix. I am unsure of his age because I adopted him/rescued. His former owner had kept him in a 20 gallon tank at nearly five and a half feet long. So, his msucles were a tad weak from the prolonged stay in such tiny living space. I have worked with him on that, and he seems to be getting better. But, that is not what I am posting about. I am posting about how he got his name. Since I took him home...He has been, well? Weird. He does things I have never seen a snake do, and I have a small collection, (Mostly Pythons.) The movements he does with his head are very strange...Reminds me of a cat or dog with a neurological problem. He seems to overly sway his head, almost like he is very drunk. But, that is not how he got his name...No, he got his name because of his habit to tilt his head completely back...I will assume all of you have seen your snakes rise slightly and almost crane their heads? Well, he does this...but, backwards. He tilts his head completely back, to a point it looks like he is breaking his neck. He'll just sit like that, too. It doesn't seem to bother him, though it has freaked me out many times. More so when I have him on my bed and he cocks his head completely back and stares at me. Ever see someone bend over backwards? Well, picture that. It's worried me, but otherwise he seems fine. He eats. He is friendly and easily handled. His stool is normal, though he does fuss with his mouth a tad. I already had him checked for mouth rot, so don't worry. His mouth is fine, but he'll open and close it, readjusting his jaw as he sways his head, or bends it over backwards. I will snap a picture of this in hopes someone can tell me if I should not worry about it...Or, is it something to be worried about? Thank you for reading. I do hope this wasn't a terribly horrible read, and as soon as I can get to the store to pick up batteries for my cam...I'll snap a picture of him doing it.
Sign: Joyce.

There are always a few things it could be, but the only way to know for sure is to visit a vet.... (IMO) if you are really worried.
I have a boa who does the swaying, ticking head movements as well, looks at an angle, she rights herself fine too, but struggles briefly when she doesn't have a good grip. I was worried it was IBD at first, since those are signs of possible infection. However, since she ate well and didn't regurge and showed no other symptoms... I just quarantined her. She has been with me over two years now with no problem. So, I figured there was a possibility that when she was a baby, she was exposed to high temps and 'cooked' or possibly exposed to chemicals... resulting in some neurological difficulties. I could be wrong, but to this day she is a fat healthy, odd snake. I just keep her away from my other snakes.
So in conclusion, we can only assume what could be wrong with a snake. The only way to know is to have an examination by a qualified person. IBD requires some sort of blood analysis (I'm sure someone knowledgeable will chime in about that). Your snake may just have neurological difficulties... but if it is IBD it is fatal eventually.
You can do a search for more information too, if you are concerned about IBD.
Good luck!
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Steph S.
Boas...
1.1 Albino boas (Loki & Hope)
1.4 07 Het. albino boas (Petty & Lady,Sierra,Madeline,Lola)
0.1 Reverse stripe poss. het albino (Cookie)
0.1 Salmon/hypo (Scarlet)
0.1 Anery poss. het snow (Missy)
1.0 Anery (Reno)
0.1 DH Sunglow (Bonnie)
1.0 Het. Anery (Guy)
0.3 Normals (Ophelia, Sasha, & Lulu)
1.1 Surinames (Solomon & Surreal)
1.2 Hogg Isles (Mr.Orange & Peaches, Apricot)
0.0.1 Central American (Sassy)
0.1 Emerald Tree boa (Jade)
1.0 ATB (Satan... seriously!)
Pythons...
2.1 GTPs (B., Monty & Jewel)
0.0.3 BPs (MJ, Precious, Houdini)
1.1 Carpet Pythons (Jackson & Charlotte)
0.1 Blood python (Akaia)
Misc.
1.1 Mandarin Ratsnakes (Jack & Jill)
1.0 Boxer/Pitt Mutt (Tyson)

Take your boa to a "Qualified Herp Vet" ASAP.

It's impossible to diagnose a problem over the forums. It's in your boa's best interest to go to a Vet. They might be hard to find and you might have to drive a few hours, but it's the best thing for your boa.

Good Luck

Hopefully everything will turn out alright.

I hope it's not IBD, but in case it is, please quarantine him until you can get him to your vet. If it is IBD, I've read that it is very potent in pythons. It will have a much more rapid progression in them.
I'm sure a lot more qualified people will weigh in on this, but better to be cautious.

That's called "Stargazing". Neurological problem. Could be from overheat or some other environmental stress, as well as IBD (previously stated).
Serious stuff. Be careful. Don't contaminate your collection.
jsc

sometimes bacteria can affect them that way or if they have a really bad RI. I would take it to the vet asap

I've read that can be a symptom of pretty serious neurological damage - could be cause be such things as severe overheating or IBD or possibly internal parasites..?

sorry to hear - but I would recommend being safe and take all precautions for IBD.

Patrick

N/P