Reptile & Amphibian Forums

To start off I just got back from the vet and am super worried about my 3 year old female Bloods condition.

It started about 3 days ago when I notice my 4' female Blood was for the first time not inside her Cypress Mulch enclosure (moisture). She was laying on the bedding of the cage (News Paper) She is in a 6' BoaMaster cage, has a normal temp of 80 and a hot spot ranging from 90 to 98. She has access to a very large (20 gallon) water dish. She has been fed 1 large rat every 2 1/2 weeks or so. Conditions are ideal. I also clean with Nolvason.

I also bath her once a month in a warm bath.

Here is what’s going on:

I looked inside her cage and I notice a really bad smell. She had normal feces in the cage that was very fresh. (No older then 1 hour or so) She regurgitated the rat that she was feed last night. (Frozen). Once I saw that I knew something was wrong since she has never done this. At this point I saw her body but not her head. I moved the water dish and the site of her head almost made me pass out. Her lower jaw was 180 degrees turned, she was "stargazing" or so it appeared with an open mouth. She then started striking at everything with her head upside down and her strikes where all over the place and not normal.

When I touched her tail she rattled it a little and the rest of her body lay lifeless.

The vet I just took her to who specializes in snake care was inconclusive. The $300+ bill included Fluid Therapy, Metronidazole Susp 50mg, Lactulose Syrups and two Radiographs. The x-rays showed that her stomach area was "not normal" but was not really irregular. The vet showed me the pics and it seems that it was much filled (tissue?) instead of having gassy areas.

If I left her over night I was going to have to fork up 1k+ and decided to give her the treatment and take her home. I have a feeling that she may not make it through the night because of how she looks and the vet explained even if I left her there would not be much they can do at this point.

Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions for me at this point? I immediately went to the vet as it was and is an emergency. It was the only herp vet in my area that could see her today. The other vet said 1 week which she could not wait.

I am super worried and sick over this and hope that she bounces back. Please any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated. Sorry for the rambling, I am very upset.

Eric

Pic is her a year ago.

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Eric

Eric, I'm terribly sorry to hear about your blood python's health emergency. I'm afraid I'm not much help, but hopefully one of the expert breeders on this forum will get back to you. If not, you could try asking on the Rainbow Boa forum; it's the most active forum I've been on through Kingsnake and there are lots of knowledgeable breeders there who might get back to you faster (some of them also have bloods). I hope your snake gets through this okay!
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Renee
1.0 BRB (Loki)
2.0 amel & anery corns (Foxfire & Daguerre)
0.1 blood python (Duchess, arriving later this month)
1.1 Cats (Nightshade & Cuzzy)

Hey Renee,

I really appreciate your response very much and will give it a shot.

I will keep you updated if anything happens, I have my fingers crossed.

Thank you my friend,

Eric
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Eric

How is your blood doing? I was so sorry to hear that it's sick, and I've been checking back every day to read more about how things are turning out. I hope your snake is on the mend! Hang in there, and don't give up hope!

Fill us in when you are able to do so.

Good luck!!!

I hate doing "armchair diagnosis" but here are some itmes that were not addressed in your narrative (sorry for your experience, it does happen sometimes):

- Was a fecal done on the fresh sample?
- Was the mouth clear of mucous, was there any indication of anemia (lack of healthy gum tissue)?
- Was there any raspy breathing or popping?
- Is this a female or male and did the vet radiograph the whole body or focus in on certain sections?
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www.richcrowleyreptiles.com
Support your local herp society
www.chicagoherp.org

Like Rich said a little more info on the vet visit.

Also was he able to give you any sort of diagnosis? Or did he just give her some treatments?
He said there was a lot of fluid in the stomach, but did he attempt to extract any to do a culture?
Did he advise follow up treatments (medication)?

Sorry to hear, it's tough to go through this, just hard to really see what's going on with these animals sometimes though. Best of luck.
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"It's my snake, I trained it, so I'm going to eat it!" - Mad Max, The Road Warrior

I'm sorry.One thing you should do first is to isolate her from every other animal.Just like mites,IF it is IBD virus,it spreads everywhere.Also,A sickness that is like a 24 hour cold to a boa constrictor can be a fatal illness to an animal not from South America.Observe if any other captive is off feed.I know it's simple,but when you're worried sick you sometimes forget..I do agree that it sounds like poisoning,or possible shock.I wish you all the best...Arkham.

Sounds like poisoning or a stroke. Very sorry to hear this. Best of luck with your situation and I hope your animal makes it.

>>To start off I just got back from the vet and am super worried about my 3 year old female Bloods condition.
>>
>>It started about 3 days ago when I notice my 4' female Blood was for the first time not inside her Cypress Mulch enclosure (moisture). She was laying on the bedding of the cage (News Paper) She is in a 6' BoaMaster cage, has a normal temp of 80 and a hot spot ranging from 90 to 98. She has access to a very large (20 gallon) water dish. She has been fed 1 large rat every 2 1/2 weeks or so. Conditions are ideal. I also clean with Nolvason.
>>
>>I also bath her once a month in a warm bath.
>>
>>Here is what’s going on:
>>
>>I looked inside her cage and I notice a really bad smell. She had normal feces in the cage that was very fresh. (No older then 1 hour or so) She regurgitated the rat that she was feed last night. (Frozen). Once I saw that I knew something was wrong since she has never done this. At this point I saw her body but not her head. I moved the water dish and the site of her head almost made me pass out. Her lower jaw was 180 degrees turned, she was "stargazing" or so it appeared with an open mouth. She then started striking at everything with her head upside down and her strikes where all over the place and not normal.
>>
>>When I touched her tail she rattled it a little and the rest of her body lay lifeless.
>>
>>The vet I just took her to who specializes in snake care was inconclusive. The $300 bill included Fluid Therapy, Metronidazole Susp 50mg, Lactulose Syrups and two Radiographs. The x-rays showed that her stomach area was "not normal" but was not really irregular. The vet showed me the pics and it seems that it was much filled (tissue?) instead of having gassy areas.
>>
>>If I left her over night I was going to have to fork up 1k and decided to give her the treatment and take her home. I have a feeling that she may not make it through the night because of how she looks and the vet explained even if I left her there would not be much they can do at this point.
>>
>>Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions for me at this point? I immediately went to the vet as it was and is an emergency. It was the only herp vet in my area that could see her today. The other vet said 1 week which she could not wait.
>>
>>I am super worried and sick over this and hope that she bounces back. Please any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated. Sorry for the rambling, I am very upset.
>>
>>Eric
>>
>>Pic is her a year ago.
>>
>>
>>-----
>>Eric
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Renee
1.0 BRB (Loki)
2.0 amel & anery corns (Foxfire & Daguerre)
0.1 blood python (Duchess, arriving later this month)
1.1 Cats (Nightshade & Cuzzy)