I'm a new snake owner, and my ball python which is about 6 months old has an unusually soft tail (about 3 inches of softness with a spongy feel), I think it may be constipation. He also has not eaten in about 4 weeks- which is unusual since he is so young. His eyes are blue right now and is about to shed.
I'm afraid it could be an infection or something worse. He has been acting weird lately- i tried feeding him and when he strikes and coils around the baby pinky, he bit himself in the neck a few times and kept biting himself! He also sometimes rests with his mouth open, but from what I can see and from online pictures I cant find any signs of mouth rot.
I just bought a second heating lamp for my cage, it is 36" by 18" and I keep the temp at about 80-90 deg on the hot side, but it gets cold at night to about 70 so maybe the temp might be a problem. Rel humidity is kept at 50-60%.
And about the open mouth thing (called stargazing) this could be a sign of an Upper Respiratory Infection. Those temps are a little cold.. I have a basking lamp on all day which makes the overall tank temp 85 and the "hot spot" about 92. At night the temp drops to about 76-78 with the under tank heater keeping the "hot spot" at about 85-90. If he has excess saliva in his mouth and you hear wheezing or clicking when he breathes, could be a Respiratory Infection. And do you have hide boxes on the hot and cold sides? Hope this helps! 
