Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Lately, I've been experimenting with lower temps with my boas.
I know. I've read and heard it said that lower temps compromise the immune system. That said, one thing I have noticed with the lower temps is a much higher occurrence of cheesier gums and increased inflammation in the area known for nose rub damage.
In the past, I've always made the connection of Stomatitis/mouth rot/oral infections with the impaction of foreign objects within the teeth and gums.
Now, I believe it to be an early sign of suppressed immune function, not just an indication of impaction of foreign objects.
This amplifies and reinforces the belief/philosophy that cooling boas must be brought to a warmer temperature (DTH) on a regular frequency. Probably daily, as in daytime high and nightime low.
I'm sure many of you know this. I just want to add my personal anecdotal comments that I believe health issues will undoubtedly occur if Boa constrictors are maintained at lower temperatures over extended periods of time and that STOMATITIS is an EARLY WARNING SIGN of a compromised/suppressed immune function, in my opinion.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

Since Mouth Rot usually manifests itself as a secondary infection, everyone has to realize that something else is going on 9 times out of 10. So I wouldn't say Mouth Rot is the direct result of a comprimised immune system, but rather a direct result of another infection. Which brings me back to the point of people raising temps for a URI or other infection, and why they don't utilize those temps for normal daily functions? Just seems odd to me?
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South Central Herpetological

I'm in complete agreement on raising temps benefits the healing process.
I'm just trying to make the point that Stomatitis is an early sign of a compromised immune system for what ever reason -- primary infection, secondary infection, pathogen, environment.
In other words, if I saw mouth rot in a boa, I would say to myself -- 1) Looks like this snake has a compromised immune system. 2) The first thing I'd consider would be if the temperatures were too low. 3) Correct the environmental issue and then treat the patient.
I'm not saying this is the way it it and that's that. I'm just contributing my thoughts on the matter. No doubt, others will have different opinions.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

Let me say this -- I know Stomatitis can have many causes. I'll list a few that come to mind: physical trauma, foreign object, environmental - unhygienic, environmental - physical (temperature, humidity), psychological stress, and others.
Since snakes don't have any extremities, the primary body part most prone to trauma and vulnerable to infection [in captivity] is the mouth/oral cavity and nose. Where you have tissue protected by mucous membranes. No skin. Used and abused most frequently. Easily infected. Damage does occur more often than not as a matter of routine in the captive situation. Healthy Immune System -- repair and healing a normal occurrence. Compromised Immune System -- obvious and often chronic infection present.
It's a given that prolonged cooler than normal temperatures will compromise and degrade the effectiveness of the immune system.
For whatever reason the damage was done, temperature may be the number one reason the immune system isn't getting the repair job done.
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

There is no doubt that that the immune system and antibody response in reptiles is temperature dependent and that sub-optimal temps can readily stress and compromise the immune system of captive boids. It has been found with several studies that the gram negative bacteria responsible for most infections in captive boids have been isolated from over 95% of captive collections of boids that were sampled. Additionally, it was also found that something like 99% of all throat swabs from captive boids tested positive for P. aeruginosa, the main cause of most cases of stomatitis, whereas it was very rarely ever isolated from wild caught specimens. The fact that the wild caught boids showed no sign of P. aeruginosa, and that the vast majority of captive boids are asymptomatic carriers, points to the conclusion that P. aeruginosa and other pathogenic bacteria are opportunistic species in captive boids. It is only when stress suppresses the immune system of the animal, that these bacteria are able multiply to cause a disease condition. Non-stressed captive boids with un-compromised immune systems are able to keep these pathogenic bacteria in check.

Obvious stressors to captive snakes include sub-optimal temperature regimes or humidity, inadequate hiding areas, excessive handling, crowding and incompatibility of specimens, inadequate diet and clean water, injuries, unsanitary conditions, etc. While all of the above stressors can lower the immune response in captive boids, I believe sub-optimal temps cause the majority of stress issues. You are absolutely correct in that tropical boids need a daily high temp sufficient to maintain the immune response at an adequate level, and field studies have confirmed this. Temps can drop considerably at night, but without a sufficient daily high temp, stress occurs and the immune response is compromised. Conversely, temps that are too high can cause stress as well, and temps sought out by disease compromised boids trying to activate their immune systems are higher than those sought out by healthy individuals.

Since these pathogenic bacteria are always present in captive boids, stomatitis can occur when a stressed boid has any type of irritation to the tissue in the interior of the mouth. This can be from something as obvious as an injury, or as innocuous as the scraping of the gums during normal feeding. If the immune system is compromised, it might not take much at all to initiate the infection, and the damage could be so slight as to be unobservable. Sub-optimal temps do not cause stomatitis, but the lowered immune response caused by the sub-optimal temps allows the infection to progress. And I most definitely agree with you that the number one cause of suppressed immune response in captive boids is sub-optimal temps.

Kelly

Great Post.

Thank you Kelly, for substantially embellishing my thought with much more specific data, much more eloquently elaborated.
I think we're in agreement? I'm pretty sure that was the message I was trying to convey.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer