Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello, we have 2 king snakes in the house, very healthy and always roaming around the cages, the smaller one was bought as a replacement for the first one that got lost inside the fake branch and we thought had escaped...well that's another story, deal is that Luthor (desert King snake) had his 2 pinkies Wednesday night and yesterday he was all swollen, from head to tail, this happened about 2 months ago and went away like the next day so maybe right now he's all back normal again but I'm wondering why is that happening, he is 7 months old.THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!

Not sure what you mean bt "all swollen"? You mean not just the lump from the pinky, but the whole animal had a swollen look? Did it look puffy like it was full of air? Did you happen to feel him? That is very strange. I have a Corn snake that has his head get puffy when his head hangs down, as if it is filling with blood or something, then goes away when he lifts his head. It's been that way since I can remember and he seems perfectly healthy other than that. What your describing is something, I don't think I've ever seen?
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
Jorge Sierra

My Site > www.Sierrasnakes.com

Hello,yes, he is all swollen,like a fat little King Snake, looks weird but he doesn't seem uncomfortable or sick, he just looks all puffy yes, like full of air.... thanks for your attention.

Luly

Well I hope he does continue to do fine for you, Good luck!
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
Jorge Sierra

My Site > www.Sierrasnakes.com

OH YEAH!!!! All my snakes get swullen to when I give them fresh mice to eat to and such so dont wory to much and keep up the prety great work and never give up trying to do stuff! And please post somore pitures A.S.A.P.!

Thanks!!!! What a relief!...I just saw him a few minutes ago and he's back to normal and as always very attentive to all my movements, he's so cute and we love him so much that we just want him to be healthy....I will post some pics as soon as I load them to this laptop (my other broke and this is new), thanks a lot, so happy I found this site and now I'm a big fan.

Luly

Luthor (desert King snake) had his 2 pinkies Wednesday night and yesterday he was all swollen, from head to tail, this happened about 2 months ago and went away like the next day so maybe right now he's all back normal again but I'm wondering why is that happening, he is 7 months old

How big is "he"?
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www.Bluerosy.com

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He is like 23" L, Kali (our other King snake pet) grew very fast but Luthor does not want to eat fuzzies, he throws them up so we still give him pinkies, thanks.

Something is VERY wrong then if it is 23 inches and regurging anything larger than pinkies. Does it have a portion(ONLY) of the enclosure where it can seek temps in the mid 80's to properly digest?. If it is only being kept at normal A/C temps that are very comfortable to a person, that is NOT warm enough for it to digest.

That snake could very well have an intestinal bacterial issue with that weird swelling too. I suspect your husbandrt is the cause of all this. I would get that snake to a vet ASAP! and get some fecal work and throat smear done. It could very well be in serious need of some antibiotics.

And by all means, DO NOT attempt to feed it larger meals until it has been looked at by a vet first!, and your temp gradient is optimum too. After medicating with antibiotics such as Flagyl (Metronidazole) the snake's digestive system has no GOOD BACTERIA to aid with proper digestion. The snake MUST have about 8 to 10 days AFTER the last dose of Flagyl for it to be able to regain the proper gut content to digest properly again. And even then it is smart to gradually increase the meal size to what I suggested.

A kingsnake that is 23 inches long should be pounding at least a couple hoppers at a time and easily hold those down without regurgitating, pinkies are just far too small for a snake that size. It should be eating a couple of rodents that are big enough that it can just manage to fit into it's head while being stretched substantially and not be able to easily gulp them down like popcorn.

I would also strongly suggest a couple inexpensive books on the subject of kingsnakes. This will give you some good basic for their needs and well-being.

~Doug

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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

serpentinespecialties.webs.com

I don't know why I didn't pick up on the regurge part? I was focused on the swollen aspect, and completely missed the regurge.
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
Jorge Sierra

My Site > www.Sierrasnakes.com

Yeah Jorge, as you probably know, many times an intestinal bacterial infection can cause the stomach area to become inflamed and swollen. Probably also from the gas it can create in there as well.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

serpentinespecialties.webs.com

Hello back, thanks will follow all instructions given, here is a pic of Luthor yesterday.

Can't upload a picture....
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Couple questions and couple suggestions:

I am not saying for sure... But it is a possibilty that your HE is a SHE. I breed female Florida kings at 20" . So it could be that you have a female that is ovulating and could explain the swelling. Since desert kings are a smaller species and "if" you snake is female it would explain the periodic swelling.

But most likely it is the food item that is causing the swelling. Without seeing the snake and the swelling there is no way to really tell. But it sounds to me that:

a) you snake is swelling because it is not digesting properly OR the swelling you see is normal for a snake that has just eaten the day prior.

b) you have something else going on with the snake that could be a health issue.

Is the swelling from the lower half of the snake or only mid section where the food bolus is?

What concerns me more is why your snake is regurging larger food items. That is not normal. First, make sure to keep water bowls clean. You also might look into finding some liquif flagyl. A dropper full every 7-10 days for 3 treatments should clean any flagellates.

[*if you can locate some liquid flagyll you can email me diectly and I will help you with dosage and explain what else you need to do.]

The only other possibilty why your snake is regurging because you are not providing a hotspot on one end of its encloser. the kingsnake should be able to thermoregualte to properly digest its food (which would also explain the excessive swelling when pinkies are in the gut and why larger items are regurged), if not, the food is not getting digested fast enough and is actually rotting inside the stomach..

A proper hotspot should be appox 90F. Get a heat pad or other tank heating source (do not use a heat lamp or lightbulb for a heat source!!).

If the snake is in a room that is below 82F that "could" be the problem with the regurges. Even if your other snakes digest and are doing fine, with those temsps , does not eman all snake will be able to function properly. A one set temperature is really boderline for keeping snakes eating and digesting healthly anyway.

Without more info and /or seeing the snake and setup, it is hard to diagnose the symtoms or issues you have with this snake.
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www.Bluerosy.com

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I guess Doug and me were posting at the same time. What is amazing is we both gave the same suggestions and advice..

You better take the advice because you won't see us agree on anything very ofetn.
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www.Bluerosy.com

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Thanks a lot for all the explanations, Luthor has a heat pad since the first day he (or she) came home, I fully clean the cage every other week and do a clean up every time he eats,he has a cave under his water bowl and he loves to be there more that under the fake tree where the heat pad is, we use Aspen bedding,will try to take a picture next time he (or she) is swollen, thanks a lot for your response.

Luly

what's the surface temp on the warm end of it's cage?
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.

An indoor-outdoor thermometer with the outdoor probe right over the UTH where the snake nests is a good way to really make sure the temps are at the right place. Also an infrared gun to take readings is very useful. You can get these items at the hardware store.
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Bob
Pyromaniac AKA Greatballzofire
Keeping cats allows man to cohabitate with tigers. Keeping reptiles allows man to cohabitate with dinosaurs.

That is very true Bob. You must KNOW what the actual suface temp gradient is on both ends of the enclosure. Guessing just does NOT get it. This might also explain the snake always cruising around too. When things are right temp-wise, they tend coil up more to conserve energy and are more content.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

serpentinespecialties.webs.com