>>I have an Axanthic female who layed 4 eggs lastnight she still has 3 in her. The one egg is showing about the size of a dime she is trying to push but it doesn't look like it will come out. The 2nd egg is right behind the 1st one, but the 3rd is still up in her far, any breeders out there that can give me advice on what to do would be very helpfull. I care first for the Axanthic female, but the eggs are Dble hets. and would like to save as many of them as possible.
Hope this may help...
>Some snakes may lay most of their eggs but fail to expel all of them due to twisting of the oviduct which blocks the passage of the egg. If any of this occurs it is wise to seek the advice and service of a Veterinarian or a well versed snake breeder. If the snake fails to lay her eggs and it is decided she has gone beyond her time to lay the first egg that is potentially blocking the exit of all eggs must be removed. The technique involves disinfecting the belly area, a heavy gauge needle is then passed between the dorsal belly scutes of the animal into the egg and drained. The syringe draws out as much of the eggs contents as possible decreasing the size of the egg. Once this is done the snake is palpated to manipulate the egg out of the snake. In most cases this technique works well and once the first egg is passed the rest can follow. The biggest problem we face is deciding when and if the female is egg bound. If we use this method we are destroying the egg that is drained. If we wait too long, in many cases only days after the female should have laid the eggs could all die. How do we tell when it is too long? The keepers intuition is the best tool here. She has passed her expected lay date of 35 (late average) days, she is swollen, very uncomfortable and the eggs are distending her vent. If you feel that things are wrong having the first egg drained may be what is needed. If done early this may save the remaining eggs and allow the female to lay. If this is not the problem an egg was destroyed and the female was stressed for no reason. If the animal is egg bound and the eggs are allowed to remain within her she may die. As the female holds the eggs they die, once dead the body will try to deal with the rotting eggs but be overwhelmed by the task in most cases. An entire clutch of eggs held will most likely poison the female and kill her. If she lays most of her eggs but holds one or several she may be able to deal with with the situation and pass the bad eggs over time. If a female starts bleeding she needs immediate attention from a Veterinarian. Internal bleeding means serious complications and great potential for infection without appropriate action. The cause of the problem is often too involved for a general explanation here. If the female is holding her eggs up higher or passes a few eggs and stops then there is the possibility of the oviduct being twisted and blocking the exit of the eggs. Once again expert attention is needed with possible surgery. Without any attention to an egg bound animal the snake may die and the eggs are surely lost. The good news is that it is not common!
Kevin
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