Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello there, I'm Warlord 101 and I wish I could've joined these forums under better circumstances.

I'm a first timer here and I'm very worried about my Ball Python, Skippy. We took them (I say 'them' because we don't yet know the gender) home a just over a week ago and, due to the increase of studies from the end of the Scottish Summer Holidays last week, I have yet to be able to get Skippy to a Vet. Apart from gender, we also don't know age though I don't believe Skippy to be too old. At thickest, Skippy's just over a thumb's width and, at absolute longest, one and a half feet.

We've yet to see Skippy feed (and I've tried twice over the last week or so) or shed (but I'm not too surprised) though he has defecated. I only have one thermometer and this informs me (at the center of the tank) that temperature is about 27.5 degrees celsius.

Now, this afternoon, after getting back, I observed Skippy rolling his head about and looking upwards. I was scared but, after a while, Skippy stopped and straightened out a bit and went to rest. However, about half an hour ago, Skippy started doing it again. Wanting to know what was wrong, we took Skippy out of his tank and he fell limp. After spending a while holding him and looking him over (though I don't know much about the health of snakes yet) he opened his mouth and yawned for quite sometime.

My parents are holding on to him at the moment whilst they make a phonecall for help, I believe. By my dad's suggestion, I came straight here. I'm very worried about Skippy and, being naturally paranoid, I've considered the possibility that he has a bad respiratory problem or something even worse. I'm wondering if anyone has any advice, what the problem might be and how I can help Skippy.

Can you tell us more information? Where did you get the snake if it is that small? Maybe the person that gave it or sold it to you can tell you if it is a new born or not. Have you tried feeding it? How long have you owned it? I would advise you to contact the person that you got it from and ask them about the history of the animal. Please keep us posted.

Thanks,
Mohamed
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2.0 Piebald
2.0 66% Het Pied
1.0 Pastel
1.2 100% Het pied
1.1 Normal
1.1 Albino Nelson Milk Snakes
1.0 Pekingese
0.1 Himalayan

Hi,

The snake is a few months old and had fed 5 - 6 times before coming to me. He was ready to be fed again about a week ago, but had only been in his new surroundings for a few day. He did not take his food. I tried to feed him again this week, but he did not take his food. We rang the shop and they thought that he may be starting to shed, but his belly has not gone pink nor has his eyes clouded over. My mum is taking him to the vets at the moment. I am concerned because he is so listless and has been rotating his head as if in pain.

If you got him at a pet store and didn't actually see him eat I doubt he has eaten. Sounds like a CH baby that hasn't been eating and most likely the vet can't help either but maybe. Also you need to be able to check the temps on both the hot end and the cool end, get a thermometer with a probe so you can maintain both sides. Also what is your humidity at. I got some CH babies this summer and they were supposedly eating hopper mice but at 28g - 52g I realized they most likely hadn't eaten anything and many exhibited the symptoms yours did before dying. Know who you are buying from and get good healthy babies. Hope this doesn't put you off ball pythons, there are a lot of good breeders out there but there are some bad apples in every hobby too.
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Nita Hamilton
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Ball Pythons

Hi,

The pet shop has a very good reputation locally and they genuinely care for their reptiles - it only specialises in reptiles. They also seem to know their breeders. Skippy has defacated so must have eaten recently (I suppose). Could it be something like constipation? He seemed very active until today.

Without really knowing more about the snake it's really hard to tell - a vet or a local herp speciallist would be your best bet. If you don't hear raspy breathing or see fluid coming from his mouth then it's probably not a Respitory Infection unless it's in the very early stage. It sounds like it could be dehydration but again it could also be something more sever. There could be a number of things wrong with him from parasites or illness to stress your best bet is to take him to a herp vet and have him looked at. Sorry I couldn't be of more help.
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Tosha

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7.33.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and gang)
1.0.0 Angolan Python (Anakin Skywalker)
0.0.1 Green Tree Python
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Dessert Tortoise (Pope John Paul aka JP )
2.2.1 Fish (1,2,3,4)
0.0.2 frogs rescued from pool skimmer

Thank you very much for your comments. It seems very much like dehydration and he is staying with the vet overnight. Other comments on this website suggest from his size that he may not have eaten at all and this has been backed up by the vet. The family have all got their fingers crossed that he will pull through.

You shouldn't be too concerned, especially with a vet looking at it. Ball pythons are notorious for being picky eaters. Best advice I can give, is make sure he has slightly damp bedding, a nice temp gradient with a warm spot of around 90, and a hiding place. Give him a few days alone to acclimate (he should stay in the box, so not hard). After that, drop his food item in AFTER DARK...pref around 9pm or so. Also, my male ball who's only appx 1 year old decided before he wasnt going to eat for 2 months, and it had no ill effects on him. Just like he refused food last night, but is looking for food today.

Chris
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0.2.0 Grey Rats-Lauren, Avril
1.2.0 Black Rats- Robert, Cady, Kylie
1.2.0 Albino FL Kings-Nick, Jessica, Ashley
1.1.0 Crimson Corns-Kane, Ruby
0.1.0 Het-Crimson Corns-Lola
0.1.0 White-Sided/Pos Het Albino Black Rat-Lita
1.0.0 Albino White-sided Black Rat-Rey
0.1.0 Fl King-Bonnie
1.0.0 Biak GTP-Brandon
1.0.0 Flame X Blood Bearded-Ruff
1.2.0 Ball Pythons-Donnie, Gretchen, Alexis
0.1.0 Red-tail Boa-Xena
0.0.1 Savannah Monitor-Izzy

WHen a baby goes "too far" they can start breaking down from the inside and we see the wobble head thing.......

At this point it is often too late.... the animal must be skinny and has a hollow feel to it....

THis snake should have been assist fed prior to this situation.

I have also seen CH(imported) babies start to break down after they have been cross contaminated...there is very little we can do to fix the problem.

I wish I could tell you some better news.... How long have you had the animal?

Kevin
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www.newenglandreptile.com