Although I don't know what the cause is, you can try this in addition to seeking medical help if need be:

Get a glass tank with screen top, use newspaper substrate, and have a heat pad on the far end of the tank. Keep the basking spot kind of small in relation to the cage area.

Keep the heater in the 90-100deg range, and keep the ambient temp as much as you can in the 60s or 70s. Place a ceramic tile or two on the edge of the heated area. Allow the snake to hide in/under the newspaper anywhere in the cage.

You can cover much of the screen top with a towel or whatever if needed to maintain some humidity if needed. A humid hide may be in order too. Too little humidity for too long and some montane-ish snakes do not do well.

The glass and newspaper are very inert; if the snake is having a reaction to a chemical in the rack, it will likely be absent in this new setup and the snake may get better.

The wide temp range is advantageous to a kingsnake dealing with a bacteria or virus.

Worth a shot. Many rack materials and some plastic boxes give off chemicals when heated. Add to that an enclosed area, and some animals may be sensitive, even if others are not. Average rack temperature range may not allow the snake to deal well with illness, even if other snakes can.
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Mark

[ Hide Replies ]

• odd behavior - antr1, Fri Apr 24 12:25:52 2009
• RE: odd behavior - Boneyard, Fri Apr 24 14:22:14 2009
• RE: odd behavior - antr1, Fri Apr 24 16:50:21 2009
• RE: odd behavior - Boneyard, Fri Apr 24 18:21:21 2009
• RE: odd behavior - markg, Fri Apr 24 14:51:10 2009
• RE: odd behavior - zach_whitman, Mon Apr 27 18:01:31 2009
• RE: odd behavior - antr1, Tue Apr 28 12:03:42 2009