T O P I C R E V I E W |
Jarvo |
Posted - 07/05/2012 : 15:31:00 We went on holiday for 2 weeks from 06/04 - 21/04 during this time I asked a local rep shop to look after my snakes. The corn was deep in shed when I dropped him off at the rep shop prior to this he was very placid to handle and would deficate 3 days after a feed like clock work. I picked them up from the rep shop after our holiday gave them a qiuck once over and left them alone for 5 days then they both took a prey item as usual I then left them for 48 hours as normal. I went in to get my corn and he tagged me for the first time ever no blood just a red mark. His temps are 28-29.2 which have never changed since I got him. Since 22/04 he is always on his heat mat which he would usually be at the cold end at room temp and only on his heat mat after feeding or during shed cycle. I fed him on the 27/04 and he has not deficated and is looking round the last third of his body which ends at his vent, I am reluctant to feed him again until he has deficated. He has been on a jumbo mouse every 2 weeks for the last 2 months. I have had him in a warm bath today for about 5 minutes and he started to get aggitated even with me holding him. Is thier anything else that I can do as I plan on another warm bath tomorrow and if nothing by Wednesday I am going to phone the vet. He is 2 years old and around 40" and has always been healthy and very active in his viv and when I open the glass door he would come out on his own now for a bit of handling but now he is never seen. Just for info the Boa that went with him to the rep shop was a bit jumpy for a couple of days but is back to normal now.
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20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
lotabob |
Posted - 10/05/2012 : 21:20:45 quote: Originally posted by zandefloss
Is a snake not pooing for 2 weeks constipated?
No (ask my Royal who only goes once every 4 months or so) but if its out of the ordinary for that specific snake its worth keeping an eye on. They have very efficient digestive systems but even then they take over a week to fully break down, dissolve, and digest their meals, even longer if they are colder (not cold). When a snake poops a few days after feeding its happy coincidence and not the mouse it just ate coming back out, that's got a longer journey in store.
That snake looks very well, good shape, shiny and well Anery is my favourite morph and that's a good one. You weren't overfeeding as such, maybe pushing the upper limit but now with either extended feeding gaps or smaller prey you will easily avoid the possibility of it become obese. |
Jarvo |
Posted - 10/05/2012 : 17:34:22 quote: Originally posted by smart bunny
Awwww he was so dinky in that pic - certainly grown a lot! I wouldn't say he looks overweight yet, and now you know not to overfeed he never will be lol! Glad the constipation seems sorted now and you have your happy snake back :)
Thank you for your kind words. He was tiny when we first got him sometimes I forget just how small he was |
smart bunny |
Posted - 10/05/2012 : 10:18:16 Awwww he was so dinky in that pic - certainly grown a lot! I wouldn't say he looks overweight yet, and now you know not to overfeed he never will be lol! Glad the constipation seems sorted now and you have your happy snake back :) |
Spreebok |
Posted - 09/05/2012 : 23:35:38 How old/big is she zande, and what are you feeding her and how often? |
zandefloss |
Posted - 09/05/2012 : 22:47:28 Is a snake not pooing for 2 weeks constipated? My snake only seems to poo every 3 weeks or so, has never been fed on aspen etc.
Is she just constipated all the time?
zan x |
Jarvo |
Posted - 09/05/2012 : 16:45:10 Thanks all for the advice, The good news is that he was on his usual shelf at the cool end for the first time since I picked him up from the rep shop and he was relativly calm when handled. I put him back on the scales and he went 370g.
I was horrified and felt guilty at the thought that I was over feeding him as I have had both snakes from hatchlings and want to spend many more years with them. I went on the advice that when the prey item does not leave a bump up the size but extend the frequency. I take on board all your comments as I am now aware that he is big for a 2 year old and I will cut him back to a large mouse every 14-20 days.
I wonder if his constipation was cheesing him off.
Just a few photo,s taken today showing his slimmer look.
Just for a size comparison when we first got him almost 2 years ago.
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Mamma |
Posted - 09/05/2012 : 09:01:43 Na he doesnt look overweight in the pic. |
mkmattyk |
Posted - 09/05/2012 : 01:02:01 ANYROAD....all im going to say is keep an eye on him or her and at the end of the day regardless if your snake is eggbound or not i hope it becomes 100% healthy again |
lotabob |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 20:40:31 quote: Originally posted by mkmattyk
i think the reason why he went for you is because he was moved whilst i shed, (even with the 5day waiting), i always leave mine well clear until they have shed,
Yeah it is likely down to the stress of been moved around, he will soon settle.
quote: Originally posted by mkmattyk
and for the food like many say on here corns can grow differently, and if the food was too big the snake would either regurge or not eat in the first place.
Not true, an adult corn snake can eat FAR more than its body requires, we have a duty to regulate the amount and frequency to prevent the snake from becoming fat. (I noticed in an earlier post saying about noticeable bumps, this does not apply to an adult that will probably be about as thick as a big mouse and eating one will barely leave a pimple let alone a bump).
quote: Originally posted by mkmattyk
Now what i think, and it may seem far fetched but think about it.... the snake is shedding or shed, and is round at the last third of it body.... do you think he is a she??? now everyone nows that a snake can produce eggs without locking to a male and this is what i think is happening.
Not impossible but carrying eggs fertile or otherwise will not cause a snake to stop pooping and if eggbound the lump at the vent is noticeable. It sounds a lot more likely that the snake was slightly constipated (rather than impacted as it has passed poop) due to ingestion of substrate.
Anyroad on the feeding front I feed my 325 gram almost 2 year old corn on a large mouse every 10 days but also closely monitor body shape and weight gain to accurately tailor a diet specific to my snake. Just keep an eye on him, double check your setup, if has been switched off and switched back on triple check everything is right, all the probes are where they should be, even daft things like batteries in the thermometer can cause them to freeze, take them out and back in to be sure they are reading properly.
Things will settle back down to routine, moving is stressful and disruptive to them, give them their week settling in etc as if they are new to you and things will be fine I'm sure. |
mkmattyk |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 20:14:55 But thats why shes not pooing aswell, the eggs might be blocking the way |
mkmattyk |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 20:13:57 Well when they shed thats a sign that she is sexully active... Nott sure on how long before she lays (thats if she does), but an early warning sign is she sheds again about a week before shes ready |
Jarvo |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 18:57:12 quote: Originally posted by mkmattyk
i think the reason why he went for you is because he was moved whilst i shed, (even with the 5day waiting), i always leave mine well clear until they have shed, and for the food like many say on here corns can grow differently, and if the food was too big the snake would either regurge or not eat in the first place.
Now what i think, and it may seem far fetched but think about it.... the snake is shedding or shed, and is round at the last third of it body.... do you think he is a she??? now everyone nows that a snake can produce eggs without locking to a male and this is what i think is happening.
I did mention to my OH a couple of days ago that this may be the case as zack is always on the heat source and no longer active, if this is the case how can I be sure or do I just wait and stop handling? |
mkmattyk |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 18:23:55 i think the reason why he went for you is because he was moved whilst i shed, (even with the 5day waiting), i always leave mine well clear until they have shed, and for the food like many say on here corns can grow differently, and if the food was too big the snake would either regurge or not eat in the first place.
Now what i think, and it may seem far fetched but think about it.... the snake is shedding or shed, and is round at the last third of it body.... do you think he is a she??? now everyone nows that a snake can produce eggs without locking to a male and this is what i think is happening. |
Jarvo |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 18:08:35 quote: Originally posted by Mamma
did you weigh him before or after the poo? If it was before weigh him after thats double the weight of my 2 yr old xx
Hi, It was before his poo, I can put him back on the scales tomorrow as I don,t want to disturb him again today. When I handle him I can see his muscle definition down his back so I think that I have wrongly assumed that he was fine. Looking at the photo would you say that he is over weight? |
tordyjo |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 18:07:55 crumbs 410g, i have 2 that are just coming up to the 2 year point, one is 230g and the other 180g, he's a big lad |
Mamma |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 17:57:45 did you weigh him before or after the poo? If it was before weigh him after thats double the weight of my 2 yr old xx |
Jarvo |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 17:34:55 Thanks all for the advice. I put Zack on the scales today and he went 410 grams I also put a frozen jumbo mouse on and it was 32 grams. I took this photo today with the kids blackberry as a size guide(box size is 14.5"x12")
The good news is I gave him a second bath and bang a huge poo, it did look like he had some aspen in with it which could have come from the rep shop as I always feed him in a rub for this reason. He looks alot slimmer now but I would still appreciate your thoughts around food size.
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Spreebok |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 12:52:21 Try popping him in a tub and taking him for a drive. It's usually a trick to get them feeding, but I find that when one of mine goes for a trip in my topbox, there's ALWAYS poop lol! |
Starmist |
Posted - 08/05/2012 : 10:13:11 Digital scales have been my absolute lifesaver as I'm sure they have for everyone!! Although my battery has just decided to die so when we transfer Jake to his new viv in a couple of days he'll be weighed on the rubbish ones! We don't know how old Jake is, but we're guessing around the 18 month - 2 year mark and he's just over 4ft and a bit and he's on one large mouse every week, but the size of our local pet shop's 'large' mice is very deceiving. I'll get a picture of the mouse and see what you all think! (Sorry to hijack the post) Seeing's your boy is smaller than Jake I would say maybe it's too big for him? Although I am not as clued up as everyone else. I am rambling now... |
Georgina |
Posted - 07/05/2012 : 17:07:57 we all use digital kitchen scales x |