| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| kdlang |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 10:20:08
Ok it is looking more and more likely that Connie is eggbound. Yesterday after I bathed her I counted a possible 5 left inside. I can't see any in her laybox but it is difficult to see in it without disturbing her which I obviously don't want to do.
I have got her booked in to the vets tomorrow. Unfortunately the rep specialist isnt in until then and I have an important meeting in the morning so can't go until 4pm. What I would like to know please, is what treatments are likely and a rough approximation of cost so that I can make sure I am well prepared.
Here is a pic of a couple of the eggs she has dropped so far. One is pretty yellow so I'm sure its infertile. The other one is still a creamy white colour. Do you think it could be fertile? If it is then I need to do some serious digging on the possibility of her mating recently or she has managed to retain sperm for 4 years. Can i break that thread type thing that is connecting the 2 eggs or shall i leave alone?
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| 18 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Mort13 |
Posted - 17/04/2011 : 09:48:05
I'm not much help in this department,but I just wanted to wish you and Connie good luck. Hope you have a happy ending to this. |
| kdlang |
Posted - 17/04/2011 : 09:17:49
I'm guessing the vet must have missed them. He did say the ultrasound wasn't the most reliable on a snake of her size because of the depth it can function at. She can make it difficult to feel ones further up too as she seems to tense up. I hope these 3 will be the last and that she hasn't got more further up that I couldnt feel. The next egg to come is about 5in from her vent so I'll give her another couple of days for it to move down. I wasn't going to give her anything to eat until she had finished but do you think I should put a smaller than normal meal in her viv and see if she fancies it? |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 17/04/2011 : 07:55:57
is that the 3 eggs passed that the vet found when he scanned her hun?
it takes about 6 weeks to actually produce eggs to a size that's considered 'normal' when laid so unless the vet missed them.......?
the reptoboost bath will have helped her, it's unlikely she'll be active or drinking, though the moisture in the damp hide will also help as she'll absorb moisture through her skin. i wouldn't worry about keeping her damp hide in for another week hun if that's what it takes, i'm sure the sneezing's down to a bit of water up her nose   |
| kdlang |
Posted - 17/04/2011 : 07:24:06
Well the good news is I have 3 more eggs. 2 were definitely laid yesterday, not sure about the third as she was in her box and I couldn't see very well. Anyway I got really worried about her this morning as she hadnt been moving about. I changed her water and usually this would bring her out for a nosy but there was still no movement so I opened her laybox to check on her. She moved her head but I didn't get much out of her. I don't know if it was the right thing to do or not but I decided to give her a reptoboost bath to make sure she was hydrated and to give her a bit of a boost. She must be exhausted the poor girl. The bad news is while rinsing and drying her off I felt possibly another 3 eggs. I'm sure this girl is producing them as fast as she can lay them.
I just don't know what to do for the best for her. Surely she can't be eggbound if she is still laying them, all be it slowly. Has anyone else had their snake take this long to lay eggs? It's been 6 days now and, going by what's happened so far, I don't expect her to lay these until tomorrow or even Tuesday.
The other thing that has been playing on my mind is the potential of an RI. How long can they have a damp hide in there before it can cause problems? She did do half a dozen or so sneezes while she was being bathed but that could have just been the water getting up her nose. Any advice more than welcome. |
| matty18714 |
Posted - 16/04/2011 : 09:06:15
I agree the weight loss is fine. My snake was also as active. If I was in the same situation again I would have made about 5 lay boxes all with different substrates at different moisture levels to increase the chance of her finding one she liked.
Once this is over, glue your probes directly to your heat mat using aquarium sealant. |
| kdlang |
Posted - 16/04/2011 : 08:54:02
No more this morning. Silly girl pushed the probes off the heatmat again tho. I have tried putting them under her laybox and weighing them dowm with a piece of wood but she still moves them. When she is not in her box she is desperately trying to find a way out of her viv. D you think she is trying to look for a better place to lay? |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 16/04/2011 : 08:25:58
i'm glad she's doing ok hun, that doesn't seem like abnormal weight loss to me
hope she's passed the other 3 overnight.......? |
| kdlang |
Posted - 15/04/2011 : 20:38:40
Thanks Matty. It cost me just over £40 today. Considering the consult is usually £25 I didn't think it was too bad at all. It's all in Connies hands now. Hopefully she will do the business and I can start building her back up again. If the vets scales are right she has lost about 40-50g. Does that sound like a normal weight loss for laying eggs? It has taken her under 300g as she is only a small girl for her age. |
| matty18714 |
Posted - 15/04/2011 : 18:58:01
Thats not a bad result then. Good luck to you and the snake.
quote:
Originally posted by kdlang
I did ask about oxytocin but said he didnt think there was much point as it wasn't proven to be effective in snakes.
Good on the vet for saying that. I imagine there are some that would have just taken another £100 off of you. |
| kdlang |
Posted - 15/04/2011 : 18:48:27
Well we are back from the vets. He has said to give her a little longer before doing anything major as she laid those 2 overnight so they aren't neccesarily stuck. He did an ultrasound and has confirmed 3 more to come. They seem to have moved down with him feeling them so hopefully they will be on their way. He has also given her a calcium injection. I did ask about oxytocin but said he didnt think there was much point as it wasn't proven to be effective in snakes. He has said to make sure she is hydrated, although she doesnt look dehydrated at the moment, and to see if she passes them over the weekend.
I have turned her heatmat up slightly to see if the extra warmth in the laybox might encourage her seeing as she laid the latest 2 after she had moved the probes off the heatmat. It's maxing at the higher end of 29oC. |
| kdlang |
Posted - 15/04/2011 : 08:19:29
News this morning is that I can see 2 eggs in her laybox. I noticed her temps in her viv had dropped and realised she had shifted her probes off her heatmat. I opened the viv to put them back in place and she came out of her laybox allowing me to see the 2 eggs. Not sure if there are anymore or if they are ok as I don't want to disturb her anymore but it seems she might like higher temperatures. I wasnt expecting her to lay anymore since it had been so long since she had passed the last ones so there is hope she might be able to pass the others. She is just taking her sweet time about it.
Thanks for the well-wishes guys. Thanks Matty for the info. I will update later after we have been to the vets. |
| matty18714 |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 23:23:06
As GP said, I had a snake go through it twice. She has explained it very well. The vet has 4 options.
First you have physical manipulation - the vet will try and gently push the eggs out. It is probably a bit late to do this now.
Then you have the oxytocin injection. Oxytocin is a mammal hormone and as far as I know its not even proven to work in reptiles, though supposedly it has caused contractions. Most vets wont try it after 2 days as the longer you leave it the less chance it has of working.
Then you have egg draining (called ovocentesis). As GP said, the eggs solidify over time at which point they cant be drained.
Finally you have surgical removal. This normally requires multiple incisions.
Unfortunately, prepare for the cost of treatment to be up to £700 if surgery is required, but it could be a lot less.
Edit - Spelling |
| HannahB |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 21:56:06
let us know what the vet man says - hope she does ok |
| Mole |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 21:48:58
Really feeling for you and your poor snakey, I hope it all goes well and that things go smoothly as possible  |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 19:20:51
i hope it all goes ok hun *hugs* |
| kdlang |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 18:22:29
Thanks Ali. I'm not sure if it's going to be too late for the oxytocin as I found the first 2 on Monday evening so it will have been 4 days since she started to lay til I can get her to the vets. I will have to check if the rep vet is there over the weekend too otherwise look for another one as a back up.
Whatever she needs she will get. It's a good job my carpet that I have just had laid didn't cost as much as I was expecting. It means I have got some reserves in the bank so I don't have to worry about the cost. I just have to worry about her n the little egg if it turns out to be fertile. |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 14:29:13
the egg on the left is a slug, the one on the right however, looks like it could be viable....
they could be separated if you cut the stringy bit rather than pulled them apart
the vet might try an oxytocin injection to get things moving along, that would be the cheapest and most straight-forward route (though i'm not at work so can't price things up for you hun ) oxytocin is what they jab you with immediately after you've given birth to hurry along the delivery of the placenta
the next least-invasive option would be for the vet to puncture and deflate the egg(s) nearest her vent. a needle is inserted through the skin and the contents of egg sucked out with a syringe allowing it to be passed, and hopefully the rest of any retained eggs. though this isn't always an option if the insides of the egg have started to solidify - you can't syringe out custard!
and then there's surgically removing the eggs under GA. they usually remove the ovaries (spay) tham at the same time to prevent it happening again. matty's old corn Henry (bless her) got eggbound with slugs and required surgery. i think it cost a few hundred pounds but she did recover from it, though there is some additional post-op care involved. |
| a33272 |
Posted - 14/04/2011 : 10:31:34
I think the most likely route will be an injection. There was a thread about this a while ago when cammy had an eggbound snake might be worth doing a search on eggbound or go to cammy's profile an see if his thread is showing up in his post history |
