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cammyt24
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
2 Posts |
 Posted - 03/06/2013 : 22:19:11
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| My corn is about 5 years old, male, and is about 4 foot 5. I noticed yesterday that he is loudly wheezing as he breathes. He last ate on the 14th of may, and has refused 2 medium mice since. He is extremely active, both at day and night. The temperature in the viv is just above 22 degrees celcius, but he often lies in the cool end, off the heat mat. Any help would be much appreciated. |
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SilverWings
Yearling
United Kingdom
740 Posts |
Posted - 03/06/2013 : 22:47:49
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Does he wheeze all the time or is it just every now and then? Does he have any other symptoms? Could be respiratory infection, copied this off a vet website;
quote:
Symptoms include listlessness, weight loss due to decreased appetite, swollen or bloated body, gaping, open mouth breathing, often with audible exhalations when in an advanced state. Wheezing may be heard, or clicking noises when breathing. Bubbly, stringy, or sheeting mucous appears in the mouth. The head may be held in a raised position to facilitate breathing. In snakes, the tines of the forked tongue may be stuck together.
If he doesn't show any other symptoms it might just be something he does (my Diego likes to huff every now and then), but if you're in any doubt a trip to the vets might be a good idea. High humidity might be one cause of an infection :p
The activity and refusing feed could be due to breeding season; Diego is very active and hasn't eaten since March 7th.... |
2.2.3 Corn snakes; Red, Rosie, Liana, Checkers, Luna, Diego, Snowman
1.0 Taiwanese Beauty Snake; Aleron
1.0 Green Anoles; Doug
1.0 Greyhound; Lee |
Edited by - SilverWings on 03/06/2013 22:48:47 |
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Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 03/06/2013 : 23:23:02
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The first thing I noticed was the viv temp Cameron. It needs to be between 27 - 29oC in the warm end, so 22oC is very low....in fact it's what we would usually have as the cool side temp. You say he is staying off the heatmat, is it controlled by a thermostat? How are you measuring your temps, with a digital thermometer with the probe lying on the heatmat? The fact that he is choosing to stay in the cool end could be a sign that he has a respiratory infection....
'Signs of respiratory infections (RI) in snakes are often the same as those in people, wheezing,sneezing,mucus from the nose and mouth, breathing through the mouth instead of the nose, lethargy and being able to hear a rattling noise when holding the snake. It is possible to treat mild RI's at home by providinh a warm dry viv, raise the temperature to the higher end of the snakes natural range, thsi is like giving the snake an artificial fever to aid in fighting off germs, as with other disorders, isolate the snake, and keep stress to a minimum. Often this will be enough to fight off a mild RI, you might want to add a small amount of inhalant like baby vic in warm water to a jam jar with a pierced lid out of reach to the snake in the viv or outside the viv near the vent.Persistant cases of RI should be seen by a vet for a bacterial culture test and antibiotic treatment.'
This thread about a snake with a Respiratory infection may be helpful.
As much info you can give us will help.
Xxx
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cammyt24
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
2 Posts |
Posted - 04/06/2013 : 09:36:02
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I have increased the temperature to 28oC on the heat mat, which is controlled by a thermostat with a probe. As for other symptoms, he is displaying none of them, however one of his scales on his side seems to be falling off, it's like some aspen is stuck underneath it. I am going to take him to the vets, but any more advice would also be appreciated.
Thanks for your help. |
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Isoldael
Yearling
Netherlands
999 Posts |
Posted - 04/06/2013 : 11:33:32
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| Is he going to shed soon? My Jake sometimes wheezes when he's about to shed and the skin around his nostrils is a bit loose ^^ |
1.0 anery stripe (Nash)
1.0 hypo pewter (Loki)
1.0 bloodred het amel, charcoal, hypo, stripe 50% phet anery, lavender (Kasumi)
0.1 grey background normal het amel (Saphira)
0.1 tessera het amel, anery, stripe (Lilith)
0.1 amel (Aurora)
0.1 hypo bloodred het anery, charcoal, stripe 50% phet amel, lavender (Mara)
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Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 04/06/2013 : 11:37:40
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So glad you've increased his temp. Are you measuring it somehow or just relying on the stat?
You make a good point about him maybe coming up to a shed Isoldael. The first sign that Silvi is going to go blue is that she starts sneezing and that can be days before she clouds over. Could that be the case Cameron?
I'm no expert, but it does sound like a visit to the vet is the best thing....if only to put your mind at rest. Please let us know how you get on.
Xxx
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Wheezing
