Odd possible problem

[sclark]

Hey all,

Wanted to throw this question out there in hopes maybe someone has dealt with this in the past.. I have dealt with so many reptile problems with my rescues, but this one has me stumpped..


OK here is my health question.
I have a beatiful snake, not a rescue, just one of my collection. Midnight, many have seen her pics I always post. She is a BCI and one of my favorites.. About 4 days ago I woke up to her being out of her hide with her mouth gaped open. So first thing I though was RI. She didn't show any other signs of RI so I started off thinking that maybe it was caught in the very early stages. So I dropped the humdity, upped the heat abit to reach the high end of the spectrum for BCI's and left her be, just to watch her closly. 4-5 days past, no signs of anything, and she never gaped her mouth again as far as I could see. Well tonight after cleaning a few messes in the rescue room only to come out and see my girl doing the mouth gaping again. Now when she does this, its only for about 5 mins, and she surfs around while she is doing this.

She did drop some uric balls tonight before she did this, out of 5 balls, one looks odd, like a greenish tone, where as the rest were white. All were hard. She did expel a lot of fluid when she was going, but nothing super odd.

I snapped some pics of her while she was doing the gapping thing. I should mention that she has been held since the first time she did this and she did no popping, wheezing, there is no mucus in or on her mouth. And you can see from the pics, her mouth is clear and clean.

I know the only good reptile vet that is around me is away for two weeks, so that is not an option..

Any clues what it might be..? I have never had this before and since she is my baby, I am extra worried..

Thanks
Steve

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

another..

Steve

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

and another one..

Steve

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

and the last one, its of what she expelled, some uric balls, and that odd green one..

Steve

Re:Odd possible problem

Wish I could be of more help, but I think your right, sounds like an RI.

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

Thanks Viper.

Thats what I though of right away. Biggest thing that confussed me was she doesn't show any other signs of RI and she doesn't gape the mouth much at all.. Today she has been cruising the tank all day since this morning.. But she is due to eat soon, so that is normal as well..


Steve

[Fonzy]

Re:Odd possible problem

Steve,

I would continue to monitor her for any signs (other than the gapped mouth) of R.I. It actually sounds like she may have had some trouble re-locating her jaw since the last time she ate. When was that BTW? I have known of a few snakes that have tried to realign their jaws for several days. One didn't accomplish this until it actually ate again! May or may not be what you're experiencing, but just another option to think about. Let me know how it turns out or what you find.

Jeff

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

Hey Fonzy,

6-14 was the last meal she ate... She is due to eat again within the next few days.. Wish I could figure this out before I feed her. I have a nice fat Guinea Pig for her as a treat..

Steve


Cool, This will be my 700th post...

[ClayEnglish]

Re:Odd possible problem

Steve,

We know that boas do not hold open their mouths for fun.

Generally shows a problem with breathing or more importantly with a mouth problem. Whether that may be signs of mouth or teeth problems or possibly swallowing something foreign during eating. It appears that she is uncomfortable with something in the mouth/throat area.

Look for any abnormal swelling around the teeth/gums area. To be honest the coloring of her mouth looks good and dry, and i don't see signs of mouth rot or RI. She does have a hanging down under her neck that is frequently noticed during and right after feedings, but that should return to normal a few hours after eating.

The other possiblity is as Fonzy said and that is misalignment of the jaws after eating. Boas will frequently "yawn" in order to correct this, but they do not hold their mouths open for any extended period of time.

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

Thanks for replying Clay..

I would think its possible a misallignment issue, but since she hasn't eaten in almost two weeks (she is due to eat any day now) I don't think that is an issue. I did pry her mouth open last night, all looks good. I guess I will just keep a close ete on her over the next two weeks and get her to the vet as soon as the vet comes back from Vacation.. If you think of anything I can check or try, please let me know. This girl is my baby and hate to think anything is wrong with her..

Thanks Again..
Steve

[bigmitch]

Re:Odd possible problem

Her lower jaws is looking pretty swollen this is a normal sign of a repiratory infection...I'm no vet but, theres a very good possibility thats whats up..Do you feed in your cage or out of your cage??

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

I think it only looks that way because of her posturing. Her lower jaw looks fine normally.. That was one of the first things I checked..
Thanks for the imput..
Steve

[Barracuda_41]

Re:Odd possible problem

:-\ Steve i have seen boas and other snakes open there mouth like that even though they didnt have any symtoms of RI they still had the onset of it.. alot of rescue boas that have been thru here with RI did just that even though they didnt have mucus or bubbles, wheezing or plugged nostrils they did that same thing.. Im just saying never rule out RI just because its not showing any other symtoms. Also they dont have to hold there heads up to open there mouth to breath with RI some do it while there laying flat out.. Have you checked her nostrils?? also over heated can cause them to open there mouth to and so can something they swallowed by mistake.. Just my 2 cents worth on this... :-\ :-\

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

Hey Cuda,

I have had the same problems with some rescues. But not sure how you could tell that a snake has RI without any symptoms. I have dealt with a handful of snakes that came in with the starting of RI or the worst RI to date I have ever seen. Meaning if we didn't aspirate his breathing tube, he never would have made it till the next day. I am still not convinced she has the start of RI, because 99% of the time, she is curled up in her hide, resting her head as always.. I opened her mouth again tonight, still clean and clear.. Until something else happend I will just keep the temp up, humidity down..

Thanks for all the imput..
Steve

[sclark]

Re:Odd possible problem

Something to add...

Today I found something odd in Midnights cage.. I swear it looked just like a cats fur ball.. It was regured up, not the other end. it was not a food regurge for sure. It looked like two round balls or fur, about the size of a small hopper mouse. It was covered in clear liquid, the kind of saliva that covers the prey as they swallow.. I am now wondering id her problem all along was a couple of fur balls.. Interesting... What do you think..

Steve