[Health-General] my boa is shaky when handled

[badzogram Newbie! Find all posts View Profile Close badzogram]

so i just got this boa yesterday and after getting home i took her out to handle. shes about 1.5 years old. when shes in he inclosure she seems fine and moves normaly but when i pick her up her whole body shakes when she moves around my hands. like she doesnt vibrate but almost. its only when shes in movement. as if shes shivering. any body seen this before? im kind of scared for her. she did have a mite infestation but i took care of that as soon as i got home with provent a mite. and i know its not the treatment that did that she was already doing it before.

thanks for any help in advance

[Noelle7206 Snake Master Find all posts View Profile Close Noelle7206]

Re: my boa is shaky when handled

Sounds like a neurological issue to me...over-exposure to chemicals such as "PAM" has been known to cause that*...and so has other serious health issues. You mentioned mites...they are implicated in the spread of

diseases in snakes. Do you have any other reptiles- snakes? This snake should be strictly quarantined from them and please...if you have friends with snakes, do not expose their snakes by handling yours & then visiting

them without thoroughly showering & changing clothes. You should keep a close watch on this snake...you only just got her and if that was me, I'd return her to the seller...very sorry to say! Is that still an option???

(*even if it was correctly used, I think it's possible that some snakes may be more susceptible than others to ill effects from the use of such products.)



It's best not to handle OR feed a snake you've just acquired...most need time to settle in for a week or two minimally. But it will be interesting (to say the least) to see if she eats & keeps her food down ok, IF you

decide to keep her & find out. Keeping my fingers crossed...I hope she improves (or doesn't get worse) but certainly cannot diagnose from here. It's best to assume it's contagious to other reptiles until you know

for sure that it's not. I hope you have a good experienced reptile veterinarian nearby? If you don't know, it's time to find out.

[badzogram Newbie! Find all posts View Profile Close badzogram]

Re: my boa is shaky when handled

If its due to PAM, will it subside over time? If not, will the snake still live? She was eating when i went to pick her up. I wonder if they didnt spray too much PAM in her box. I have 2 other boas and the one thats 3 years old was doing the same thing a little bit this morning. Im realy stressed about this.

[marya1962 Snake Keeper Find all posts View Profile Close marya1962]

Re: my boa is shaky when handled

It's a really good thing to quarantine for at least 6 months especially if they have been known to have mites. Mites always need retreatment. You can never just treat one time and the snake and cage needs to be treated along with water dished, cage decor, etc. Mites are highly contagious. Over-exposure to pesticide doesn't necessary end up being fatal, but it can cause permanent neurological damage to the snake. But I don't like that another snake is starting to show the same symptoms. That sounds like a type of contagion rather than anything neurological. Return to seller or vet?

[Noelle7206 Snake Master Find all posts View Profile Close Noelle7206]

Re: my boa is shaky when handled

.....she did have a mite infestation but i took care of that as soon as i got home with provent a mite. and i know its not the treatment that did that she was already doing it before....

I guess I'm confused...originally you said you treated her for mites (quoted above) and in your latest post it's "...if they didn't spray too much Pam in her box..."? Either way there's no way to know if damage is permanent.

And while any new snakes (ESPECIALLY boas & pythons!) should be quarantined for 6+ mos, it doesn't seem possible that in a day or twos time, one of your other boas could have caught anything from her to be showing
symptoms this soon? Not that they couldn't have been exposed and caught something, but just that it's awfully fast for symptoms to appear, IMO.

Have you treated the other snakes' cages with PAM before? I've never had to use PAM, but I seem to recall that it's ONLY the CAGE you are supposed to treat and that strict guidelines must be followed to avoid toxicity
or even death of the snake....so if these snakes have had actual contact with PAM, I think there's your answer.

But that doesn't rule out contagious diseases. As marya1962 mentioned, damage from pesticide toxicity may be permanent but a vet should be consulted right away as there are some things they can do to mitigate the
damage & improve the outcome & survival for your snake. And by all means, keep checking for mites as they often return...they hide under the snake's scales & in the cage decor, even in the surrounding area.