I have a 7 year old hypo-melanistic Florida King snake. She is approximately 3-4 ft long and about as big around as a half dollar. Her tank temperature is around 80 degrees. Approximately 9 months ago she started sounding like she had nasal congestion. I increased the heat and the humidity in the tank. About 6 months ago she started "spitting" up a white mucusy substance that is kind of stringy and dries to a crystalline-type structure. It appears very traumatic for her when this occurs. I found a really awesome exotic vet in my area and we started seeing him back in July. We have done 2 traych flushes, the most recent one within the last month. The first one showed small traces of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. We began treatment with Fortaz. She continued to exhibit symptoms without worsening so we then did 2 rounds (2-3 months) of Baytril with Amikacin. On the 2nd traych flush, there was NO trace of any infection or bacteria. We have also done x-rays which revealed nothing unusual. She is still "spitting" on a schedule of about every 3 days. When this occurs she wheezes and gurgles alittle for some time after. She is still eating and her activity level has dropped alittle but not significantly. While I feel that I have an amazing vet (who also saved my dwarf hamster when she had a tumor), he is stumped. He has consulted his herp friends and failed to get any answers. I love my snake very, very much. She is incredibly special to me. I really don't want to lose her. Please, please, can someone help me? I'm kinda stuck at this point. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this lengthy post.
Sounds like an RI to me?? I could be wrong though. But im not going to insert much info on this matter as i am not really qualified in these areas, sick snakes can stump even the highest professional vets to this day.
I recently lost a Black King to a spinal deformity so i know how bad it feels when you know you cant do anything to help your pet....its the worst feeling in the world.
I hope she pulls through! I wish her the best of luck
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I wish I could help you!!! I'm not a vet though and if you trust yours and have already taken her to be treated I am at a loss for what to tell you. I will send positive thoughts and energy to you and her.
I'm not sure what it could be, but if your vet has no idea I would definitely try another vet and at the same time contact a couple big breeders. There's always the chance that someone that breeds a lot of kingsnakes (or others) has run into the problem and may know what it is.