Hello Folks...

This is a post I haven't really wanted to make but I think it is time I get others opinions. Some quick background on my snake.

On April 16th I purchased a young male pastel at a local reptile shop. He weighed in at 180 grams. On April 24th he ate 1 F/T mouse. On April 26th I noticed signs of RI and that was confirmed by a vet. He was put on oral Baytril for a month.

At the conclusion of that treatment my snake had still not gotten better. The vet we originally took him to didn't seem very comfortable around snakes so we found a new vet that had a lot of recommendations from reptile owners in our area. The new vet seemed much more comfortable and knowledgeable about snakes. He put my snake on a one month course of injected Ceftazidime every three days.

My snake was still not better so back we went and we are currently on another month of injected antibiotics. I guess were about half way through this course of antibiotics and he is still sick. The vet says sometimes it takes a very long time for a snake to get over an RI and he is not super worried yet.

So there is the background information. Now for some additional problems. My snake has not eaten since that first mouse. He seems completely disinterested in food. I know ball pythons can go off food for extended periods of time, especially when they are stressed. Unfortunately he has also lost over 30 grams of weight during this period as well.

The other problem is he is clearly very stressed. He will no go in his hides. He is almost always out and moving around. If he is sitting still he is usually draped over something. I have no way of knowing but I assume it is because he has found a position where he can breathe easier. At any rate for two months now my snake has avoided his hides and basically been moving around non stop.

I want to do whats best for my snake. All I can think of is that for the past three months he has basically been tortured. He is sick and handled all the time due to medications. I'm afraid that even if we beat the RI he will be some traumatized he will never eat again. Or feel comfortable for that matter.

So what do you guys think? Is this the point where I start to consider putting my snake down? I'm in for the long haul if this situation can be turned around. I would like some opinions on whether or not this situation is as dire as it seems to me.