He's very small for his age so sometimes I supplement his mice with Zilla Jump-Start calorie supplement. (Yes, I know he gets all he needs from the mice, but I'm a helicopter mom.) There has never been an issue. Today, however, I saw him tilting his head up farther and farther, oddly and staring at me. At first it was kind of cute. Then I noticed he wasn't breathing. Then he went mostly limp. Then I realized if his life ended mine would too. So I figured he probably had some supplement stuck down his windpipe (UGH THIS IS ALL MY FAULT) and after massaging his throat, giving him a mini bit of water, panicking and calling my friend the reptile vet (this all happened within minutes), I just... well, it had been a LONG time since he had taken a breath. He was uncoiling and just kind of flopped onto the floor. So. I opened his mouth a bit, breathed into it gently while massaging his windpipe, rinse and repeat. After a bit of this he took a wheezy breath and then a few more gasps. So I didn't die. And he didn't die. But oh my god, watching him still struggling to breathe (and of course I had to watch him!) for an hour after he "woke up" was just awful.
And then suddenly... he was fine. Took a drink of water
, slithered around, acted like nothing had happened. I, on the other hand, am halfway through a bottle of wine. Oh my god. Oh my god.
I just had to share because I think I may be more traumatized than my snake. Still trying not to cry. And if you're giving jump-start, mix it with water and be careful.
Because.
Reply With Quote