Questions about health in Snakes//Sunshine [RIP]

If any of you don't follow Brian on twitter, his big, yellow noodle "Sunshine" passed away, seemingly for no reason. This event brought up several questions. Ones I felt would be inappropriate to direct to him at this time...

What could cause such a sudden and unexplained death in a python?

What signs in a snake show they are getting old?

Can snakes get all types of cancer? Or certain types?

Are there other diseases snakes can get other than IBD?



Herp Derp

I would bet that a large number of snakes are dying prematurely in captivity as a result of overfeeding. If you look at many of these pet/breeder serpents then look up pictures of them in the wild, you'll notice there's(typically) a massive difference in size and girth. They aren't meant to be fed the way most folks do in captivity and the result is, more often than not, a drastically shortened lifespan. Some species handle overfeeding better than others too. Take some BCC as an example, very easy to overfeed into an early grave. Retics on the other hand, not so much but you should still take care not to "feed them up" too much once they start reaching their adult size as food starts going more to girth instead of pushing out length.

Snakes being living creatures live in a world which contains bacteria, fungus, and viruses, thus other diseases are inevitable. Being in human surroundings does open them up to the possibility of cancer due to our chemicals, food (mainly from the food being fed to rodents), water and air pollutants.

Usually most living things show signs of old age by lethargy, lack of appetite, organ dysfunction and shut downs along with bone and joint issues as well.

I'm sure there are more answers, but that's what comes to mind this late and my eyelids are dipping and my head is nodding off. :)

I don't follow twitter, or much of any social media for that matter. Watching a few of Brian's videos, I can see that he generally loves these animals very much. I'm not familiar with "Sunshine" specifically but am sorry for his loss - it's never easy losing a pet.

She was only 8, just so you know.

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how sad! Rest in peace.

Always sucks to lose a pet for sure. A number of things could of happened.

You ask a good question. I'm a beginner keeper myself, and just thinking about my new friends dying bums me out.

I am reading Kevin M's book (the big one) - he does a good discussion on python health. My next book, "What's wrong with my snake?" dives into diseases deeper. I would highly recommend those! I learned a lot!

Sudden death is a frontier in reptile medicine that needs much more research and study. It's also a phenomenon that is multi faceted and poorly understood. Even human sudden death is caused by factors unknown. Looking at past medical histories, living conditions, psychosocial conditions are helpful but don't always answer the "why". :)