Wheezing but only at night

Hey guys, so I’ve had my ball python for about a year and a half now. A couple months ago i took her to the vet to get checked on an RI and i did her injections (4 weeks worth of medicine) and she’s been fine... till now. Amelia’s (my babies name) tub is right next to my bed so i can hear he going around and lately, only at night, do i hear her wheeze. Its like one wheeze every once in a while and it happens maybe one or twice a night a few days of the week. Yesterday she didn’t wheeze at all but today she did 3 in the past 40 minutes and i think she’s done for the night(note im a night owl and don’t usually sleep until 6-7 in the morning). She already shed 3 days ago so i know it’s not stuck shed. I checked her mouth and i see no mucus or discoloration. I put the area of her lungs upto my ear and i hear to crackling or anything. What the heck is up with her??? Some wheezes sound like a normal wheeze but some sound like a gas tank being depressurized. I don’t want to take her to the vet yet since my closest exotic vet charges $70 per visit


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NOTE!!! I said YET. Please don’t attack me for being stingy. I will take her if i notice and significant change in her condition or if you guys thing it’s something REAL bad (or just normal bad, you get my point)


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I usually hold a snake's face to my ear to listen for crackling or whistling sounds of an R.I. -and so far, I still have both ears too. :rolleyes: I think you might
need a stethoscope for listening to her lungs.

You mentioned it's not stuck shed but have you checked IN her nostrils? Insufficient humidity can sometimes result in old skin being left behind in there.

Just because she was treated for an R.I. doesn't mean it can't come back (or was never fully gone). What are the temps. & humidity in her cage?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I usually hold a snake's face to my ear to listen for crackling or whistling sounds of an R.I. -and so far, I still have both ears too. :rolleyes: I think you might
need a stethoscope for listening to her lungs.

You mentioned it's not stuck shed but have you checked IN her nostrils? Insufficient humidity can sometimes result in old skin being left behind in there.

Just because she was treated for an R.I. doesn't mean it can't come back (or was never fully gone). What are the temps. & humidity in her cage?

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Absolutely normal, right now she’s sitting a 78F being night and 56%. It honestly might be shed IN her nose and that would make a good amount of sense consider the noise sometimes.


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If you suspect it's some shed remaining in her nostrils, you might try misting her a few times to help it loosen. Hopefully that's all it is.

Look closely...with magnification if needed...if you see a tiny bit of loose skin & have a very steady hand you might be able to use tweezers to grab it. but do
not put the tweezers inside her nostril at all, just use them if the dry skin is sticking out of the nostril. Best to have someone help hold the snake still to do this.

Or you could try to catch it with a little piece of scotch tape, that's safer than tweezers, actually. It shouldn't stick much to her face at all, but a bit of loose
skin should stick to it & come out easily.