Sick Snakes

Well I recently got a pair of spotted pythons from an individual online. One of the snakes hissed at me when I put him in his cage and I was worried he was super agressive. Turns out he wasn't hissing but wheezing due to respiratory disease. I didn't notice it at first, but now the female is wheezing also and they've been in the same cage so I'm worried it's a viral thing. I really don't want to take them to a vet, but I will if I have to.

Besides warming their tank and reducing humidity, what can I do to get them heaqlthy and well enough to introduce to my very healthy and ready to breed female who has been isolated from the two? It's been over a week now and they are otherwise very healthy, but they didn't eat today when I offered frozen like they supposedly feed on.

if they are wheezing they really need to see a vet. they could have respiratory infections which would require immediate treatment. RIs are nothing to mess with.

Vet.

Snakes can die from a respiratory infection if it gets too severe.

-adam

Goes to show you there's a lot of disadvantages to keeping snakes in the same cage.

Vet will give you antibiotics.

Well all the reading says yu can keep a trio in a 30 ga. but I have two in a 40 and it's too small. I figured since the snakes were bred together last year and proably kept together or at least near each other I could "quarintine" them together. I have been keeping them dry and warm and they have good body weight, and I really don't want to spend a few hundred bucks on a vet visit. I will if they don't get better soon, but for now, I'm going to get the male a seperate tank and see how they do. Anything else you could suggest?

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Originally Posted by Salty

I really don't want to spend a few hundred bucks on a vet visit.

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Maybe you should have thought about that before you decided to take the responsibility for caring for a living creature.

If the animal dies because you waited too long to see a vet ... what then? ... A life wasted because you "didn't feel like" spending money?

Sad.

Good luck with that.

-adam

It's isn't going to cost a few hundred dollars. It cost me 70 dollars to get treatment for my snake when it had an RI. It isn't that much to save them.

You really need to take them to a vet. The longer you wait, the harder and more expensive the treatment is going to be. Call around to local vets and ask for quotes, but get those guys into a vet soon.

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Originally Posted by tigerlily

You really need to take them to a vet. The longer you wait, the harder and more expensive the treatment is going to be. Call around to local vets and ask for quotes, but get those guys into a vet soon.

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I completely agree. Ecspecially if you feel you are responsible enough to breed these animals. Then you should be responsible to do any and every thing you can for them. It is proper husbandry to bring any animal into a qualified veterinarian if it is in need of help. And by all means, your two snakes need help. Please do the responsible and right thing.
Rusty

An office visit for my snakes at my herp vet is $50.. antibiotics will most likely be less than $25.

If the snake isn't better in 24 hours by upping the heat.. vet visit is necessary!