Pet BP passed away - Cause of Death?

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Originally Posted by Aedryan Methyus

Very sorry to hear about your loss. That really sucks! :( It sounds like your cool side temperatures were definitely on the low side, but your hot side temperatures sound fine. As others have already said, any guesses we could make would only be speculation, but you almost have to give serious consideration to the mice you fed him on the day of his death for him to have suddenly regurgitated and simply die like that... I don't know if there are parasites that can kill a snake that fast, which the mice could have had? Could the mice have still been alive when he swallowed them and they caused internal injuries? I've never heard of that happening, but maybe some of these other guys have...

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My first and only thought so far is that it had to have something to do with the mice, meaning they either had some sort of parasite or infection that was not killed by Maurice's digestion process...although they didn't really look very digested. Also, he's a bit of a slow eater, so if the mouse was still alive I think we'd have noticed, but maybe not.

Either way, thank you ALL for your kind words and support, I really appreciate.

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Originally Posted by hilabeans

His loss shredded me. I felt like I failed him. You know...hindsight...

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Man, that's exactly how I feel now. I was balling while I buried him last night, my wife just didn't get it. I felt like if I had only paid more attention to him and checked on him multiple times a day instead of just once a day and sometimes every other day if he had just eaten. By "checked on him" I mean opening the top and making sure he's active and happy.

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Originally Posted by btshipp

Man, that's exactly how I feel now. I was balling while I buried him last night, my wife just didn't get it. I felt like if I had only paid more attention to him and checked on him multiple times a day instead of just once a day and sometimes every other day if he had just eaten. By "checked on him" I mean opening the top and making sure he's active and happy.

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Reptiles are particularly adept at hiding illness; it's a survival trait. You may not have noticed anything amiss.

I've had several reptiles pass away and where COD wasn't obvious (like the rescue BP I took in last year with bad burns) I did have a necropsy done not only to try to determine COD, but also to rule out potential causes like highly contagious, collection-killing diseases.

My condolences :tears:

You've had that baby for so long and were no doubt very much attached. As to what happened ?

It "seems" to be somehow connected to the last feeding, but without a necropsy its all just guess work.

Were the mice snacking on poison before being sold? Were they sick? Did something go wrong with your BP killing and eating them? It could be any of those, or the temp fluctuated or he developed a illness.

You did what you could and you gave him a good life. That is all we can do at times.

Don't beat yourself up, your snake had so much more then so many of them have.

Take your time to grief, and then give another little snake a good life. That is one good way to honor the life of the baby you lost..

I am so sorry this happened. It can be frustrating not knowing.

Like bcr229 said, they mask illness so you could have not known until too late. While a full blown parasite infection can lead to death in rare cases like intestinal blockage, parasites can lead to death if the snake was severely compromised. You would have long noticed it not gaining weight and dehydration before you experienced death by parasite compromise.

Cancer, congenital defects, organ failure, impaction, bacterial or viral infection, toxins, these all can lead to death but as it is always pointed out, you can't know unless you pay a vet to dissect the snake.

One question was how heavy was this snake? One of the main reasons to be careful overfeeding snakes is they can die from obesity much sooner than they would from old age. Heart disease is actually a common ailment in captive snakes overfed. When a snake eats, the organs actually engorge many times the normal amount. If the snake has been constantly power fed or overfed for years, those organs never get the chance to fully return to normal and they can become weakened and clogged.

Sorry for your loss, healing ~hugs~ from across the miles. :tears:

Sorry for your loss.

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Originally Posted by zina10

My condolences :tears:

You've had that baby for so long and were no doubt very much attached. As to what happened ?

It "seems" to be somehow connected to the last feeding, but without a necropsy its all just guess work.

Were the mice snacking on poison before being sold? Were they sick? Did something go wrong with your BP killing and eating them? It could be any of those, or the temp fluctuated or he developed a illness.

You did what you could and you gave him a good life. That is all we can do at times.

Don't beat yourself up, your snake had so much more then so many of them have.

Take your time to grief, and then give another little snake a good life. That is one good way to honor the life of the baby you lost..

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Aw thanks Zina, that's a very kind thing to say and does make me feel better. I run a bit of a zoo in my home, at one point we had a cat, dog, two baby squirrels, a Carolina Anole (rescued after freezing on my porch in February 2017, released in April 2017), and Maurice the BP. I'm going to have to take a little while to get over this one before I get my next snake. I'm actually undergoing a career change now to move towards veterinary science before it's too late and I'm too embedded in my current field. I just don't know if I'll be able to handle it when animals don't make it.

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Originally Posted by btshipp

Aw thanks Zina, that's a very kind thing to say and does make me feel better. I run a bit of a zoo in my home, at one point we had a cat, dog, two baby squirrels, a Carolina Anole (rescued after freezing on my porch in February 2017, released in April 2017), and Maurice the BP. I'm going to have to take a little while to get over this one before I get my next snake. I'm actually undergoing a career change now to move towards veterinary science before it's too late and I'm too embedded in my current field. I just don't know if I'll be able to handle it when animals don't make it.

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I tried working for a vet when I was a kid thinking about veterinary school. EPIC FAIL! I was so miserable every time an animal had to be put down or was in pain.

Wise, thoughtful, and respectful of you to wait and honor your lost friend. Also very smart to wait until your head is in the game to get another snake.

I've been there. I've put dogs down, lost reptiles, and had to put my Beardie, George, down in 2016 after 11 years with me. He developed pancreatitis and was in pain whenever he ate. I didn't want to put him through the surgery to buy him 6 months to a year. I cried like a baby and it took me a year to get Frank, my Blue Tongue Skink.

I don't care what other people say, you can bond with any animal. I love all creatures and cannot even feed live food to snakes (I feed everyone F/T). Losing a companion, furry or scaly, it doesn't matter, it hurts, a lot.

Good luck healing and mourning. You will get through this.

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Originally Posted by dakski

I tried working for a vet when I was a kid thinking about veterinary school. EPIC FAIL! I was so miserable every time an animal had to be put down or was in pain.

Wise, thoughtful, and respectful of you to wait and honor your lost friend. Also very smart to wait until your head is in the game to get another snake.

I've been there. I've put dogs down, lost reptiles, and had to put my Beardie, George, down in 2016 after 11 years with me. He developed pancreatitis and was in pain whenever he ate. I didn't want to put him through the surgery to buy him 6 months to a year. I cried like a baby and it took me a year to get Frank, my Blue Tongue Skink.

I don't care what other people say, you can bond with any animal. I love all creatures and cannot even feed live food to snakes (I feed everyone F/T). Losing a companion, furry or scaly, it doesn't matter, it hurts, a lot.

Good luck healing and mourning. You will get through this.

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Thank you Dakski, sounds like you and I are very similar. Maurice would only eat live food, we tried F/T over 10 times and even recently, he never wanted anything to do with it. But I always hated having to watch the mice or rats die...it's a requirement though with live prey in order to avoid injuries to your pet.

It appears as though you've had a rougher run than myself, my sincere condolences for all of that and it sounds like it's made you a stronger person. I am completely BLOWN AWAY by the support offered on this forum. I wouldn't have found it anywhere else and it's SO SO SO appreciated.