Help, something is terribly wrong here!

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Originally Posted by Coils

Here is the update,

Sadly enough she has a gasious infection likely from prey being too big, this leading to her bloating. (gas, bateria, ect) I don't understand how this happened since she was getting so skinny eating the smaller prey and all three of her siblings were eating the same exact thing/same exact amount without issues. I even read a number of times that fuzzies (had SMALL ONES) were the right size for hatchling balls pythons. :(

The vet gave me some medication until Monday, but her chances are very slim. You know there is nothing good hearing from the vet that "you may lose this one". I would imagine he is likely preparing me for the worst. I am very upset and feel just horrible about this as -I- will be the cause for her death.

But I will give her the antibiotics until Monday and then hopefull update more as I go along with GOOD news....

Thank you all for your help and I hope my first ball python baby EVER makes it out of this OK. :tears:

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A gastric infection and nothing he can do...............did the Vet explain to you how he came to this conclusion?

Any idea what medication he gave you?

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Originally Posted by Skiploder

A gastric infection and nothing he can do...............did the Vet explain to you how he came to this conclusion?

Any idea what medication he gave you?

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I didn't say there was nothing he could do. Why everyone is so ready to attack a vet I guess I can understand, but I have YET to be steered wrong by him.

I have been going to him for years now and he is the best one for herps in this area and I would trust him with every single one of my exotics. He knows everything they need environment wise ect without having to go "look it up" like those other crappy vets out there.

Believe me I know, I have had vets says(when he was out of town) that even THEY didn't know what was wrong with the animal, let me go look around ONLINE when I did that the day before MYSELF! So sorry, I like him a lot, trust him, and will defend him in what he is doing.

I didn't get the exact name of the antibiotic, (took in multiple animals with lots of questions today) but I asked what it was being given for/what it would do exactly and it will help clear the infection and should reduce the bloating if she makes it until Monday. I am giving it to her as injections until then and I am supposed to call him with the news that day, I am also supposed to call him if anything else happens BEFORE Monday.

She is very very skinny despite having eaten before (missed about 4 weeks NOW though) so it IS very likely she wont pull through this whole thing not only because the infection, but because of her not being able to eat in time.

Hey, don't be too hard on yourself. Freaky things happen, even when you are doing everything right. We lost an adult piebald to a gas-producing GI infection and it wasn't because the food was too big -- it just happened. Hopefully you caught this early and snakey will be OK, but she sounds like she may be a poor-doer/ failure to thrive animal, thus the "you may lose this one" comment.

For the record, we keep our babies around 87F on the warm side and they do great with that.

Did you try massaging everything out of her after soaking? Whether it makes her better in the long run I can't say, but I can say getting all of that gas out of her will make her feel more comfortable. There is really nothing to lose by trying. You will probably have to use a decent amount of pressure to ge it started, but once that initial bit comes out the rest will come out very easily. As I mentioned before I have had a very similar thing happen with a few snakes I have purchased that were maintenance fed by the previous owners. I fed them a proper sized meal when they arrived and their system was not ready for a normal sized meal after only getting meals that were too small for so long. They have always done well and went on to be totally normal snakes. I have not heard of the gaseous infection before. In my case I believe the bloating was caused by the meal not being digested quickly enough and they prey item actually starting to rot which gives off the gas. It's up to you though whether or not to try to relieve the pressure. Good luck with her either way.

Oh Owen, I am so so sorry to hear this.

I think that she is going to pull through! It's my good ju ju for the two of you. Again think positive!!! She can hold on and make it!! She is a tough little chick...didn't you say she was one of the first ones to eat out of all the hatchlings?

As far as you feeling guilty...don't. This sometimes happens and there would of been nothing you could of done. I am not sure about eating something too big thing...but clearly it just did not set right with her...you could not of prevented that! I think that you are going to look back on this as a "whew..that was a scary time" but all worked out!!;)

Hold on....


Now, did your snake always have this condition? Like his appearence did he always look big in the one area of his body. Sounds kind of fishy thought I think. If he always looked like that then I bet you its "hard belly"

Hard Belly- This condition is thought to occur when babies are hatching they are pulled from the egg before they have ample time to absorb the yolk. Some of these babies fail to thrive, while others may live. The hardened yolk may create an obstruction that can not be digested an ultimately the snake starves. There is no cure for this problem.(all info from The Ball Python Manual by Kevin McCurley)

I just really doubt its a gas problem, but regardless it is what it is, and it sucks. I would honestly re-think where your bring your animals. Not saying hes a bad guy, but did he didn't mention this condition and went straight to diagnosing it with gas, sounds kind of like a premature diagnosis. Good luck, and hopefully he turns around.

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Originally Posted by pfan151

Did you try massaging everything out of her after soaking? Whether it makes her better in the long run I can't say, but I can say getting all of that gas out of her will make her feel more comfortable. There is really nothing to lose by trying. You will probably have to use a decent amount of pressure to ge it started, but once that initial bit comes out the rest will come out very easily. As I mentioned before I have had a very similar thing happen with a few snakes I have purchased that were maintenance fed by the previous owners. I fed them a proper sized meal when they arrived and their system was not ready for a normal sized meal after only getting meals that were too small for so long. They have always done well and went on to be totally normal snakes. I have not heard of the gaseous infection before. In my case I believe the bloating was caused by the meal not being digested quickly enough and they prey item actually starting to rot which gives off the gas. It's up to you though whether or not to try to relieve the pressure. Good luck with her either way.

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IMO, I think she should just do what the vet said. Right now, especially because she's sad about this whole thing, she shouldn't try anything right now besides doing what the vet said. Just my two cents.

To the OP: Sorry this is happening, I'm hoping for your Ball to pull through. It's always hard losing a pet, even if you didn't even have it long.

too cold 92 to 93 on the hot side for a big meal they need to be warm to digest their meal.

Before we start doubting the vet and giving the poster alternate advise, perhaps we should consider a couple things: 1) we don't have the animal in front of us to examine and 2) a book or two about ball pythons does not a veterinary education make.

Without having the animal in front of you, you can't really say what is going on, and just because you guys haven't heard of gas-producing bacteria does not mean the diagnosis is wrong! In fact, GI infections caused by gas-producing bacteria are quite common in a variety of animals, especially young animals. Furthermore, any type of impaction can cause an overgrowth of Clostridium (gas-producing bacteria) and the treatment would still involve antibiotics.

If the owner of the sick snake is concerned about impaction, I'm sure the vet is able to do an ultrasound or x-ray to help rule in or out this diagnosis.

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Originally Posted by Coils

I didn't say there was nothing he could do. Why everyone is so ready to attack a vet I guess I can understand, but I have YET to be steered wrong by him.

I have been going to him for years now and he is the best one for herps in this area and I would trust him with every single one of my exotics. He knows everything they need environment wise ect without having to go "look it up" like those other crappy vets out there.

Believe me I know, I have had vets says(when he was out of town) that even THEY didn't know what was wrong with the animal, let me go look around ONLINE when I did that the day before MYSELF! So sorry, I like him a lot, trust him, and will defend him in what he is doing.

I didn't get the exact name of the antibiotic, (took in multiple animals with lots of questions today) but I asked what it was being given for/what it would do exactly and it will help clear the infection and should reduce the bloating if she makes it until Monday. I am giving it to her as injections until then and I am supposed to call him with the news that day, I am also supposed to call him if anything else happens BEFORE Monday.

She is very very skinny despite having eaten before (missed about 4 weeks NOW though) so it IS very likely she wont pull through this whole thing not only because the infection, but because of her not being able to eat in time.

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I'm not attacking your Vet, I asked two questions - mainly because I'm curious as to what medication he prescribed.........

............and I'm curious as to how he came to his diagnosis and what his explanation of the problem is.