Solana - Our Scaleless Sunglow Motley Corn

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Be sure to tell her NOT to do that again! :colbert: :D

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You are telling me? Believe me, I tried to explain to her, but it fell on no ears.

Thanks Boger.

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Originally Posted by dakski

You are telling me? Believe me, I tried to explain to her, but it fell on no ears.

Thanks Boger.

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:rofl: I sure hate to say this, but it's more likely she'll do that again. At least, if she's anything like the snakes I've kept. They sure know how to get "attention". :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

:rofl: I sure hate to say this, but it's more likely she'll do that again. At least, if she's anything like the snakes I've kept. They sure know how to get "attention". :rolleyes:

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I know you are probably right. However, I am finding solace in the fact that a) she might not and b) she might not egg bound even if she does.

Would appreciate some quiet vs. her needing attention, but also understand it's not in my control.

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Originally Posted by dakski

I know you are probably right. However, I am finding solace in the fact that a) she might not and b) she might not egg bound even if she does.

Would appreciate some quiet vs. her needing attention, but also understand it's not in my control.

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I'm sure hoping she doesn't repeat this stunt either, believe me.

I know snake body language is subtle but even I can see how much more relaxed and happy she is in the "after" pictures and I've never met her - hoping her recovery keeps going well!

Solana is still doing great. I plan to take her to the vet for a follow up in the next two weeks.

She is not showing signs of another shed, is eating normally, wasting normally, and is back to her calm and inquisitive self. Docile when handled and roaming at night hoping for a mouse.

She looks amazing. Yes, she has some scarring from the terrible shed while septic. However, I couldn't care less about how it looks. Her color is bright and vibrant again and she has her normal glow back. Additionally, not only does she appear not to be in pain or discomfort, the white scars do not seem to bother her at all. It's just her new skin.

Happy to write a good report on her. I'll keep everyone posted, but no news is good news.

Solana is doing well and I think is going to shed soon. We will see how she looks after, but since the last shed, has some scarring, but doesn't seem to be bothered at all.

I'll post pictures after the shed.

Great shed yesterday! Her scarring is greatly reduced as well! She's looking bright and happy.

She just gobbled down a F/T mouse and is doing awesome.

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She's a trooper, for sure. :gj:

Solana is doing well. She had some stuck waste on her vent that I removed, but of course, managed to aggravate her vent in the process and she had a little scab. I was worried but a perfect shed yesterday and she's back to looking healthy and beautiful.

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She's as gorgeous & glowing as ever. :gj: You're a great snake-dad.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

She's as gorgeous & glowing as ever. :gj: You're a great snake-dad.

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True that! That is one bright orange snake.

She did it again! She laid eggs. Ten to be exact. However, this time, unlike last year (4-24-23), she seems to have gotten them all out.

She wasn't thrilled with me taking the eggs, but she wasn't terrible either. I removed her from the tank and aside from some tail rattling, she was fine.

She seemed like she was looking for them when I put her back in the tank, but also drank and went into her hide after a bit.

I am going to keep an eye on her the next few days and then feed her Sunday.

It scares me that she did this again, but I am relieved it seemed to work out this time. To be clear, she has never been with a male. Figment, our Hypo Lavender Corn is in the same stack and room, but they have never even seen each other.

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Hey, welcome to the "club" of rat snake keepers whose snakes are wanna-be chickens. :D It's frustrating that there's no "off" switch, eh? All we can do is worry & watch to make sure they don't retain eggs, which in my case is nearly impossible with these large Florida (yellow x gulf hammock) rat snakes, because their eggs are soft & can't be felt in their large bodies. My 2 girls are 16 years old & still laying one or 2 clutches every summer...(never bred). I feel your pain! BTW, you should incubate the 3 white ones, you might get some partho-hatchlings. ;) Did you candle them? (I know, I'm a bad influence...hahaha!)

Solana- behave, you silly snek!

I'm so glad she's delivered all her eggs this time, I had a grey rat snake for 17yrs as a teenager and like Bogertophis, she laid eggs every year either once or twice without fail, [emoji170]

Sent from my SM-S908B using Tapatalk

This is the main reason both my snakes have been males. That, and their smaller body size.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Hey, welcome to the "club" of rat snake keepers whose snakes are wanna-be chickens. :D It's frustrating that there's no "off" switch, eh? All we can do is worry & watch to make sure they don't retain eggs, which in my case is nearly impossible with these large Florida (yellow x gulf hammock) rat snakes, because their eggs are soft & can't be felt in their large bodies. My 2 girls are 16 years old & still laying one or 2 clutches every summer...(never bred). I feel your pain! BTW, you should incubate the 3 white ones, you might get some partho-hatchlings. ;) Did you candle them? (I know, I'm a bad influence...hahaha!)

Solana- behave, you silly snek!

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I got rid of the eggs. I thought about it for a second, but I was more worried about my girl.

Yeah, I will check her again tomorrow. I am letting her rest today. However, all indications point to all eggs are out. This is very frustrating and worrisome.

Hopefully, this is only a once a year thing, if that!

Solana seems to be doing fine.

I plan to feed this weekend and assume she will eat. She's got to be a hungry snake.

Yeah, but most snakes (having just laid eggs including slugs) need to rest & rehydrate first. Mine always do: after laying they'll spend a few days soaking in their large water bowls, & I wait to see evidence of actual hunger (such as following my hand movements) before I feed them. So in case you don't see that, just wait until you do.

Solana had her post egg laying shed yesterday. Now she's looking hungry. Food tonight.

She seems fine. I would assume she ate, unless I say otherwise.

Solana ate happily.

I just wanted to close the loop.

I usually feed Solana every 2 weeks. However, since she laid eggs 3 weeks ago and ate last week, I fed her last night as well. She happily ate.

Her color and demeanor are great. I think she's doing fine.

Now, let's see what happens next year! Hopefully no eggs!

Solana is doing fine. She's eating regularly and normally, her color is good, and she is showing no signs of distress.

I am pleased and think, at least for a while, things are status quo. I figure I'll worry about next year, well, next year! I am really hoping I have nothing to report!

Good news, way to go, Solana. Now I'm waiting (with fingers crossed) for my 2 girls (adult Yellow rat snakes) to get their first clutches done. Keep hoping they'll quit, but not this year.

Solana shed last week and ate last night. She is doing fine.

I'll try to post pics once she digests.

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Originally Posted by dakski

Solana shed last week and ate last night. She is doing fine.

I'll try to post pics once she digests.

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Can't wait. Post shed, I'm sure that Solana is a wonder to behold.

Solana is doing great and I haven't posted pics in a while. She isn't really growing anymore but still looks incredible.


She still has a tiny bit of shed on her neck, but it's slowly coming off and will completely when she sheds fully. She occasionally will have a 98% shed and I have to keep the humidity up to help her. She also (sometimes) randomly starts a shed on a part of her body even when the rest of her isn't in shed. The joys of a scaleless snake.

I love her but probably would not get another scaleless animal. She is high maintenance. :)

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Solana just shed again and is doing great.

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Solana had a perfect shed (with help from a lot of misting). I gave her a quick soak after in case she missed something. She looks stunning.

I am hoping she does not lay eggs this year! She has in the beginning of April the past two. Preying this is not a pre-lay shed. She's been eating normally but that is consistent with the past two years as well.

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Originally Posted by dakski

She looks stunning.

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Yep. Stunning the word alright.

:cool: Gotta wear shades....:) I do love orange snakes- like the Everglades rat snakes I used to have.

Solana laid eggs again. She got 11 out and 2 were stuck.

We rushed to the emergency vet at Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine yesterday and between the time we handed her off and the time the vet saw her, the eggs had passed. I guess the commotion got her to lay them. Who knows? The vet examined her, did an x-ray to make sure everything was out, and gave her some fluids.

She was a little jumpy today but I did check on her briefly and she seems alert, with good color, and healthy eyes and tongue flicks. I plan to leave her alone for a bit and then offer food.

This is the third year she has laid eggs without ever meeting, let alone breeding with, a male snake. The vet we saw yesterday said we could discuss spaying her, but it was unclear how viable an option that is. I made an appointment with my local reptile vet (who I trust) and I am going to be speaking with Tufts and potentially the vet who saved Yafe's life (with Tufts) when he came to us with an RI.

Anyone know about or have experience with this?

I do not want to risk a problem and she seems to have trouble laying eggs. The first year, 3 were stuck, she went septic, and we had to puncture the eggs to try to get them to pass. The vet gave her a 10% shot of making it and she did. Last year she laid eggs without issue. This year, somewhere in between. She is 7 years old and I do not want to lose her this way. I also do not want to put her through a surgery if I do not have to.

Any thoughts are welcome.

I'm so sorry you keep having to go through this. If she's going to keep laying, maybe you should give her a nesting box. Maybe, then, she'll be able to complete laying on her own.

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Originally Posted by Homebody

I'm so sorry you keep having to go through this. If she's going to keep laying, maybe you should give her a nesting box. Maybe, then, she'll be able to complete laying on her own.

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I'll look into that. Thank you for the kind words.

I agree with Homebody...all the snakes I've bred & the ones that laid eggs without ever breeding all seemed to do much better with nest boxes provided at least a week or more in advance of the actual laying of eggs. They search for a safe place in the wild to lay them, & it seems their instincts want much the same in captivity. I gave them very damp sphagnum moss & privacy (covering half their tanks)- they appeared to love being in the moss well prior to laying, & since it's thought they can absorb moisture through their skin, I do believe the hydration helped the process of egg laying, as did the feeling of safety.

I've only ever had to have one snake "spayed"- it was my first Trans Pecos rat snake many years ago- & she had an ectopic pregnancy (the eggs were outside the normal place) & she survived the spay very well. My vet at the time was in the Palm Springs area- she had both a private clinic & also worked for the Living Desert Zoo & Botanical Gardens there. That may be worth considering with your corn snake- I'm sorry you're having to deal with this, but it's not so rare, & you'll have to decide whether or not to risk the surgery or let her keep laying eggs & hoping none get stuck. All the best-

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I agree with Homebody...all the snakes I've bred & the ones that laid eggs without ever breeding all seemed to do much better with nest boxes provided at least a week or more in advance of the actual laying of eggs. They search for a safe place in the wild to lay them, & it seems their instincts want much the same in captivity. I gave them very damp sphagnum moss & privacy (covering half their tanks)- they appeared to love being in the moss well prior to laying, & since it's thought they can absorb moisture through their skin, I do believe the hydration helped the process of egg laying, as did the feeling of safety.

I've only ever had to have one snake "spayed"- it was my first Trans Pecos rat snake many years ago- & she had an ectopic pregnancy (the eggs were outside the normal place) & she survived the spay very well. My vet at the time was in the Palm Springs area- she had both a private clinic & also worked for the Living Desert Zoo & Botanical Gardens there. That may be worth considering with your corn snake- I'm sorry you're having to deal with this, but it's not so rare, & you'll have to decide whether or not to risk the surgery or let her keep laying eggs & hoping none get stuck. All the best-

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Bogertophis,

Did you notice any difference is your Trans Pecos after the spay behavior wise? How long was the recovery?

Luckily, I have some time to research and make a decision. It will be a while before she produces eggs again, which I assume she will. It has been like clockwork the last 3 years.

Thank you!

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Originally Posted by dakski

Bogertophis,

Did you notice any difference is your Trans Pecos after the spay behavior wise? How long was the recovery?

Luckily, I have some time to research and make a decision. It will be a while before she produces eggs again, which I assume she will. It has been like clockwork the last 3 years.

Thank you!

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She seemed fine. I really don't remember (after all these years, lol) exactly how long her recovery took, but I was pleasantly surprised at how well she did & that I had a vet with such great skills.

You seem to have had good luck in that department too, but it's up to you, & it's a tough call for sure. I've had my share of snakes that insist on laying eggs for years* & I really wish they came with an "off" switch. (*And by then, I was not in California- near that vet- any longer, or I might have been making the same decision you're trying to make now. Egg binding is no fun.)

After the novelty wears off, an unbred snake that insists on laying eggs every year is stressful, as you never know when a snake will produce one or more unusually-large eggs that they need help with (whether the eggs are fertile or not)- I can remember having to help a large gopher snake lay eggs when one jumbo-sized egg got stuck...:O Luckily "we" got that one out, & then all the rest followed easily, but she got too tired & without help for that one big egg, it likely wouldn't have ended well (like in the wild).

Solana had her post lay shed today, and aside from needing some help with the shed (mostly a soak), she is doing fine.

I plan to feed her tomorrow.

We also plan to see the vet next week to discuss spaying. This is not the vet who suggested it but is my "local" reptile vet. I am curious what he thinks.

In the meantime, enjoy the blinding orange that is SOLANA!

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...gotta wear shades :cool:.

Solana devoured her F/T adult mouse. She seems fine post egg laying.

Pleased to hear it.

Congrats!!!!

We met with our vet recently and are seriously considering spaying Solana.

The vet says in all, it's a 4-8 week recovery, but that's because of the skin/incision healing more than anything. She will be off pain meds within a week and can eat a small meal starting about 4 weeks out. She will be 100% after 8 weeks.

He also said that in a healthy snake (like Solana) the surgery is relatively low risk. It would definitely be less risk than her having another bad egg laying.

He is concerned, as we are, that egg laying does not seem to go well for her and we run a high risk of losing her that way.

Depending on how long the surgery takes and how many days she spends in the hospital (he recommended 1-2 nights, but we may have him keep her for 3-4 to keep up with injectable pain meds and then we can give oral pain meds at home), the cost is $1,400-$2,200. We figure somewhere in the middle is likely but we've spent close to $3K the past 3 years (2/3 emergency vet visits) keeping her alive after she got egg bound.

We would probably do it in the next 2 months. That is well before she would start thinking about laying.

I will try to keep everyone posted and welcome thoughts.

The injected pain med is probably meloxicam. It's thick and tough to push through a syringe. I hate administering it but it really does seem to help these guys feel better post-op. Also expect her to be on injected abx for a month afterward.

I do think the surgery is the right thing to do with her.

I agree, I think it makes sense to have her spayed. As the years go on, she is likely to repeat the "egg-binding" hassle. Thinking good thoughts for her surgery & recovery.

For what it's worth, I also agree, but the possibility of losing her due to the surgery makes it a tough call. Whatever you decide to do, I hope it works out.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

The injected pain med is probably meloxicam. It's thick and tough to push through a syringe. I hate administering it but it really does seem to help these guys feel better post-op. Also expect her to be on injected abx for a month afterward.

I do think the surgery is the right thing to do with her.

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Thank you. I appreciate your insight here.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I agree, I think it makes sense to have her spayed. As the years go on, she is likely to repeat the "egg-binding" hassle. Thinking good thoughts for her surgery & recovery.

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Yeah, I agree. She will keep laying and keep having issues. Not sure I have much I choice here.

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Originally Posted by Homebody

For what it's worth, I also agree, but the possibility of losing her due to the surgery makes it a tough call. Whatever you decide to do, I hope it works out.

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I think it is significantly more likely I lose her to egg binding than in surgery. Losing her to egg binding complications is probably much worse for her as well.

Additionally, all this must be taking a toll on her - having bad egg laying every year. Even producing eggs every year has to be taxing (versus not producing and laying).



I appreciate everyone's thoughtful comments. I am very nervous about caring for her after the surgery, but I have to put my own anxiety aside and do what is best for her. I think that is the spaying.

I will discuss with Katie some more but definitely think that is the direction we both want to go.