My Super Pastel male has an RI :(

I went to clean out my male Super Pastel's tank today and I noticed that he has a respiratory infection. I was holding him and he was opening his mouth to breathe and I saw the mucous and bubbles. I immediately called my herp vet and he has an appointment for tomorrow morning. Is there anything I can/need to do in the mean time that will help him out any? This is the first time I've had to deal with RI and I don't really know what to do.

Any and all advice would be much appreciated.

bump the temp up. i went to 98 degrees with mine during his RI. seemed to help. also a warm bath....those were the vets orders.

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Originally Posted by lefty

bump the temp up. i went to 98 degrees with mine during his RI. seemed to help. also a warm bath....those were the vets orders.

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I have heard of bumping the temp up, but I don't know about that high...

98 is a bit high isn't it?

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Originally Posted by SRMD94

98 is a bit high isn't it?

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I thought it was just 90

90 is a normal basking spot

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Originally Posted by Navy

I thought it was just 90

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Right, but I have heard of people bumping it up a few degrees when there is an RI, I just think 98 might be approaching burn territory. I don't know though.

I bumped up his temps to 93-95. I'm leaving for work now but my boyfriend is still at home and he is going to be texting me and letting me know if the temps are stable.

Just dropped him off at the vet. I'll be picking him up around 3 and should get a call from the herp vet sometime today.

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Originally Posted by mackynz

Right, but I have heard of people bumping it up a few degrees when there is an RI, I just think 98 might be approaching burn territory. I don't know though.

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thats what my vet told me to do. it didnt seem to cause any trouble. no burns or anything. i figured the vet would would know....

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Originally Posted by mackynz

Right, but I have heard of people bumping it up a few degrees when there is an RI, I just think 98 might be approaching burn territory. I don't know though.

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Remember....your body temp is 98.9...when you hold your BP, or have him around your neck for an hour, do you burn him? ;)

Also remember, when we get sick, we get a fever. Why? Its our body's way to fight off infection. A snake cannot do that themselves...so basically we are trying to simulate a fever for them. Increase their temp and help fight off that infection.

Of course you don't want to bake your snake...but increasing your overall temps 5 degrees will help (so if your normal temps are cool spot 82, hot spot 92 your new increased temps will be 87/97).

Best of luck, RIs aren't fun...esp with a morph like that :( Fingers crossed he recovers 100% for you! Make sure you vet does a culture before Rx-ing ABs!

Snakes being cold blooded use heat as their metabolism, so think of it as the fuel that lets them do the things we do naturally like think, move, digest food, use oxygen ect. Bumping up temping up their temps pretty much supercharges their bodies. also bumping up the humidity really helps, this keeps their body, lungs, mucus membranes moist and keeps the mucus moist, once that stuff dries it's really tough for their body to expel or absorb think bronchitis with out the ability to cough. Meds will supplement the bodies natural immune system but the environmental things are as big a factor in URI treatment as the meds. Best of luck and keep his water and enclosure really super clean..change the water daily and clean the enclosure every other day. Other than that Leave him be and let the meds do their job.

You can safely bump the hot spot up to 100F without causing burns or other issues. Be sure the snake has a way to cool down, the cool end should always be 85 or lower.

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Originally Posted by tikigator

Remember....your body temp is 98.9...when you hold your BP, or have him around your neck for an hour, do you burn him? ;)

Also remember, when we get sick, we get a fever. Why? Its our body's way to fight off infection. A snake cannot do that themselves...so basically we are trying to simulate a fever for them. Increase their temp and help fight off that infection.

Of course you don't want to bake your snake...but increasing your overall temps 5 degrees will help (so if your normal temps are cool spot 82, hot spot 92 your new increased temps will be 87/97).

Best of luck, RIs aren't fun...esp with a morph like that :( Fingers crossed he recovers 100% for you! Make sure you vet does a culture before Rx-ing ABs!

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Our skin temperature definitely isn't 98.6...why do you think we have to stick something in our mouths or butts to get a good reading ;-)

Also, is that true about bumping up temperature for herps? Sounds iffy...we are warm-blooded, and that's a normal physiological response for us. If snakes have never done this naturally, how can it help...? This is interesting!