bloated BP?

I've had a female bp for about a month. She is roughly 1200g and has been very shy since I got her. Yesterday was the first time she has eaten for me and I was excited because she was the only one refusing. Today I did a total cleaning of all my cages and when I got her out her lower 1/3 seemed fatter. I just thought if was her food but when I touch her it seemed like she was bloated with gas. I looked again and I could really tell that it didn't look right.

What I'm really wondering is do BPs get gassy or is it a serious problem? I'm going to see how she looks in the morning when I get off work. I'm hoping that it will literally just pass. If not I'll have to make a long drive to a reptile vet.

Any pictures?
Is your snake in shed by chance? Some times when they shed they can become constipated. Have you tried a nice warm soak yet?

She shouldn't be in shed yet and I noticed it right before work so I didn't have to do anything except worry.

When I get off in the morning I'll check her out and see if she is better.

Mine seems to do this sometimes. Today, for example. I gave her lower half a warm soak and petted her underside downward (very gently mind you) and held her in a towel for about 30 min and she let loose. It was a good feeling, as she obviously felt better after letting go of 2 meals :P

I will try that today before work tonight. It just had me worried because she was kinda blown up like a Balloon.

And now that I think about it she was laying weird like it was uncomfortable to bend that part of her body because of all the pressure.

I just hope that when I get home in a couple of hours it has passed and she is better

Yes, they get bloated with what seemly is gas. I have one whom this is a semi regular occurrence. Mine actually has a bunch of medical issues, (rescue) She was born with birth defects that my vet and I believe has made it more common than normal.

I will suggest what I do you can take from my treatment what you will. I soak her once a day in warm water for at least 20 min. If she is eating (mine almost always is) I will offer a smaller prey item. I will treat the prey item with a bit of bene-bac for reptiles in water. I mix a bit in water so it can be used in a syringe. I will take the thawed rat and place the syringe into the dead rodents mouth and put as much water as it will hold. This gets fed. If the problem doesn't clear next feeding I use a small amount of human grade mineral oil in the rat, around 0.1ml per 200 gm of snake to a max of 1ml. This helps stool pass and loosen. If this fails it is time for the vet. Sadly stool in the belly that is partially blocked needs to be dealt with.

If the snake has suddenly stopped eating and soaking for five days has done nothing and /or the bloating is worse it is time for a vet.

I agree. If it is not soon resolved I too would seek veterinary aid.

I'm working nights so when I got home this morning I checked on her and it wasn't better. I went to bed but woke up earlier hoping it had passed but it didnt. I soaked her and nothing happened.

I'm going to soak every day till tuesday when I'm off and if it isn't fixed by then I'll take her to the vet.

What gets me is that 2 days ago was the first time she ate for me and the next day she was bloated. She's a really sweet girl and one of my favorites. She does seem to be acting a little more active after her soak so maybe she passed a little gas but I can't see any hint that the bloating as gone down.

I'm have to work tonight and I'll be worrying the whole time but my wife will keep me updated. Thanks everyone

good luck!

How long was her soak?

45 min till the water started to cool. Soaking her again but I don't see any improvement. I have tomorrow off so I will probably go to the vet. It depends on what they say when I call them here in a little bit.

She has gotten worse. It has spread up her body so I'm taking her to the vet tomorrow and they are going to run a parasite test on her. Is there anything else I should know? I've never had to take a reptile to the vet before and what to know what else I should ask.

Thanks everyone

Depends on the vets experience, and how much they charge. A fecal is always a good idea, they may want to do an xray as well, in my case I had xrays done and they decided, again in my case, it was a impacted bowel and used a stool softner/laxitive on her. This cleared the issue in a few days and a month or so later the stool returned to normal. It is an odd feeling very round body that has a well balloon feeling firm but hollow.

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Originally Posted by Rock51

She has gotten worse. It has spread up her body so I'm taking her to the vet tomorrow and they are going to run a parasite test on her. Is there anything else I should know? I've never had to take a reptile to the vet before and what to know what else I should ask.

Thanks everyone

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1200 gms. is slightly underweight for this, but are you sure she isn't ovulating and gravid? I know you said you only had her for 1 month. Did the previous owner say anything about her breeding status? Just a possible differential. In females, you want to know this. Good luck.:gj:

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Originally Posted by Albert Clark

1200 gms. is slightly underweight for this, but are you sure she isn't ovulating and gravid? I know you said you only had her for 1 month. Did the previous owner say anything about her breeding status? Just a possible differential. In females, you want to know this. Good luck.:gj:

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That's what a buddy of mine asked and the previous owner never said but I got the impression that he never paired her with anything. I'm under the impression That an ovulation make the body hard and her belly it distended and very squishy like it's full of air or maybe fluid

Got back from the vet and she is pregnant. 4 eggs. I'm very shocked and even more worried. I am trying to contact the guy I bought her from to see if he did pair her with anything. Is there any way to tell if the eggs are fertile?

The vet I went to isn't an expert on ball pythons and she didn't know much about breeding. She thinks that the eggs are too big but I don't think so from all the pictures and videos I've watched, but then again what do I know. How big are BP eggs? I asked her to measure them with the ultra sound and she couldn't get the whole egg in the picture with her equipment. She think that my BP wont be able to lay them on her own so I'm going to keep a very close eye on her.

I really wasn't expecting nor am I ready for a clutch so I'm going to have to scramble and get an incubator and get ready for them. Any suggestions will be GREATLY appreciated.

:O Huh. That must be a huge surprise! Sooo umm... Congrats!!! Good luck. Folks here should be able to answer any incubator ?s you might have. Do keep an eye on her though and let us know.

Yea I guess I need to order one soon. I worried about her since she isn't really up to size and I really wasn't ready for eggs but Ill figure it out. The guy I bought her from said he didn't really remember pairing her up but if her did it would have been with a Bumble Belly so maybe ill get something good out of it too

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Originally Posted by Rock51

Yea I guess I need to order one soon. I worried about her since she isn't really up to size and I really wasn't ready for eggs but Ill figure it out. The guy I bought her from said he didn't really remember pairing her up but if her did it would have been with a Bumble Belly so maybe ill get something good out of it too

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Very interesting topic..... I am wondering how is she doing now?

Hopefully you can give us an update

good luck!

Well that is much better than a digestive issue!

She seems better because she isn't so bloated anymore. and I agree with Kitedemon it is better than her having a serious issue and dying on me.

On a lighter note she is now my most expensive shake. $30 for her and $300 vet bill lol

Hopefully its just a big poop coming.

Its definitely eggs I saw the xray. I hope their fertile

Any updates? I have a female thats bloated like you described. Shes swollen but not solid feeling at all. She HAS been paired....alot with my ghost pastel. I just cleared her though of an RI. Cant get her to a vet till the weekend.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...3be1ac4e8c.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...a7d9af5fb3.jpg

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Originally Posted by Awfulthings

Any updates? I have a female thats bloated like you described. Shes swollen but not solid feeling at all. She HAS been paired....alot with my ghost pastel. I just cleared her though of an RI. Cant get her to a vet till the weekend.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...3be1ac4e8c.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...a7d9af5fb3.jpg

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This thread is 4 years old

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Originally Posted by craigafrechette

This thread is 4 years old

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This and the fact that the OP has not been here in 4 years also.

Awfulthings if you have a question I wold suggest you to create your own thread instead or reviving an old one with an absentee OP.