Really sick snake. I need help.

Over the past week I have been talking to my cousin about his snake. He hasent fed it in awhile so i told his brother to bring it over today. He brought it and im sickened by its condition. Its EXTREMELY small, it has alot of clear fluid coming from its mouth, it has layers and layers of stuck shed. I dont know what to do. Ive decidied to take it from my cousin and try as hard as i can to nurse it back to health. I figure the fluid is from RI, and i dont have the money to take it to a vet. im going to the pet store right now to buy some food to see if it will eat. Help me out guys and gals, i need it. Ill get pictures asap

Advanced RI cases need to be seen by a vet ASAP! the snake will need antibiotics.

raise the ambient temps a bit for the ri...(thats what ive heard)

Take it to the vet ASAP.

Contact a local reptile rescue, and bring the snake to them immediately, if you cannot come up with enough money to see a vet. Based on your description, without veterinary attention, the snake will soon die.
The longer you wait, the less chance it has of pulling through.

Raising temperatures and home remedies will not be enough to cure a snake with a serious respiratory infection.

An RI will only get worse until you get antibiotics. I think you can go to your vet and just buy the antibiotics and do it all yourself, that would be less expensive. I think it would be under $50.

Correct me if I am wrong but Baytrill is the proper medication for an RI.

As for the stuck shed, get a pillowcase damp with some warm water and put the snake in it for 15-20 minutes. Make sure you stay with the snake the whole time and make sure its okay. Then try to use the pillowcase to roll off as much shed as you can. Be gentle though!

I would put the snake on paper towels just so he has a nice clean environment and so messes are cleaned up quickly to prevent his condition from getting worse.

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

An RI will only get worse until you get antibiotics. I think you can go to your vet and just buy the antibiotics and do it all yourself, that would be less expensive. I think it would be under $50.

Correct me if I am wrong but Baytrill is the proper medication for an RI.

As for the stuck shed, get a pillowcase damp with some warm water and put the snake in it for 15-20 minutes. Make sure you stay with the snake the whole time and make sure its okay. Then try to use the pillowcase to roll off as much shed as you can. Be gentle though!

I would put the snake on paper towels just so he has a nice clean environment and so messes are cleaned up quickly to prevent his condition from getting worse.

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Baytril is sometimes the proper medication for a RI, and sometimes Amikacin is the proper medication - tests need to be run to find out what the bacteria that THIS snake is carrying will respond to best.

I would not recommend self-medicating without the guidance of an experienced vet (ie, no short cuts)

Dr. Scott Stahl talks at length on Reptile Radio that Baytril is NOT the "cure all" for treating RI's, and if it was, he wouldn't have had to go to vet school for 8 years to learn how to properly treat reptiles. It's a huge pet peeve of his.

If you cannot afford to provide proper medical attention to this animal, I would recommend finding a rescue local to you that CAN.

Here is the episode on Reptile Radio that I recommend people take time to listen to with a lot of great information:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/reptile...ile-Veterinary

Thanks alot, im going to start looking for a reptile rescue that can help it, there isnt stuff leaking out of its mouth, its more or less throwing it up.

If it's throwing stuff up....

I'd say its on its way down.

Yeah, i dont think there is any hope. Its non stop bubbling and popping noise.

have you tried to put a meal in it yet?

I have a rat pink sitting it the tank with it, but its not even interested.

snakes will hardly ever if not ever eat when they are sick, get it to a vet or someone who can treat it

That snake needs to be brought to a vet today or tomorrow. if you can not afford it, most vets have a progrram where you can pay the money out over time like a credit card. Either way, it needs a vet ASAP

ya i would ask the vet and see if you can arrange a payment plan or something like that, that snakes needs vet help now, if i could i would help but i cant right now :( but best of luck, make sure to mention to the vet if you call and ask about a payment plan that the snake is a rescue

Maybe there is a member in your area that would be willing to take in the snake. I would, but I don't live anywhere near you :(

Try calling a vet to find out how much it will cost and then see if your cousin can help pay part of the bill...


Rob

The best thing to do right now is raise the temperatures in the enclosure to help fight off RI. I heard that raises the snake's immune system and helps fight off the infection, but in this case it's more likely to not do much but still helps the infection from getting any worse. You will need to get to a vet to get the antibiotics to completely get rid of this sickness, or else it can be fatal. Put the snake on paper towels or newspaper for a substrate for now.

For the stuck shed, you will definitely need to get that off. I wouldn't stress out the snake too much, but you will need to try your best to get the shedding off. Soak the snake in warm water for 10-15 minutes to loosen up the skin then you can either assist the snake in the shed (which I think would be best, since there are layers of shedding on the snake) or you could let the snake get it off on it's own. If you do assist the snake, peel off the skin gently and calmly. Also, if you do not get it all off, raise the humidity in the enclosure to help the snake shed it off.

I appreciate you taking that snake into your care to help treat it, that is a very nice thing to do. However, if you have other snakes or reptiles in your collection and the sick snake is in the same room as them, I would immediately remove the snake from that room and put it in a different room. Quarantine the snake until you completely have gotten rid of the sickness. Make sure the snake does not have mites, and when you take it to the vet get some tests done in case the snake has internal parasites. Good luck, I hope you can get this snake back to great health.:please:

Thanks so much guys/gals for your help. I would try to get my cousin to help pay for the vet care, but, he cant even pay for mice to feed his snake so how is he going to have money to help with vet bills. I myself am 16 and have no job, i work tomorrow with my step dad but its not a full time job, so ill have around 80$, im also going to call the vet as soon as I wake up tomorrow to see how much its going to cost me. I dont know how someone could let a snake get in this condition. I soaked her in water for about ten minutes to get the shed at least off her eye but it just doesnt seem to be helping. I do have 2 ball pythons besides this one, they are located in two different rooms, and i wont be handling them untill i know the snake is healthy (if it makes it) to avoid getting my other snakes sick. Thanks again for all the help its greatly appreciated.

Just talk to the vet im sure they can arrange some kind of payment plan to help you out. its a good thing that you took the snake, but if you cant arrange some kind of vet treatment I think you should consider taking it to some kind of rescue.

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Originally Posted by ryanisgothic

Thanks so much guys/gals for your help. I would try to get my cousin to help pay for the vet care, but, he cant even pay for mice to feed his snake so how is he going to have money to help with vet bills. I myself am 16 and have no job, i work tomorrow with my step dad but its not a full time job, so ill have around 80$, im also going to call the vet as soon as I wake up tomorrow to see how much its going to cost me. I dont know how someone could let a snake get in this condition. I soaked her in water for about ten minutes to get the shed at least off her eye but it just doesnt seem to be helping. I do have 2 ball pythons besides this one, they are located in two different rooms, and i wont be handling them untill i know the snake is healthy (if it makes it) to avoid getting my other snakes sick. Thanks again for all the help its greatly appreciated.

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Try putting the snake in a damp pillowcase for 10-15min to help loosen the eye caps and stuck shed. Don't try and force the eye caps off. If they don't come off easily, let the vet do it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

Try putting the snake in a damp pillowcase for 10-15min to help loosen the eye caps and stuck shed. Don't try and force the eye caps off. If they don't come off easily, let the vet do it.

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Please remove pillow first. And don't sleep on it. :rolleyes:

I got something for a stuck eyecap from my vet. Some cream thing you're supposed to put on 3 times a day. Boy, did she hate that. Fortunately it came off really quickly. They might try to charge you $20 or $30 for it, unless they do it during the visit.

Or if you know anyone else in your area that is a "snake guy" maybe they can take the snake off your hands and see it gets the proper care needed. At least that way it won't die.

Ryan, when you talk to the vet this morning explain the situation fully. That this snake is likely very ill, has not been fed or cared for properly and was basically dumped on you suddenly. Some vet clinics will work with you on keeping costs reasonable, some clinics even have programs for lower income pet owners so ask politely if they offer anything like that. If you can't find help and don't want to post your location publically, please PM it to me (just city and state) and I'll see if I can help you find some options.