RI Infection?

[The New B]

Sorry no pics at the moment. I know that BP's rest with their nose elavated when they have RI's. A week ago or so I noticed my BP doing this, however her nose was BARELY elavated. I kept it in the back of my mind and kept a closer eye on her. She continued to do so on occasion within the next few days but like I said, the angle wasnt too extreme. Today, I walked in and she was mostly out of her hide. When she noticed I was in the room she lifted her nose about 4 inches in the air and stayed like that for about 5 minutes, which got me a little worried. She then moved positions and this time rested with her nose against her stick at a very high angle. I decided it was time to check her mouth so I did. There were many small bubbles in the back of her throat, but then she got free of me. I opened her mouth again and everything looked clear, and then she wrapped herself around her mouth so I had to let go again. On the 3rd check the bubbles were back, and on the 4th check (I was hoping to get a picture) they were gone again. I decided not to stress her out anymore trying to get a picture so I put her back in her cage.

What do you guys think? RI? ( I know its hard with no pics but its hard to take a pic while opening her mouth, she struggles quite a bit). She has had an RI once about a year ago. If it is a RI I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Her temps are good and the humidity is usually around 50-55% unless shes in shed where they go to about 65-75%.

[Physician&Snakes]

Sorry no pics at the moment. I know that BP's rest with their nose elavated when they have RI's. A week ago or so I noticed my BP doing this, however her nose was BARELY elavated. I kept it in the back of my mind and kept a closer eye on her. She continued to do so on occasion within the next few days but like I said, the angle wasnt too extreme. Today, I walked in and she was mostly out of her hide. When she noticed I was in the room she lifted her nose about 4 inches in the air and stayed like that for about 5 minutes, which got me a little worried. She then moved positions and this time rested with her nose against her stick at a very high angle. I decided it was time to check her mouth so I did. There were many small bubbles in the back of her throat, but then she got free of me. I opened her mouth again and everything looked clear, and then she wrapped herself around her mouth so I had to let go again. On the 3rd check the bubbles were back, and on the 4th check (I was hoping to get a picture) they were gone again. I decided not to stress her out anymore trying to get a picture so I put her back in her cage.

What do you guys think? RI? ( I know its hard with no pics but its hard to take a pic while opening her mouth, she struggles quite a bit). She has had an RI once about a year ago. If it is a RI I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Her temps are good and the humidity is usually around 50-55% unless shes in shed where they go to about 65-75%.

Browse this thread: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ction-question

Also, seeing as how the issue is recurring I would get a vet's opinion.

[bcr229]

If you just hold her with one hand under her lung area, you can sometimes feel the gurgling as they breathe when they have an RI. I wouldn't necessarily freak just yet, but you can bump her temps up a few degrees while you monitor her for the next day or so. If your vet is anything like mine it can take a few days to get fit into their non-emergency appointment schedule, so you might want to call to arrange for one if that's the case.

[The New B]

If you just hold her with one hand under her lung area, you can sometimes feel the gurgling as they breathe when they have an RI. I wouldn't necessarily freak just yet, but you can bump her temps up a few degrees while you monitor her for the next day or so. If your vet is anything like mine it can take a few days to get fit into their non-emergency appointment schedule, so you might want to call to arrange for one if that's the case.

A vet really isn't an option at this time. My car is down and the closest reptile vet is 2 hours away. If I open her mouth, are the bubbles going to be there every time if she has a RI or can she "swallow" them? Like I said before, I opened her mouth and saw bubbles, then she got free. When I reopened her mouth, there really werent any bubbles.

[Physician&Snakes]

A vet really isn't an option at this time. My car is down and the closest reptile vet is 2 hours away. If I open her mouth, are the bubbles going to be there every time if she has a RI or can she "swallow" them? Like I said before, I opened her mouth and saw bubbles, then she got free. When I reopened her mouth, there really werent any bubbles.

Do you have a friend/relative/lover with a vehicle? When I treat RIs in BPs I do not give the specimen a choice, the whole cage is 88-92F and humidity is elevated as well due to its ability to hold heat and the fact that it is crucial to respiratory health in general. Handle her about every day or so for about 5 minutes just to so she can move around and loosen up that drainage, which is sounding to be quite excessive and a very likely sign of infections as I have a hunch it is mostly phlegm: lymph fluid that is done fighting pathogens and is expelled from the lungs.