How common is ibd in snakes?

[plebasaurus]

How common is ibd (inclusion body disease) in snakes and how long do ball pythons live for when they get it. By the way i dont have a snake that has ibd but my friends boa unfortunately died a month ago and he is worried that it could of spread to his ball python collection and i dont know about ibd that well so i couldn't of helped him.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Not very common and there is now a test for it for the rest this sums it up

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...f-Up-About-IBD

[CALM Pythons]

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...f-Up-About-IBD

Thanks Deb... Ive never read that particular article by Skip...
... There isnt a thing he has written that isnt interesting

[Regius_049]

If you want to learn more about IBD, I would reccomend papers published by Dr. Jacobson. In short, yes, IBD could spread from his boa to his ball python, but was the death actually confirmed IBD? If not, I would be hesitant to suggest that as cause of death.

Prevalence varies hugely depending on species, I have seen some studies suggest a prevalence of anywhere between 6-19% in captive snakes, however this includes an observed ~40% prevalence in boa constrictors. IBD is most commonly found in boas, most of which, are clinically healthy. There are limited studies on prevalence, but other species more commonly affected include burmese and reticulated pythons as well as rainbow boas. IBD is far rarer in ball pythons and other boid snakes, but I wouldn't discount it entirely. However, Paramyxovirus is statistically, of much larger concern.

[Sauzo]

IBD isn't that common. It mimics a lot of other things that are much more common like poisons, overheating and a blow or thump or something dropping on a snakes head.

As for 40% of boas having IBD, I don't buy it. The problem with these tests is their sample sizes aren't that big. I mean even if you tested 10000 boas, how many do you think there are in the world. Also it depends on the region. I mean if you went to Africa and tested for AIDS, you would get a much higher percentage than say if you went to Bibletown USA. So those 2 places would give you completely different numbers. Africa it would be much more prevalent while Bibletown, it would be almost nonexistent, not to mention a big difference in sample sizes.

So while I agree, IBD is out there, it's probably something that most people will never run across. I personally wouldn't worry much about it. Quarantine your new arrivals and be more concerned with RIs and mites lol.