Bad Neck Kink

[Russell Bye]

Then bring all of it out in the open! Post it. Including the video. True, you were told about the kink, so there was no misrepresentation. But you were told the kink didn't seem to bother the snake.

So here are my questions.

What does the snake weigh now? What did it weigh when you got it? How often has it fed for the breeder and what did he feed it ?
You say the bad problem started after the snake ate its first meal with you ? What exactly happened during that feed? Was the snake able to kill (unless f/t) constrict and eat it without problem? With problems? Was the tail limp and the snake flailing BEFORE that meal and after you got it ?

I do not have a scale to weigh, I will try to get one tomorrow. His sale page said live rat. My wife fed a mouse pup, very small. Apparently he killed it without apparent issue and ate. It was the next day when she checked on the snake she noticed that he was very defensive and striking, but she did not investigate any further. She texted the breeder and told him he was very defensive, he told her that it was probably going into shed, which makes sense. It was not until I got the snake myself that the problem was identified. He has not eaten since nor shows any interest. I put a rat pinky in with him and he acts very scared of it. I do not want to have to force feed him either.

[dr del]

Ok help me out here.

I'm looking at the video and cant see any outstanding kinks. I just see severe neurological issues.

What have I missed?

[Stewart_Reptiles]

I do see a minor kink that IMO would not Interfere with feeding, so I would euthanize that animal at this point. However like Derek I see a severe neurological issue so my question is this, was the animal moving this way when received? Did you pre-treat for mites? Do you have a t-stat? Those are questions that will be asked if you post on the BOI or FBI, you also need to be ready to post screenshots of ALL communications.

Now was the seller right to sell the animals, well some people chose to sell animals regarless of their condition other choose to euthanize or go free to good home.

If he disclosed the link the smart move would have been to pass on the purchase, and since the purchase was made anyway the second smart move would have been to return the animal if not satisfied upon arrival and within TOS.

By buying and than not returning the animal immidiately it basically sent the message to the breeder that you/your wife were fine until you were not anymore.

There are many breeders out there with good ethics and it all comes down to doing your homework using the boi and the FBI.

Hopefully you can get things worked out somehow.

As for MM there are a lot of breeders selling there hence the importance of researching them, the good news is that there will now also be a new rating system in place. (It was confirmed in the past 48 hours)

[Russell Bye]

Ok help me out here.

I'm looking at the video and cant see any outstanding kinks. I just see severe neurological issues.

What have I missed?

At the point where he is curling is the point where the kink is. I would have to stretch him out and take a picture for you to fully see the kink, but what you are seeing is the result of the kink, and yes it causes neurological issues due to compression on the spinal cord.

[zina10]

Hm. I re-watched the video several times.

The kink itself is not severe. It is visible a couple of times.

What I struggle with, is that the snake was alright up to the point it ate at your house. After researching the seller, it doesn't seem to be one of "those" that rip people off, is dishonest, etc. At first I thought that may be it, and that could explain the issue at hand. But it doesn't seem like he would put his reputation on the line, for one sale. He has plenty. He surly knows about the BOI and FBI.

Perhaps the snake was ok at his place aside from the minor kink. Perhaps it ate just fine. It arrived seemingly fine, even ate. I just don't see one meal causing these neurological issues. There are many kinked snakes, worse then that, that can still eat and it doesn't cause pressure on the spine and cork screwing. Honestly, these symptoms look more like overheating or exposure to a chemical.

Please understand that I am not trying to shift blame. Or criticize. Not at all, I am only trying to help, to help the animal. You can't help it until you figure out exactly what is causing this. There is no finger pointing.

Can you please explain the setup ? Do you perhaps have pictures ? Can you tell us how you heat the enclosure? Have there been any home improvement projects near the snake ? Any paint? Glues? Carpet treatments ? Pest control ?

I wouldn't even sell a snake with a slight kink. But some breeders do, at a discount. If he had full disclosure and the animal ate for him (and you) then he may just worry that its something you did. He doesn't know you personally, just like you do not know him personally.

Just because I have never heard of a minor kink suddenly causing neurological issues doesn't mean it cannot happen, either. But it would be beneficial for that snake to rule out other issues, esp. since some of those can be reversible.

Hope you understand and don't take offense.

[Jellybeans]

Honestly I would just take the snake to an exotic vet and get a professional opinion

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[Bogertophis]

Honestly I would just take the snake to an exotic vet and get a professional opinion

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And that would certainly help on the BOI.

[Jellybeans]

Whats BOI ?

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[zina10]

For all

BOI stands for Board of Inquiry on Faunaclassifieds.com Been around forever. That is where you ask for opinions on breeders, buyers, sellers. Or you share your good / bad experiences...

The FBI stands for "Feedback and Inquiries for Reptiles" and is basically the same thing as the BOI, however it is newer and a facebook page. It stays quite busy.


While taking it to a vet is not a bad idea at all, it needs to be a VERY experienced reptile vet. Neurological damage can be caused by so many things. And it is not like you will do a MRI on a snake. You may be able to, I don't know, but who can afford that. A xray would show the kink, but with it being rather minor, it may not show much more then that. But it would be the most helpful to rule out slipped disks, etc. I'm still not convinced, though, all that would cause nerve damage, tingling, and more so paralyzing.

It may end up that the vet can rule out things, rather then give a 100% diagnosis. But that in itself can help.

Either way, it would be a good thing to go over the husbandry and surroundings right now, before an appointment. If it is environmental, or husbandry related, something could be done about that right away.

Which could only benefit the snake. Imho.

[Jellybeans]

There are very good exotic vets that are very knowledgeable about snakes
I'm just saying if it were my animal it will be going to a vet as soon as I could get it in because I would want to know what was wrong and most importantly is animal in pain

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