Still whistling after shed...

[Lolo76]

I got Dave (black pastel) from Skiploder in December, and noticed some whistling after his shed the following week... it seemed like a clear case of shed-in-nose, and Skiploder can verify he was 100% healthy. Now four months later he shed again, but he's still whistling! It's only when he gets really excited or over-exerted, like when climbing up my arm/chest, and he shows NO signs of illness.

Since it's been four months, I assume other symptoms would be present if it was RI - right? So is it possible he still has stuck shed in his nose, and what should I do for him? Or can a snake have chronic breathing problems? I was thinking a warm soak might do the trick, otherwise I'll just wait for another shed. Any advice would be appreciated...

[j_h_smith]

Give it a nice warm soaking, it shouldn't hurt. Does it whistle all the time or just at times?

Jim Smith

[BPelizabeth]

I would give him a soak....it is possible that there was a little left over the first time and then the second shed as well.

You can always open his mouth and look for bubbles....but I bet it is just some shed up in the there.

[Vypyrz]

Get yourself a stethoscope and see if you can hear any rattling in the lungs. If you hear something, make a vet trip. If not, write it off as shed boogers. Fortunately, I haven't had to deal with RI yet, but I'm guessing it would work. I imagine that's the first thing a vet will do anyway...

[mrmertz]

I'd just play it safe and go to your vet. Especially since this seems to be ongoing. If it were something other than stuck shed then you are buying it time. If the vet says that it is something minor, like stuck shed or something, then you have piece of mind. For me personally I always side with spending a few bucks versus not being able to sleep at night worrying. Fortunately, there has been only one occassion where we needed to see our vet when we got concerned about one of our critters. It paid off!

[Lolo76]

I'd just play it safe and go to your vet. Especially since this seems to be ongoing. If it were something other than stuck shed then you are buying it time. If the vet says that it is something minor, like stuck shed or something, then you have piece of mind. For me personally I always side with spending a few bucks versus not being able to sleep at night worrying.

Unfortunately I don't even have a few bucks to spare right now, so that's not feasible... especially since my herp vet is REALLY expensive, and would charge over $150 just for walking in the door.

If it were a clear case of illness or an emergency, I have other means of money to tap into - but for what's most likely a stuck shed, I am not running to the vet. Thanks for the advice though, and I'll let you all know if things improve after a soak. If it doesn't get better I will at least call the vet, since she's always happy to offer advice via phone.

[mrmertz]

Unfortunately I don't even have a few bucks to spare right now, so that's not feasible... especially since my herp vet is REALLY expensive, and would charge over $150 just for walking in the door. .

Ouch. That is expensive! I understand totally.

[Lolo76]

Ouch. That is expensive! I understand totally.

Yeah, it's out of control... but since she's the only "official" herp vet in the city, I don't have much of a choice! I also switched my dog & cats to their office (I really do love this vet), but the first set of bills almost blew my mind - between $150-200 PER pet for annual checkups. I think the mammals will switching back to the cheaper vet before next year's visit...

[Lolo76]

Give it a nice warm soaking, it shouldn't hurt. Does it whistle all the time or just at times?

Not all the time, just when he's excited or moving a lot... he likes to climb up my chest onto my shoulder, and that's usually when I hear it the most. It's almost like snake asthma, since I'm asthmatic and sound that way after climbing stairs!

[Skiploder]

Laura, you've now had him close to five months - is he eating? Shedding normally? Pooping normally? Is he breathing with his mouth open?

He could have something in his nostril, or he could be getting worked up when he's held and be breathing more rapidly, causing the noise. Either way, after five months, he does not have a respiratory infection. Wheezing CAN be a symptom of an RI - when coupled with mucus discharge at the mouth and nose, inappetance, etc.

Large colubrids make similar noises when they are agitated - especially drys. So do other pythons.

Like you said, it's only when he's excited or exerting himself - correct?

The "breathing" sound can be normal. Snakes have a U-shaped wind pipe that has a slightly corrugated inside edge (as opposed to mammals that have a smooth O). This allows for the collapse or expansion of the windpipe when feeding. The corrugations are what cause the 'wheezing' sound when air rushes through with breathing. It could be due to excitement, nerves, whatever. Since it only happens when he's worked up, I wouldn't get worked up about it.

I wouldn't waste the money on a vet visit unless he is showing actual symptoms of being sick.

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