Repiratory infection treatment questions

[Animals As Leaders]

I got some questions....

Respiratory infections in snakes seem to be a very common problem, but at the same time very serious. I noticed that treating a human is much different then treating a snake. I was told to lower the humidity, and raise ambient temperatures. Now, in theory low humidity is where URI's thrive best in human lungs. This is why we usually get URI's during the winter due to dry air. How do we combat the dry air? With a humidifier! So why are we told to lower humidity when dealing with this for snakes? Shouldn't we put them in something with a normal to high humidity, and with high heat? That way the snakes immune system can properly function, and the right humidity help the lungs function better.

Baytril or another anit-biotic's seem to be the only method being told on most forums. This maybe the fastest way to treat it, but is it good for the snake? No. If the snake was going to die then obviously this would be the last resort, but I always see it being used as the first...I would like to know what a snake does in the wild when dealing with a URI. Do they perish, or find a way of fighting back?

Only reason I am asking all this is because I think I may have cured my boa with the above combination. I just adopted a male, and when I brought him home I noticed he had RI. I immediately raised temps, and had him in a hot room in my house. Ambient temps at around 90-93, and basking spot around the same thing. Humidity is a steady 52%. He's been in a tub with these conditions for approximately 3 days now, and has showing significant signs of improvement. No clicking, no fluid, no nothing...Previously, he was blowing bubbles, and had lots of fluid built up in his mouth. I'm going to keep close eye on him to see if it happens again, and schedule a visit to the vet. Other then that, I'm going to celebrate on the fact that I was able to cure his RI with a simple natural method! In 3 days!!

[python_addict]

I have used baytril everytime keyword everytime meaning it keeps coming back whether they get new enclosures and new everything as soon as its gone well what i think is gone i have raised temps and everything but never seems to go away

[Animals As Leaders]

That's really weird it never goes away...

How are you currently housing them?

[Maixx]

I have used baytril everytime keyword everytime meaning it keeps coming back whether they get new enclosures and new everything as soon as its gone well what i think is gone i have raised temps and everything but never seems to go away

Have you had the infection cultured by a vet?
If its caused by a virus or fungial then antibiotics won't fix it.

[Animals As Leaders]

I was going to bring him to the vet but decided to wait and see if his conditioned got better. And it did. I think it might have been the RTI mimic you mentioned in my other post! You should share that link here for others. I found that pretty interesting!

[Maixx]

These are some articles from "Melissa Kaplan's Herp Care Collection"

They're long but very informative and worth reading.
RTI
http://www.anapsid.org/rti.html
Signs and symptoms of sick reptiles
http://www.anapsid.org/signs.html
Mediating sick herps
http://www.anapsid.org/signs2.html

(Copied/ pasted from RTI page)
Bottom line
If you see the signs of respiratory infection, and it is not related to being handled too soon after eating or drinking, get your reptile to a reptile vet now -delays will result in a weaker reptile, and depending on why the RTI was allowed to set in to begin with, may prolong recovery and stress.

[Ladybugzcrunch]

I have used baytril everytime keyword everytime meaning it keeps coming back whether they get new enclosures and new everything as soon as its gone well what i think is gone i have raised temps and everything but never seems to go away

I totally understand where you are coming from. The last snake I brought home wound up having a bad case of Pseudomonas (culture confirmed). After 3 months of a battle she died. In the mean time, a male snake who was closest to her (before I realized she was sick) ended up with it as well. After the baytril treatment he went back on feed but to this day is still not right. He is eating but if I hold him for more than a few miniutes he starts yawn and wheeze a little. I have not decided if he has permanent damage to his respiratory system or if he is just carrying a low grade infection. I suppose only time will tell.

[Rickys_Reptiles]

I have done something similar to the OP.

I had a ball python develop a RI, and decided I'd try to raise the temps. I actually put her into a new tub with a lid and wet paper towel and a water bowl.

I put the tub into my incubator (90 degrees) and left her in there for about 2 weeks.

2 weeks later she wasn't holding her head up, and there were no bubbles. At that point in time I moved her back into the snake room and kept an eye on her. She has shown no signs of RI since then.

Perhaps its because I moved her at the first sign of a RI, and didn't wait long. who knows. Just thought I'd make mention of it

[Mike41793]

This thread is almost a year old. By now her snake is ok or dead lol

[Inarikins]

These are some articles from "Melissa Kaplan's Herp Care Collection"

They're long but very informative and worth reading.
RTI
http://www.anapsid.org/rti.html
Signs and symptoms of sick reptiles
http://www.anapsid.org/signs.html
Mediating sick herps
http://www.anapsid.org/signs2.html

(Copied/ pasted from RTI page)
Bottom line
If you see the signs of respiratory infection, and it is not related to being handled too soon after eating or drinking, get your reptile to a reptile vet now -delays will result in a weaker reptile, and depending on why the RTI was allowed to set in to begin with, may prolong recovery and stress.

Melissa Kaplan is not a person to be trusted. She's misinformed and unfortunately seems to be the first source that comes up when googling a lot of the times. Her information is innacurate or just plain wrong. Please don't trust anything she has to say.

If it's caught soon enough, it's possible to cure an RI with just home-based methods but a more severe RI can last much longer and get worse no matter what you try to do. It's better to not risk your snake's life and just go for the lab culture and treatments. Try homeopathy all you want, but it's not guaranteed to work. Too high of humidity will make the fluid in the lungs worse and the RI worse and you might wake up and have a dead snake on your hands when it could have been treated easily with baytril or another antibiotic. 'Properly' treating an RI with medication and recommended husbandry changes is a much safer bet than just fiddling with humidity and heat and hoping for the best. That's my opinion, anyways.

Edit: Whoops, I didn't realize this was an old topic! Oh well.