Hey guys,

I recently bought a large female from someone in Florida (I'm located in Oregon). Long story short, the person obviously didn't care about his animals and she was delivered to me with stuck shed and a very quiet, very slight wheeze/squeak while breathing. He had told me, prior to her delivery, that the humidity had been wacky that week so she had some stuck shed, but obviously didn't tell me about the illness.

I've had her in the same set up I've had my other balls in successfully (for two years+, all doing great, never had an issue with RI's or anything like that. Rack system, 92 basking, 77-80 non basking, 55%-65% humidity) for a month(ish) now. She seemed to improve, and has been eating/drinking/defecating like a beast (she is, actually, a monstrous lady). No issues with any of that.

I picked her up this evening to clean her drawer, and her breathing was crackly, kind of like a cellophane wrapper. No excess saliva/mucous, just the crinkly sounding breathing. With Christmas in a couple days, I can't get her into the vet right away; however, never having dealt with an RI before in one of my personal snakes, I don't know if this crackling sound indicates "improvement" from her previous whistle/wheeze, or if it signifies things are getting worse.

Regardless, I will be taking her to the vet, but in the meantime, what can I do to help this girl out?

Thanks!