words cant even express what i fell inside

[SlitherinSisters]

Were any aerosol chemicals used in the room?

I bet that's where the problem lies. I agree that smoke shouldn't have killed them that quickly, especially if the enclosures have a somewhat restricted airflow. Plus I'm thinking they would have ended up with an URI rather than dying. Unless sage has a toxic chemical, but it sounds like it doesn't. Maybe it wasn't sage.....

Since your aunt didn't like the smell, I could definitely see some Lysol/smelly sprays/perfume being used and your aunt didn't even think about it's effects.

I would think that if the heat element got hot enough to kill the snakes that there would be some sort of evidence of that. Burns/melting/etc.

So sorry for your loss. That really really sucks

[WingedWolfPsion]

I was actually thinking, it's been SO hot this past week...upper 90s with high humidity. If a window were opened and left that way for a day, ball pythons could very easily die from excessive heat.

[SlitherinSisters]

I was actually thinking, it's been SO hot this past week...upper 90s with high humidity. If a window were opened and left that way for a day, ball pythons could very easily die from excessive heat.

Oh shoot, that's true. And if the sunlight was able to hit those tubs in that heat..... There wouldn't be any evidence of overheating because the stat would have shut off and waited for the temps to go back down. Good point.

[BPelizabeth]

First of all Let me say sorry for your loss...that is just terrible.

I am really with Wing on this one though. I have never heard of burning sage being bad...or candles for that matter. I also clean with Mr. Clean Lavendar all the time and have never had problems. Granted they are in a huge open room...but still. I mean I would think you would have to be burning a huge bulk of sage in a closed roomto get smoke inhilation. I might tend to think you may have had a spike in your temps for some reason. Maybe an electrical surge...I just have no idea.

Could the child have sprayed something on them??

[SERPENT_MASTERS]

she burned the sage where the snakes were.

[SERPENT_MASTERS]

Sorry to hear about this. It's never about the money when they die.

Did she burn the sage in the same room with the animals?

FYI, "Smudging" (the act of cleansing a living space by burning sage and allowing the smoke to 'permeate' ), REQUIRES you to open every window and door to allow the smoke to take with it the bad vibes.
Your aunt is clearly an ignoramus.
Tell her to do some research online or to pick up a book next time.
Bad karma is coming her way in spades.
I'm sorry for your losses.

she burned so much sage that you can smell that smell on my walls and curtains. I also agree with opening the windows and doors to allow the bad vibes and SMOKE out the house.

[SERPENT_MASTERS]

Oh shoot, that's true. And if the sunlight was able to hit those tubs in that heat..... There wouldn't be any evidence of overheating because the stat would have shut off and waited for the temps to go back down. Good point.

my aunt burned a mixture of lavendar sweet grass, white sage and cedar smudge. BEFORE she only mention SAGE . After the house became smokey she decided to take my daughter to the pool for roughly 3hrs. THE WINDOWS WERE CLOSE. when she came back in she ROLLED THE BLINDS UP AND open the BIG living room window. WE HAD A HEAT WAVE THE PAST COUPLE OF DAYS and my temp was held at 85 degrees anything higher and my ranco would have shut off. NOT SURE NOW IF THE HEAT OR THE mixture of lavender sweet grass, white sage and cedar smudge killed them ? I know what cedar bedding does to snakes, i can only imagine what burning it must do to them? not for sure if cedar smudge is the same as cedar in bedding.Oh how can i forget she mentioned she sprayed alot of lysol due to the snake poop smell. thanks guys for all the input and making me feel a bit better

[WingedWolfPsion]

It was probably the heat and sun. That's such a terrible shame, I'm so sorry it happened.

Cedar is bad for snakes in a closed in space due to the volatile oils in it--but it creates a long term toxicity problem, not immediate death. If the smoke wasn't enough to kill a human, it probably wasn't enough to kill a snake, either--snakes are pretty hardy animals, and they have a low respiratory rate, even if they do only have one large lung (the tiny second lung doesn't do much). Unlike birds, they don't have hollow bones, so they aren't likely to be as susceptible to air pollution as they are.

I always worry when I have to leave, and someone else is checking in on my animals. When I was younger, my pets would always die while I was a away for a few days, and someone else was caring for them. As a result, I find it really hard to trust, these days.

[rj1204]

I was actually just thinking about who would take care of my animals when I go on vacation. Basically, my dogs will go to someones house or a kennel and my birds (anyone want a couple of Alexandrine Ringnecks???) will either go to someones house or someone will just come over, feed them, and leave. Nobody will go near my snake room or touch my thermostat, windows, etc. I don't care if I have eggs or not......I don't even want someone checking on them and possibly leaving the incubator door cracked, egg box open, etc. Thats the great thing about snakes, the thermostat taking care of the temp and being able to go a week or more with no feeding or care. Sorry for your loss.