She opens her mouth when I hold her..

[LotsaBalls]

I would also (if your attached to the snake and LAN on keeping it) call and talk the the general manager and let them know that the snake might be sick. How long ago did you get it I should ask first I guess.

[rebelrachel13]

Just watch her for now and monitor her temps/humidity/behavior. It could easily be a false alarm especially considering she has no other symptoms. It's good that you're watching her this early. Keep us updated and don't worry too much. As said though, you will want to look for a herp vet if you don't have one already, in case it is necessary.

[princess17]

Thanks guys. I took her to a reptile specialist at a different shop. She does have an RI. I'm gonna up her temp in her tank and take her to the vet and get some antibiotics.

[dragonboy4578]

Keep us posted on it's condition. Sounds like you are really on top of things, and you caught it early.....

[rebelrachel13]

Sorry to hear that she really is sick. It's awesome that you are so pro-active about getting her checked and treated though. I'm sure she'll recover fine.

[Emily Hubbard]

Firstly, 24 hours after feeding is, in the opinions of most on here, too soon to handle. 48 hours is the general rule. They CAN regurgitate if held too soon after feeding, and her behavior MAY be related to being handled on a full stomach.

But I am still unclear as to the nature of her behavior. If it is just a quick open wide and close, then it is just a "yawn." Snakes' jaws are segmented and not attached to the rest of their skeleton, so they have to periodically stretch their mouth out to realign their jaw bones. No big deal at all (unless you see bubbles and mucus).

Regardless, if you got the snake from PetCo/ Petsmart, I would take it to an exotics vet ASAP. They are not known for selling healthy animals. I personally would never buy an animal from them (but that is just me) but if I did, I would take it to a vet straight away. A good exotics vet can tell you if it has parasites or any underlying health conditions. They can also properly sex it for you.

[Emily Hubbard]

Sorry, you posted her condition as I was typing my last post. So sorry to hear she has an RI. But you did the right thing in taking her to get checked out, and because you were quick to act, I am sure she will be fine.

[HeadSetJones]

Nothing to give advice wise but just wanted to say MAJOR Kudos on the quick catch of the RI. Many people I know sadly would never take a snake to a vet saying that, "It's just a snake". I love that you take care of your pet. You should feel good about yourself, Sir. Good job.

[satomi325]

Make sure your reptile vet takes a culture. Some vets just prescribe Baytril without knowing the specific bacteria causing the RI. By taking a culture, you will save time and money in the future. Without a culture you're just taking a guess to see if the chosen antibiotic will work. Also, injectable Baytril tends to scar the injection area.

And in my experience with RI, injectable antibiotics are more effective compared to oral.

Good catch on the RI!
Many people wouldn't have noticed it until the condition got worse.

[princess17]

Thanks everyone! I have her tank temp up and just gave her a warm snake bath haha. I don't know if anyone else does it, but she loves it. I put her on the sink and she just slithers right in haha. She's actually laying off her heating pad which make me feel much better! Thanks for all the kudos and help everyone! And I will be sure she gets a culture done. I also found out she is underweight petsmart told me to feed her one pinky a week.. I took her to petco after reading online and in a book about python care that she should be eating fuzzies and not pinkies. Her backbone is prominent so I'll feed her 2 pinkies as newly instructed instead of the one(like I was told the first time) and hopefully she starts shaping up! Luckily, she isn't too dehydrated.