First time dealing with an RI: Advice while I wait for the vet?

[Kourtneyhk]

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!

[Sauzo]

If she is in shed, it could be the reason she is making noise. I would wait till she is done with shedding, then if she is still wheezing and stuff, take her in. A few things that can help if it is a slight case of RI is raise the temp a few degrees. Kind of like creating a "fever" which will speed up the snakes metabolism and their immune system. Also there is debate on whether to raise or lower humidity. Some say lower it so the snake can expel any mucus that might be in their lungs and some say raise it keep their lungs from drying out. I personally believe in lower humidity. But for sure raise the temps a few degrees.

[Kourtneyhk]

She actually is just going into shed, so I guess I will wait until after she does complete the shed. I will try bumping up the temperatures a couple degrees as well. Thanks for the advice!

[Sauzo]

Np. Yeah I would definitely wait till after shed before you make an appointment. Most antibiotics are pretty harsh of reptiles so its not something you just want to throw at them.

[Kourtneyhk]

Oh I completely agree. But considering how long I've had her, I don't want to give it a chance to continue (if it has) to worsen.