Seems to have RI, should I still attempt to feed?

[kimmu]

So I am home today and at first I thought the noise was coming from my cat, who has asthma so occasional wheezing is normal for her, but realized the sneezy, wheezy sound came from from Traya in her tank. Picked her up just enough to take a listen to her and heard the crackle, so I am thinking she has the beginning of an RI. No bubbles or visible mucus, didn't want to mess with trying to open her mouth and stress her out. She's been staying in her cold hide the past day which I thought was odd but figured she knows what her body needs. I have a really cold house, so I have two UTH in her tank as a well a 75w heat lamp going at all times to keep the ambient temp between 78-82. She's got three hides in her tank - the hot one which stays 89-91, the warm one which is 80-83, and the cold one which has no UTH so the temps can be all over the place though usually less than 80. I check temps using an IR heat gun. Both UTH have their own thermostats.

I do have an issue with humidity because of cold house with radiators and the constant running of heating elements, so it can drop down to 38-40% during the day while I am work. Currently have been misting sphagnum moss to try and keep it up, though I have bought a reptile fogger to run because nothing else is working. I just set that up last night. Can't use coconut coir since it turns out I'm allergic to it the one time I tried to use it, and it also got moldy real quick. So i use newspaper and put the moss over it. I clean her cage regularly, remove poop as soon as I find it and clean anything the poop touches.

I am going to call the vet Monday morning to make an appointment. In the mean time, today is her feeding day. Should I still see if she eats? She's pretty clockwork with her feeding and even ate like a champ while in shed. She's pretty small for her age so I'm concerned about skipping meals for her.

[bcr229]

I wouldn't feed today, the stress of a vet visit on Monday may cause a regurge.

Also is she going into shed? If they're not humid enough they can get stuck/dried shed in their nostrils, which causes a wheezing sound.

You may want to get a humidifier for the room she's in. Even a small fan on its lowest setting blowing air across a bowl of water will help. We run a wood stove when the temperatures dip below the mid-20's because our heat pump can't keep up, and the humidity in the house crashes into the single digits unless I put some bowls of water on the wood stove and another one in front of the blower that moves the heated air into the house.

[kimmu]

She had a shed at Christmas time and started tail first. It all came off fine except for around her head. I did the warm wet towel thing and thought it all came off, but maybe I missed some. It kinda looks like there still may be some on her snout. I'm a worry wort so I'll still take her to the vet to make sure, of course. I'll hold off on feeding her then.

I have a humidifier in the room - it's my bedroom - because me and the cat have asthma. This will be the last winter in this house, so I am really looking forward to a place without radiators.

[Albert Clark]

Try using some cypress mulch and misting it as it dries. You can even use the cypress mulch inside of the hides as a added humidity increaser. Yeah, hold off with feeding until after the vet visit. However attempt to feed as ill animals still need nutrition. That is provided she will accept it. Hydration is easier for them to accept if truly ill. Humidity and plenty of clean drinking/ soaking water. Good luck.

[CALM Pythons]

Keep us posted.

[kimmu]

Vet appointment for Friday which is the earliest the exotics vet could schedule me for. They're also an hour away from where I live so half day of work for me.

Still no bubbles or mucus but the occasional sneeze sound. She keeps glaring at me for food so I'm gonna feed her tonight.