Sudden ball python injury ? Maybe ? Help please.

[Nessy1006]

So my ball python have always eaten fine and had great sheds, and it just shed today and ate a few days ago. I noticed today his neck was super flabby and it FREAKED me out. He also is sitting in a strange position, and his neck is slightly puffed out (or maybe that's the loose skin I am not sure). At one point he sat for a few minutes with his jaw open and this is so strange because yesterday he was completely fine. I am taking him to the vet tommorow but I was wondering what you think.


https://ibb.co/nPG735
https://ibb.co/dGeS35

[Sunnieskys]

Absolutely no idea. No mucus coming out of the mouth, nothing else out of the ordinary? This seems really weird.

[Oxylepy]

That is what they look like while swallowing. Which tends to happen while something is passing through the throat of the snake. This tends to bounce back quickly.

Hazarding a guess I would say there is something in it's throat. It is possible that checking this possibility could harm the snake.

That said, and knowing the risks, if you wanted to test this theory your self you could easily do so by touching the neck from the side. Essentially imagine touching the edge of a piece of hanging fabric from one side to have the fabric brush over your finger. With its skin as with fabric you would be looking for it to have give, like there isn't something internal. This would be very gentle and would involve touching from the side of whatever is stuck in there, not the edge or the tip, which could injure the snake.

There is a second way to test the same thing that is entirely passive, observe. It could take hours, but if it looks like there is something solid granting structure to the loose skin, you have something caught in its throat.

Identifying this in either way would help with a vet visit as it could target what the issue may or may not be before you go. If this is the issue the doctor will likely restrain the snake or put it under, then use a pair of hemostats to remove what is lodged in there. I wouldn't be surprised if it were a piece of that bedding

[Nessy1006]

Hmmm I am starting to think maybe something lodged in there or an RI. I managed to take a picture of his mouth while he had it open.

https://ibb.co/mqFvqk

[Oxylepy]

If it is something lodged in the throat the object is probably at the widest point in the throat. It also appears somewhat cocked to the side, so it is unlikely you would see anything just looking down the throat. Usually the expanded throat is not part of a respiratory infection. However it is possible that your snake may end up with an infection due to something lodged in the throat.

Again, see if the throat has give, or has some kind of underlying structure holding it open like a foreign object. That would be the best place to start for diagnosing thenproblem. Again, passive is the safer route, however touching done correctly can be much faster and more effective, although there is the potential of injuring the snake further. In either case, while transporting the snake to the vet, avoid the throat region

[BR8080]

Do you feed in the enclosure or a separate tub? There may be a piece of the substrate lodged in his throat.

[dr del]

What was happening at the other end of the snake at the time?