There are a few breeders trying to bring awareness to it. There are several videos on facebook about it as well. There is a company in Texas that will test for it (RAL). It is not a new disease just becoming a topic of discussion more frequently as of late.
The general consensus from what I have heard/read is is is more common in gtp's and carpet pythons but has been seen in ball pythons and other species of snakes. There are some snakes that live with it showing no signs or symptoms for years. Some get it and die rather quickly. From what I understand is it is not the nido that kills them, nido simply suppresses their immune system and allows an opportunistic virus or bacteria to take hold and kill the animal. Testing costs about 35.00 per animal if I remember correctly, not a lot for someone with only 1 snake however very expensive for large scale breeders. Another issue is it is possible to get false negatives when testing for it.
Understanding all of this makes it pretty obvious why some large scale breeders would not want to even talk about this disease let alone admit if they ever had a snake in their collection with it. Just a rumor about it could essentially destroy someone's business as well as livelihood.
I personally plan on getting all of our stuff tested and re-tested. From this point on everything that comes in will be tested at the beginning of and end of quarantine. I don't have any animals showing and signs of illness however for me it is not worth the risk.
Reply With Quote