A few quick questions...

[BigS06]

Heres a brief rundown before I continue:
- cypress mulch/bed-a-beast mix for substrate
- 2 identical hides 82 cool side, 92 warm side
- 2 UTHs and 1 CHE on thermostats
- 50-60% humidity
- Fake plants and vines
- She is 452g after a poop with 2 mice in her ATM
- Roughly 28-30" long
- Fed every saturday with 2 adult mice 22-28g never missed a meal except when completely in blue.


So I recently took my girl to the vet just to get checked out and have a fecal sample taken. Well the vet gave me 5 doses of fenbendezole to be given orally either every day or every other.

Its been going smoothly and she still fed for me saturday after being restrained the three prior days so I take that as a good sign, however she has seemed a bit more... active? Like when I take her out she will wander for about an hour whether the lights are on or not, she almost seems restless, or like shes trying to escape. The vet told me that if she had a lack of energy or loss of appetite to stop the meds, but shes having the opposite reaction?

Also on saturday she missed the F/T mouse on the first try and grabbed a large chunk of frog moss which she then coiled. She loosened up a bit and I got most of it away from her but she still had a small mouthfull. I can only assume she swallowed the smal piece since I couldnt locate it, and she did eat her two mice immediately after so do you think this will be a problem?

Recently she has also begun to "stalk" the dogs and I on feeding day. For the last 3 weeks or so she has looked at us like were food immediately after eating, to the point that she tries to get through the glass (not striking) particulary for the dogs lol. I should note that the dogs arent constantly looking into the tank they just walk by from time to time. She also wanders about after eating for about 45 minutes looking for more food or so it seems.

I gave her a 30 minute soak and massage in so 90 degree water this morning as she hadnt pooped in just about a month and she seemed to enjoy the water, took a long drink and relaxed with long slow tongue flicks (which when coupled with steady movement is a sign of contentment yeah?) Anyway she rewarded me with a giant pile of "healthy" looking poop... Immediately after I took her out to dry her. What a great start to my day

Now the short and sweet summary:

- Do you think the change in behavior is due to the meds? {fenbendezole} If so does it sound like trouble?

- Do you think the moss will be an issue?

- Is stalking the dogs a normal thing? Could she still be hungry?

- What are some things to look for in determining if a snake is comfortable with its surroundings, or whats going on around it?

Thanks for the help, its appreciated!

[starmom]

What is fenbendezole and why was she given it if she is healthy?
I am confused....

[BigS06]

Im sorry I forgot to include that info, the fecal results came in a few days after the vet visit and indicated some kind of worms. I dont actually have the info on me at the moment. The fenbendezole is a wormer, which I hope has gotten rid of all the little nasties.

[Vacado]

Animals loaded down with worms tend to be a little more lethargic. Is it possible that, with her little butt-buddies gone, she's perhaps just feeling back to normal? If the worms were getting her down for a while, she could have seemed normal to you and this quick bounce back to her old self might be throwing you off. That would be my guess here.

I also don't think the moss will be an issue. Snakes (most herps in general I would think) do occasionally ingest bits of their environment with their meals, and as long as you're not keeping her on broken glass substrate it should pass through just fine.

She is certainly lucky to have such a caring keeper, though

v

[Slim]

How are you administering the fenbendezole? Just currious.

[BigS06]

The meds were being administered orally throug a little syringe. Just had to get her to open up so I could pop it into her throat... Sounds kind of odd the way I worded it but its worked out pretty well.