BP Farts/Poops and then has foam around his mouth???

[Danya]

Hey everyone, It's my second year of owning my BP and so far everything has been great. So, just now I noticed that my BP started to fart REALLY loud and basically had a wet poop. The farting lasted for like 20 seconds, and when he was done, he had foam around his mouth, which turned into a single drop of saliva, and cleared away. My first thought was an RI, but I handled him today, and he was great. No wheezing, clicking, just normal behavior. He's acting fine right now, just slithering around his enclosure as he usually he does at night. What could this mean? Did he strain himself so hard to poop that he started to foam??? Thanks. (P.S: My temps are great, but I was gone for around 3-4 days, so his humidity during that time was around 30%)

[Danya]

Also, he just finished shedding this morning(2 pieces), if it matters.

[Bogertophis]

He might have just taken a drink of water, but do keep an eye on him (for bubbles around the mouth- possible RI) for a while. I don't think it's related to what came out
the other end, lol...snakes can pass gas & some BPs are pretty "good" at it.

[Danya]

He might have just taken a drink of water, but do keep an eye on him (for bubbles around the mouth- possible RI) for a while. I don't think it's related to what came out
the other end, lol...snakes can pass gas & some BPs are pretty "good" at it.

Yeah, I'll keep him an eye on it. Today is feeding day, so do you think it is wise to feed him right now? Also, just to be safe I raised the overall temp in my room just in case it is an early sign of an RI.

[Bogertophis]

No reason not to feed him, & if he refuses food, that may or may not indicate something is going on with him.

[Danya]

No reason not to feed him, & if he refuses food, that may or may not indicate something is going on with him.

He has never refused to eat since I got him, so that would definitely be an indicator for me that something is not right.

[Danya]

*UPDATE* I decided not to feed him last night because I wanted to restrain him and forcefully open his mouth with a q-tip. When I opened his mouth, I saw like a few bubbles in the very back of his mouth. Everything else looked fine. Is this normal?

[Bogertophis]

Without seeing what you're seeing (we all describe things differently) I'd have to say not to worry if you aren't seeing any open-mouth breathing, or excess salivation &
more bubbles than what you describe so far. That is by no means a guarantee...if that was MY snake, I'd go ahead & feed him: first, to SEE if he's willing to eat, & 2nd,
IF he's sick he may not eat for a while so it's better for him to have more energy to go on right now. I'd do everything I could NOT to stress him, meanwhile...meaning
don't handle him, make sure his cage stats are spot-on & raise the ambient temps by just a couple (2-3) degrees. Feed if he's willing, then let him rest & cross your fingers. Sometimes a mild RI in snakes can be treated conservatively (the BEST way!) by doing this.

[Danya]

*UPDATE* Bad news. I tried feeding my BP, but he only showed a little interest. I have two reasoning for this so far. My first being that I fell asleep when I had the rat in the hot water, so it basically stayed in the water for 2 hours. Maybe it got overcooked, and he didn't like the smell of it? My second reasoning is that when I had to restrain him by holding his neck(to open his mouth) I might have hurt him, and he was stressed out from it. This is the first time that he hasn't eaten since he started feeding for me. He's currently just exploring around his tank, like he does most nights. I'm really hoping that this was just a random fluke, and not because of a potential RI. I will try and feed him tomorrow night again, and if he doesn't eat then, I'm gonna have to start treating him for an RI. Thanks.

[Bogertophis]

*UPDATE* Bad news. I tried feeding my BP, but he only showed a little interest. I have two reasoning for this so far. My first being that I fell asleep when I had the rat in the hot water, so it basically stayed in the water for 2 hours. Maybe it got overcooked, and he didn't like the smell of it? My second reasoning is that when I had to restrain him by holding his neck(to open his mouth) I might have hurt him, and he was stressed out from it. This is the first time that he hasn't eaten since he started feeding for me. He's currently just exploring around his tank, like he does most nights. I'm really hoping that this was just a random fluke, and not because of a potential RI. I will try and feed him tomorrow night again, and if he doesn't eat then, I'm gonna have to start treating him for an RI. Thanks.

I agree that the rat may have gotten pretty funky; also, if he is stressed and-or sore from having his mouth forcefully opened (and I'm sure he was) you are better off waiting several days to a week before offering him food again. Remember that offering food too often frequently adds to the stress a snake apparently feels, & makes them less likely to eat. Think positive for now, but be very observant.

If you have good hearing, try just listening to his breathing from as close as you can* to see if you pick up any clicking-squeaking. (*When I'm holding a snake, I hold them with my ear to their head/neck, but when a snake is moving in their cage you can often hear suspect sounds in a quiet room, & certainly watch for bubbles.)