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ack help!

Vicic17
09-14-2010, 12:30 AM
Hey guys. about a month ago i made my first corn snake purchase, i picked up a miami (from a PET store :( sorry for that, it was a mistake, but i saw him and fell in love) anyways, the store said he got 2 or 3 feeds in and just downed them like a champ, and when i got him home, he had 3 meals (over the weeks) like a champ, then for some strange reason last week he had his first regurge, i didn't really think much of it, i thought maybe he wasnt done his last meal or something, so i waited over a week and tried again, the next day, another regurge.. i don't know why this is suddenly happening, one thing i did notice was a mite on him, i picked it off, and immediately removed the substrate, cleaned his container, and put down paper towel, his hide and water (nowhere for the mites to breed) i also quarantined my other snakes incase they somehow got the mites. COULD the reason for the sudden regurges be stress/uncomfortable due to the mites?

thanks.

bitsy
09-14-2010, 10:51 AM
OK, three separate problems then:

1) Repeated regurges
At the top of this section of the message board is a sticky called "Health Issues/Feeding Problems FAQ". This contains detailed instructions from Kathy Love on how to handle a regurge. Follow that to the letter. One regurge needn't be a big deal but repeated regurges can be life-threatening.

Check the basics. Too hot, too cold, stressed by too few hides -all can be a root cause of regurges and those are the problems that are most easily fixed.


2) The regurging snake has mites
Firstly, are you absolutely positive that it's definitely a mite? It's unlikely that regurging and a minor mite infestation are directly linked although both could indicate that the snake was in poor condition when it arrived. I would have thought that it would take a serious mite problem to cause a Corn enough stress to regurge.

I've never had to treat mites, but I'm sure others will be along to help. I'm pretty sure you need to give the snake, tank and fittings some sort of anti-mite treatment. Just using your standard cleaner won't resolve the problem.

Perhaps you could edit the title of this post to include what you need help with? It doesn't seem to be attracting much input at the mo and you probably need more opinions.


3)Lack of quarantine
New arrivals aren't quarantined and now all your snakes could have mites

Sorry, hindsight is a wonderful thing. Whenever you bring a new snake into a home with existing reptiles, you should always keep the new animal quarantined - ideally in a separate room - for several weeks. Use separate equipment (feeding tubs, tongs, gloves etc). This is just a standard way of keeping your current animals safe and should be done regardless of how reliable the seller is. No good seller would take offence.

Nanci
09-14-2010, 12:20 PM
I am very concerned about the repeat regurge. I would consider it imperitive that you get Nutribac from Kathy Love and use it on all the snake's meals. You'll be starting with a pinky head, after the 8 day waiting period. In that time you could be putting the Nutribac in the snake's water, changing daily. When you feed the pink head, you want to powder it liberally with NB. Kathy's website is http://cornutopia.com I would not consider this optional...

Then go over the snake extremely thoroughly and look for mites. Look around the eyes and jaw, particularly. If you find any, someone here can help you decide on the least dangerous way to get rid of them- it's tricky with a hatchling.

Momto3boys
09-14-2010, 01:56 PM
I really have no advice but I hope everything turns out to be OK.

Vicic17
09-14-2010, 08:35 PM
Update - he had a big poo sittin on the front 'porch' of his hide, so i'm hoping the regurges were due to him taking his sweet time digesting and releasing his previous meal(s) still a little concerned about the mite. i picked ONE off of his 'chin' (it moved around in my hand, i thoroughly inspected all of them, none of the others seem to have it, and he only seems to have the one? i still have them all under quarantine though.

dickdeuel
09-15-2010, 12:22 PM
If you do have mites or want a preventive measure for the future, get a can of "Provent-a-mite" and follow the directions. If you found one adult mite then you can be sure there are many more. If they go untreated they will kill the snake and are probably the cause of the regurge.