Not digesting???

[mikehayn]

Could anyone please explain why my little anery motley has a fat stomach?? She is approx. 20cm long, was born in March and has been eating fine. I live in South Africa and it is our winter here at the moment. I have her on a heaterpad and when I fed her 8 days ago she was fine, but the lump in her belly has not gone down...I've attached a pic so you can have a look. Please anybody, some suggestions; Is there anything I can do and is she going to be okay???

[Dennis Gulla]

It may be that your temps are not warm enough for her to digest. However, I would think that if she can't digest something that she would have regurged by now. Has she been having normal bowel movements up until this week?

[mikehayn]

Yes, absolutely normal. She is also still active and moving about normally...

[Dennis Gulla]

I'm assuming that she has a cool end and a warm end in her enclosure to thermoregulate herself. Are your temps in the warm end warm enough? Does she tend to stay on one side more then the other?

[mikehayn]

Yes, one end of the tank is cool, about 70 deg, and the Warm end is about 85 deg. I haven't really noticed if she preffers one end to the other???

[Dennis Gulla]

It sure would not hurt to raise your temps a little bit, especially with really young animals. I would see about raising the cool end of your tank to about 80 degrees. By raising the temps of the cool end, it will also raise the temps of the warm end by a couple of degrees. I like to keep the warm end of my enclosures between 85 and 88 degrees and the cool end between 80 and 82. Warmer temperatures will decrease the time it takes to digest a meal. Start with that and see what happens...

[mikehayn]

Last night I also noticed that she is now in the blue, could that have something to do with it???

[Dennis Gulla]

No, I don't think that has anything to do with this situation. I try not to feed my snakes that are under a year old if I have the opportunity to notice that they are going into a shed. I noticed that some hatchlings have regurged when fed a few days before a shed.

Your animal was fed over a week ago, so I don't think that the shed cycle has anything to do with the slow digestion.

[mikehayn]

So is there anything else you can suggest or should I just not feed her again until the bump is gone?? and just hope she will be okay, cause I can't think of anything else to do. I read somewhere earlier in this forum about soaking snakes in warm water helps them to relieve themselves. I also read that a swollen belly could be caused by a disease called 'crypto'. I've never heard of it before, but reading what people have said about this disease in this forum, it's sounds like once a snake has it, it's going to die?? Is that correct and is there a possibility she has this disease (God, I hope not!!!!)

P.S. Thanks for all your help so far

[Dennis Gulla]

Is the lump in her belly still the same size as it was a few days ago? Soaking the snake in warm water helps alleviate constipation if the animal has gone a couple of feedings without a bowel movement. I get a small plastic container fill it with warm water until it looks high enough to just cover your animals back. I place the snake in the container and cover it. Place the container on the warm side of your snakes enclosure and leave it there for twenty to thirty minutes. If your snake had any fecal matter in it's intestines, it would come out shortly after soaking them.

You could try this, I'm not sure that is what your snakes problem is though. I guess it would not hurt...

Crypto is pretty rare, but very contagious and fatal. I don't think that is the problem either. If that lump is still the same size as it was over a week ago I would try to find a vet that knows about reptiles and take your snake in. I've given every suggestion that I think would help... It's probably time to see a doctor.

Good Luck!

[isis11]

Has the bump gone down AT ALL or moved down since you fed her? Has she pooped since you fed her? A bath might be good for her if she hasn't pooped; make sure the water is shallow and a little warm for her, so about 80-85 degrees F, which would be a bit cold to your touch. This might sound silly, but maybe the meal was just way too big for her and it's taking her a really long time to digest. A vet check wouldn't hurt if you have access to one. Have you handled her? Perhaps getting her muscles working would help her move the meal along. She's beautiful; I hope she gets better soon.

Good Luck!

[The Nebula]

Hi Mike

I also live in SA. Go check out http://www.netspace.co.za/snakephpbb/index.php

[mikehayn]

Over the week-end she had a shed and the lump is GONE!!!!!! Thanks for all your advise guys!!! I'll post a pic of her soon - she's looking even better now she's shed!!! - Thanks once again.

[Cindy]

I am so glad she is better, we really care about these little guys don't we...

[carol]

Originally posted by Dennis Gulla
I try not to feed my snakes that are under a year old if I have the opportunity to notice that they are going into a shed. I noticed that some hatchlings have regurged when fed a few days before a shed.


That makes me feel a little less crazy. I had always noticed that myself, and when I mentioned it on the forums a year or two ago, I got the drift that I was the only one that had observed that. Of course there are always ones that will be able to keep anything down anytime. However, if I am working with a comprimised snake I'll never feed it before a shed.