CRAP. Certain she's sick now (pics) & my vet's on vacation this week. BOO

I've had snakes for over 15 years, and I've mercifully never encountered a respiratory infection. Retained eye caps, tumors, minor injuries, food strikes (ah, finicky ball pythons)...yes. But never actual *illnesses*--but Kamalah is definitely not right.

She shed this afternoon, so I took her out to check her over and see if the clicking was over. Nope. Not only was it not over, but she almost immediately opened her mouth and dropped a mouthful of water (? drool?) in my lap. And then returned:

...The puffing throat (with and without opened mouth)...


...the flat-out opening of the mouth...


...and then the partial opening of the mouth.


Her eyes are clear, there is no nasal discharge, her mouth has no redness, she has a good appetite, and there is no real bubbling (although she did a similar drool thing again later).

OF COURSE my herp vet is on vacation this week and won't be back until Tuesday. I got her an UTH today but am really thinking she needs to be seen. I'm calling a nearby reptile store tomorrow for another herp vet reference.

Aw dang, I thought it would have cleared up after her shed. Was it a good shed? Does she have any shed stuck to the inside of her nostrils?

Although I haven't experienced it myself, I have heard of corn snakes spitting out water if you handle them right after they take a drink.

I would be looking for an available vet and get her in ASAP.
If she's been showing signs for a while, she's going to need medical attention right away.
Untreated, RI's can be fatal.

I got ahold of her previous owner and the contact information for her vet, so I'm calling them first thing tomorrow. Oof, I've never dealt with an RI before...I hope she'll be okay soon! Poor thing.

I called 5 different clinics today and geez...everyone is on vacation or booked solid or blah blah blah. But I did manage to get her in with a highly recommended reptile vet first thing Saturday morning, so hopefully she'll be okay enough in the interim. It's better than the Tuesday my vet was first available, at least.

She's currently actively exploring her cage, so I take that as a good sign. She's probably hungry--hmm, I might feed her today as if I feed her tomorrow as planned, she'd be going to the vet less than 24 hours after feeding.

I wouldn't either bother with feeding at all, honestly.

Ah, why's that? Too stressful when sick?

Definitely don't feed her. It will take away energy needed to fight the RI. Also she might regurge on the trip to or during the Vet visit due to handling and stress.
The "drool" was most likely from her stomach.
You mentioned getting a UTH for her. It will help her fight the RI if the ambient temp is in the mid to high 70's and basking is high 80's.
Hope all go's well !

That makes sense, daddio207. And sweet pixie (? or pac-man?) frog!

LauRuffian said:

That makes sense, daddio207. And sweet pixie (? or pac-man?) frog!

Click to expand...

Pac-man frog. strawberry albino morph named Miss Bel
She is one of my favorite pets for sure. She is huge, very aggressive and can jump the length of her tank to bite me LOL

daddio207 said:

Pac-man frog. strawberry albino morph named Miss Bel
She is one of my favorite pets for sure. She is huge, very aggressive and can jump the length of her tank to bite me LOL

Click to expand...

Ha ha! I love "she's one of my favorites" followed immediately by describing how aggressive she is.

Question on Kamalah--should I avoid handling her until we get her to the vet, too? I want to take her out and check on her, but also don't want to stress her.

That's what makes her one of my favorites LOL. She is true to her nature. She is unaware that it is I who cares, loves and feeds her.

To answer the question on Kamalah,
I would not handle her anymore. Based on your pics you gave her the most thorough exam earlier and doesn't warrant another so soon. The higher temps should keep the RI in check till you get her to the vet.