Followed Regurge Protocol, now what??

[Skaaglore]

Good day.

Had a regurge a while ago, went and followed regurge protocol, ie, ten days no feeding and fed smaller prey item than usual with extra slits cut on the back (usually make 4 slits). First feeding after regurge with smaller prey item than usual, went as it was supposed to, food went in one side, came out the other. The next feeding, she/he regurged.

Now for some background, the corn snake is about 1 year old and in excess of 65 - 70 grams, had not weighed for about 3 weeks. Normal prey item smaller than on the Munson Plan, feeding +-5 gram Fuzzies, bought a fair amount and have nearly finished them. Was planning on getting ready to move up to 8 - 10 gram hoppers before regurges started. The temps in the viv have not changed, ie 29 degrees celcius on warm side (sorry, not sure what it is in fahrenheit). Use a thermostactically controlled UHT.

I initially thought it might have been stress from a new log i placed in the viv (place log in viv, waited 5 days for her/him to get used to the log before feeding). Have subsequently taken log out and returned viv to layout as before. Have 3 hides, warm side, middle and cool side, use paper toweling as bedding in which snake spends most of time under.

I live in South Africa, Cape Town, and have already searched for Nutribak, does not seem to be stocked here. Another thing, we are heading into winter down here. For us in Cape Town it means the days get much shorter, from sunset in summer at about 19:30 - 20:00 to sunset in winter at about 17:30 - 18:00. Could this much shorter daylight period be a factor in regurges?

In short, what should I do? Starting to get really worried. Planning on buying Grapefruit Seed Extract (Citrocidal). What is the dosage for GSE in drinking water? If I don't answer any questions quickly, its because I'm on dial-up and have to pay for being online. Will be popping in during the course of the day. Thank you for any responses in advance.

[Skaaglore]

Sorry, forgot to mention. I do not handle for at least 72 hours after feeding.

[Jevard]

actualy shorter days can sometimes triger the brumation instinct your snake may simply be preparing for a hibernation so its likly this is a normal behaviour but always be sure to do visual health check frequently and look for sudden health issues

[diamondlil]

For GSE, I put about 2 drops in a pint of water, same as human dosage, so you can't taste it

[Skaaglore]

Hi.
Thanks for the replies. Have bought GSE, so will dose the water. One pint being equal to approximatly 500ml?

[Skaaglore]

Anything else I can do besides GSE and regurge protocool? It quite difficult getting herp supplies here, since herping is very much in its infancy in cape town area. For example, only one pet store sells f/t, and it quite a drive. For post regurge feeding, would it be ok if messy, to cut a fuzzy in half and feed?

I've been thinking of maybe having a light on in the room, viv is in the spare room (which i'm trying to turn into snake room :) ) Maybe one on those "energy saving bulbs" and put it on a 12/12 hour timer, so there a light on in the room simulating 12 hour days?

[Nanci]

How big was the second prey item he regurged, compared to his regular sized meal?

I do this: For the first four meals, cut the pink in half lengthwise, while frozen, and feed one half. Then for the next two meals, find a very tiny pink and cut in thirds crosswise, and feed all three pieces. Then move to cutting the pinks in half, feeding both pieces, and gradually, VERY gradually, increase the size of the pink up to what the snake was eating or should be eating. My snake that regurged did so in January, and has now progressed to double pinks, but I am still cutting them in half! It doesn't hurt anything, and he is doing fine and growing quickly.

I am keeping a five day feeding schedule, but I have heard experienced breeders recommend going to seven days. That sure doesn't hurt anything.

[Nanci]

You could ask Kathy Love if she can ship Nutribac to SA.

[Lynnea]

Follow this link: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=66592 for what I have been doing for Mystery and her regurges. I stopped using GSE, use Nutribac (obtained from Kathy Love), and so far, a month now and no regurges, normal eliminations.

Best of luck!

[kathylove]

You will have to use very tiny meals - however small they have to be to prevent regurges. In some cases, I went to liquid food via tube. Do not increase size very fast - it can cause another regurge.

I can mail NutriBac, although postage is not cheap and it will probably take more than a week to get there (see my site - under tools and products - for details). But you can try to see if you can find BeneBac from a bird supplier - it is similar, but for birds, and has been around longer than the reptile version. I have heard some people have had success with it. Although I have never tried it, I would consider going to a local health food store and buying a probiotic made for human use. I would get one with as many different beneficial organisms as possible. I don't know if it would help, because I don't know if the organisms are close enough to the species that should be in herps. But I don't think it could hurt, and maybe it would help.

The real key is to keep stress down to an absolute minimum, and to feed meals that are so easy to digest that they don't get regurged. This allows the digestive tract to rebuild itself and heal. Every regurge tears it down, and every digested meal (no matter how small) helps heal it. Those are the main things to remember.

[Skaaglore]

Hi.

THANK YOU so very much for all the responces,I REALLY appreciate it, will be feeding a half pinky as the next couple of meals. I think I'll be able to find BeneBac here in SA, since homing pigeons is a very popular hobby/sport here.

I was also considering using a probiotic for human use, was not sure if it would work, due to radically different body temps, but as Kathy Love says, it cannot hurt. Will see what I can find.