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I am scared out of my wits right now....
- Thread starter starsevol
- Start date
starsevol
Cohabbing is cruelty...
Well, I finally got through to the vet.
The vet has no idea what it is. She said it looked like "soft tiisue" and wants to do a barium tubing, followed by more X-rays tomorrow. She said a tumor is possible. She said she doesn't know if it is contagious or not. I mentioned "Cryto" and the vet didn't know what I meant....the crypto she is familiar with is a fungal infection of some kind. I mentioned the symptoms associated with parasitic crytpto and she had no idea....and said she would have to look it up.....
I'm at a loss....I REALLY want to know what this is.....
The vet has no idea what it is. She said it looked like "soft tiisue" and wants to do a barium tubing, followed by more X-rays tomorrow. She said a tumor is possible. She said she doesn't know if it is contagious or not. I mentioned "Cryto" and the vet didn't know what I meant....the crypto she is familiar with is a fungal infection of some kind. I mentioned the symptoms associated with parasitic crytpto and she had no idea....and said she would have to look it up.....
I'm at a loss....I REALLY want to know what this is.....
Nanci
Alien Lover
I don't get how a tumor could grow that quickly. I guess barium would show if it's a partial or full obstruction. Interesting, I wish I could be there! If this ever happens to a snake of mine, it's getting the full treatment just like a human would, where I work. I'd like to know, if it was a mouse, would you still be able to see the skeleton? By now?
SnakeCreations
Ophiolatress
Beth,
That would scare me too. You got some great advice and sounds like you're doing everything possible, hang in there.
((huggs))
-Tonya
That would scare me too. You got some great advice and sounds like you're doing everything possible, hang in there.
((huggs))
-Tonya
starsevol
Cohabbing is cruelty...
She has operated on one of my rats, and extended her life by 16 months. A tumor surgery. And another tumor surgery and a spay later on the same rattie....
This is also the vet that tried to save Festivus....
starsevol
Cohabbing is cruelty...
stephen
corn breeder
Well
Sorry I didnt see this earlier, I would have her swim in a tub a really warm water maybe 100 degrees . Do that twice a day ,she may poop out what it is then after that if the swelling goes down,next time you feed her ,feed her a small meal with nutribac to help her out. Hope she does Ok
Sorry I didnt see this earlier, I would have her swim in a tub a really warm water maybe 100 degrees . Do that twice a day ,she may poop out what it is then after that if the swelling goes down,next time you feed her ,feed her a small meal with nutribac to help her out. Hope she does Ok
Shiari
Blutterer
Cryptosporidium is indeed an gastrointestinal parasite, but it is actually closely related to Toxoplasmosis.
http://www.addl.purdue.edu/newsletters/1996/summer/snakes.shtml
http://www.addl.purdue.edu/newsletters/1996/summer/snakes.shtml
KJUN
New member
Tell her you mean Cryptosporidium serpentis. Find a new vet if she doesn't know what that genus means because this is MUCH more important than just an infection of reptiles. NOT a fungus. Recurrent, but sporadic, regurgitation is the main symptom, and I can't think of a case of Crypto where a snake with THAT large of an obvious sign of gastric swelling didn't also show the regurgitation occasionally. (I'm sure it happens, but it isn't very common.) The gastric swelling doesn't feel like liquid, so if this feels real soft, it almost "has" be something else. Of course, the gastric swelling is likely to look like soft tissue (which doesn't feel soft like liquid) in an X-ray. I do wonder what she expects to learn from the barium if she suspects crypto now. Shrug? Maybe she is looking for an obstruction, but an obstruction wouldn't look like soft tissue in the earlier x-ray.
Anyway, realize a fecal is likely to come back Crypto negative even on a positive snake. The best way to check for it is via a gastric lavage, but even that will often give a false negative in a known positive animal. Biopsy is the only "sure" way of rulling it out, but that's a little drastic.
As far as being contagious, crypto is via an oral-fecal route. It is actually "rather difficult" to transfer from one animal to another unless you move things from one cage to another (this is why I say to NEVER re-use food items that aren't eaten!) like substrate, waterbowls, hide boxes, etc. Crypto is also not the end-all hobbyists tend to think it is out of fear. Combining what I just mentioned with the fact that it is no longer believed to be that rare in the WILD, this is not something to give you nightmares about the rest of your snakes as long as you use proper husbandry techniques from one snake to the next.
It seems to be a naturally occurring infection, but it can go for 15+ years without becoming symptomatic...and will only become symptomatic (many times, anyway) once something else stresses the animal (or the re-infection rate in captivity is exceptionally high) allowing a problem to develop from Crypto. In other words, every single cornsnake colony in America - everyone reading this - could have crypto in their collection and not even know about it - ever. Anyone with any WCs running through at all probably have an EXTREMELY high chance of having it - or of having had it. We just don't know HOW common it is, but we do know it is very common in asymptomatic animals in some wild populations!
Sorry if some of this is a repeat - I didn't read all of the above posts. The main thing is to say, "Sorry about that snake whatever the problem is" and "don't think it is the end of the world if it is Crypto as long as you have taken proper precautions in advance to break the oral-fecal route of infection."
KJ
Anyway, realize a fecal is likely to come back Crypto negative even on a positive snake. The best way to check for it is via a gastric lavage, but even that will often give a false negative in a known positive animal. Biopsy is the only "sure" way of rulling it out, but that's a little drastic.
As far as being contagious, crypto is via an oral-fecal route. It is actually "rather difficult" to transfer from one animal to another unless you move things from one cage to another (this is why I say to NEVER re-use food items that aren't eaten!) like substrate, waterbowls, hide boxes, etc. Crypto is also not the end-all hobbyists tend to think it is out of fear. Combining what I just mentioned with the fact that it is no longer believed to be that rare in the WILD, this is not something to give you nightmares about the rest of your snakes as long as you use proper husbandry techniques from one snake to the next.
It seems to be a naturally occurring infection, but it can go for 15+ years without becoming symptomatic...and will only become symptomatic (many times, anyway) once something else stresses the animal (or the re-infection rate in captivity is exceptionally high) allowing a problem to develop from Crypto. In other words, every single cornsnake colony in America - everyone reading this - could have crypto in their collection and not even know about it - ever. Anyone with any WCs running through at all probably have an EXTREMELY high chance of having it - or of having had it. We just don't know HOW common it is, but we do know it is very common in asymptomatic animals in some wild populations!
Sorry if some of this is a repeat - I didn't read all of the above posts. The main thing is to say, "Sorry about that snake whatever the problem is" and "don't think it is the end of the world if it is Crypto as long as you have taken proper precautions in advance to break the oral-fecal route of infection."
KJ
starsevol
Cohabbing is cruelty...
I don't reuse food items, if the item touches the cage or the snake. I will if I hold the item before the snake and the snake "says no".
Keeper's mother is with me and doing well. Keeper's father died suddenly at the age of 9, of unknown causes.
Keeper has never regurged once in her life. Not ever....
I know 2 things...if Keeper is contagious, I will have to have her euthanized....
And if her prognosis isn't EXCELLENT I will have to have her euthanized. I don't want her to suffer. We thought Festivus would make it and the following 6 weeks were hell....and he died anyway...
Keeper's mother is with me and doing well. Keeper's father died suddenly at the age of 9, of unknown causes.
Keeper has never regurged once in her life. Not ever....
I know 2 things...if Keeper is contagious, I will have to have her euthanized....
And if her prognosis isn't EXCELLENT I will have to have her euthanized. I don't want her to suffer. We thought Festivus would make it and the following 6 weeks were hell....and he died anyway...
gregrod420
New member
going off clues (brumation) is it possible she is retaining egg(s)?
uberalice
roflcopterz
Good luck. We're going through a similar mysterious lump issue with the blizzard; he eats, passes fecals, drinks, etc but developed a large lump that changes size (and occasionally disappears). We've tried several antibiotics, as well as a lavage and testing for crypto three times. The best guess we have now is that it's a tumor of some type, and he's going in yet again in about a week and a half. Hopefully Keeper turns out to have a very minor issue that passes quickly, I'd hate for her to go through protracted treatment.