Possible constipation

[Greenmanbacchus]

Hey everyone
While I do have a lovely 2009 F Snow Corn, my question is
actually about a neonate ( 1-9-11) Mussurana.
I'm not new at snake-keeping....I've just never had an issue with constipation.
I raised this Mussurana OOE and she has been doing very well...nearly 24 inches already. Recently I fed her the usual four large FT pinks...and then turned my back for a moment. She finished the fourth pink much faster than I'd expected and went straight to the bowl full of defrosted mice and seized a fuzzie....backwards, even. She had such a hold on it that I feared to damage her teeth etc. It really was too big, I thought....took her 20 min to get it down. Well....she has not pooped since...it's been ten days.
I'm assuming she's obstructed/constipated. I have not fed her since and she is housed alone, so I know there has been no poop.
So...now I'm thinking in terms of laxatives or enemas etc...something I have no experience with.
As a side note, she is apparently ferociously hungry as usual. Add to that, she looks fine...there is nothing visible or palpable. Were it not for the simple fact that she has assuredly not pooped in ten days, there is nothing to suggest that anything is amiss. She has shed in the interim ( today, actually). She has had good warm baths every day and I've elevated her ambient temp a bit and made sure that she is physically active each day.
( Left to her own devices, she'd spend all her time motionless in a hide)
Perhaps you may have some input for me with regard to this matter.
I'm reluctant to feed her until I see some poop LOL
Dear me, but I've run on......sorry....I'm really not sure what else to do.
I could take her to a vet ( that'd be a first)...but again, at this time
she seems just fine.
Any help you might give is greatly appreciated
If you prefer, you might email me at: [email protected]
Thanks
GMB ( Rick )
[email protected]

 

[AliCat37]

Well.. I don't think ten days is anything to worry about. You can always let her go for a swim in room temp water if you are truly worried. However, on a different note, why are you feeding her four pinkies instead of a large fuzzy?

 

[bitsy]

I think you're doing all the right things. Constipation or an obstruction is usually marked with noticable bulging somewhere on the body - constipation usually near the cloaca.

The fact that you can't see or feel any unusual bumps, just indicates to me that her digestive system is taking longer to deal with such a big meal.

I'd leave her in peace to get on with it. As you're really worried, I'd hold off feeding her until she does "go". That's more for your peace of mind than her welfare. Going without food for 10 days - especially after an unusually large meal - is absolutely nothing for a reliable feeder of that age. She could probably go without for several weeks and not feel any ill-effects. Corns need surprisingly little food.

 

[Greenmanbacchus]

Well.. I don't think ten days is anything to worry about. You can always let her go for a swim in room temp water if you are truly worried. However, on a different note, why are you feeding her four pinkies instead of a large fuzzy?

Hey Ali Thanks for the quick response!. Sorry for the delay in my own response....I tried to get back immediately, but couldn't get the site pulled up for some reason.
In answer to your question, I tend to offer several small food items rather than one big item....I figure it's easier to assimilate.
Hehehe...and yet...here I am with this issue :uhoh: At this point it's been another ten days and the issue is not yet resolved. She's been getting a
warm bath ( 85 ) every day for all this time.
Once again...thanks for your quick response
GMB ( Rick )
[email protected]

 

[Greenmanbacchus]

Re: possible constipation

I think you're doing all the right things. Constipation or an obstruction is usually marked with noticable bulging somewhere on the body - constipation usually near the cloaca.

The fact that you can't see or feel any unusual bumps, just indicates to me that her digestive system is taking longer to deal with such a big meal.

I'd leave her in peace to get on with it. As you're really worried, I'd hold off feeding her until she does "go". That's more for your peace of mind than her welfare. Going without food for 10 days - especially after an unusually large meal - is absolutely nothing for a reliable feeder of that age. She could probably go without for several weeks and not feel any ill-effects. Corns need surprisingly little food.

Hey Bitsy Thanks for your quick response. I didn't mean to fall off the map....for whatever reason I couldn't get onto the site the next day...or the next... It's now ten days later and there has been a little....a very little...improvement. During her daily warm baths she first ( (1-19 ) produced a couple of little...specks, really...better than nothing, I thought... Accordingly, two days later I gave her two pinkies ( rather than her usual four) reasoning that this might stimulate her further. two days after that,( Sat 1-21 ) she produced something a bit more substantial....'half a poop', if you will.... So...obviously she's not fully obstructed. That's good news....still, as with most colubrids, she normally produces a great deal of poop. She's had one more pinkie as of tonight, but still no more poop. Looking at the overall picture, I figured I had to feed her something. She's obviously ravenously hungry. I'm guessing that she may be plugged with fur. Well, if nothing else, she's very young and small....as long as she can continue to eat and pass something, eventually she'll out-grow the blockage and pass it. *sigh*
Thanks Bitsy

GMB ( Rick )
[email protected]