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My snake's acting funny- is something wrong?

Lasairfina

Lasairfina

Chelsy C.
I'm really worried about my snake and I need to ask advise. I've already been told by a few people that I'm just being a paranoid 'mommy' to him, but he's been acting really weird.

Draco is my first adult snake, he's three years old and I've only had him for two months, so maybe it's normal and I'm just freaking. I gave my baby to a friend when she was six months old because I had to move into a dorm.

He always sleeps in his favorite hide (whiskey bottle tube). Always. I've never seen him sleep outside of it. Today he crawled out and currently sleeping sprawled all the way across his 40 gallon tank, half underneath his log hide (which he's NEVER slept under). Also when I had him out earlier today, he was lounging around my neck and I noticed his breathing sounded kinda wheezy.

Two points- I left him alone for two weeks when I went to Michigan for the holidays, maybe he got more used to coming out of his hide being all alone for all that time? Also when I cleaned his tank when I got back, I put aspen substrate in his tank. The guy I bought him from used sand, and up until this time I had been using newspaper. Would that make a difference?

This might also make a difference- He has no heater in his cage, the guy I bought him from (tank and all) said he's never had one in his life. I've been meaning to put one in, but I'm a starving college student. I literally struggle to keep us both fed and I haven't had to change to spare on one yet.

Oh, and hi! This would be my first post here. Sorry for such a newbie post, but I'm really worried, even if I've managed to half convince myself I shouldn't be.
 
welllllllllll, if his breathing sounds wheezy, that is DEFINITELY a bad sign and your snake should probably go to the vet ASAP! wheezing is a sign of a respiratory infection, which can be quite deadly to snakes, quite quickly! if you can't afford a vet, there may be programs in your town/city where they will help you out with costs, and most good vets will allow you to arrange a payment plan, so you don't have to cough up a huge chunk of money (that a starving college student doesn't have) all at once. this would be my main concern.

also, are you POSITIVE you have aspen? if you have pine or cedar, those types of woods are far more aromatic, which i KNOW can cause respiratory problems/skin problems (rashes, scabs, etc) in rodents, so i don't see why it couldn't do harm to a snake.

maybe try switching back to the newspaper might be a good bet until you can get your snake checked out.

i wouldn't be TOO worried, but i would for sure be concerned about the wheezing. good luck!
 
It's definitely aspen, it's the kind that's made specifically for snakes. I was told that I was probably overreacting to his breathing, but that combined with all the sudden behavior changes made me worried. I'm calling a vet on Monday for sure, but being a weekend I just wanted to get some advise asap rather than waiting.
 
While you were away was the place heated? Because low temperatures can allow respiratory infections to develop. The first thing to do is to raise the temperature, but if you can't get a heater, how will you pay for a vet's fees? Do you know what the temperatures are?
 
Two things you must have:
Some sort of regulated heat source (heat mats can get VERY hot and burn a snake without regulation by a rheostat or thermostat) and a digital probe thermometer so you can tell how warm your snake is. Snakes need a heat gradient to move from the warm to cool side and regulate their body temperatures. If they cannot do this it is very stressful for them, if you combine that with low temps, you have illness. He needs to go to a vet, because, as previously stated, he could die very quickly from a RI.

temps should be around 70-73F for the cool end and 80-83F for the warm end.
I wish you luck with him!
 
Welcome to the forums! Another thing the breathing might be is simply him getting ready for a shed. It's entire possible to miss a snake's going in blue and getting cloudy-eyed. It would also explain his roaming around, as he may be looking for a more humid spot or a place he can rub off and start his shed. Look for duller colors, especially if he's a normal corn snake his black belly checkers may have faded to grey. Also looks for rub marks on his nose and slight wrinkling at the neck area. If you observe any of these things, try to up the humidity and/or give him a shed box. Another good thing to have is a hygrometer which reads the humidity levels. Normally these should be around 40%, but in shed you should try to reach around 60-80%. Good luck!
 
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