mindfreak
New member
Sorry this is so long, I just want to give you guys as thorough of an explanation as I can.
I've had Smeagol for about eight years now. He has never refused a meal except for about a month long period around 4 or 5 years ago that he had a respiratory infection. Other than that he has been in perfect health, always sheds great, and always eats.
About two months ago he just stopped eating out of the blue. I understand that some snakes do this but Smeagol never has, so it struck me as extremely strange. He didn't show any signs of illness or act strange, so I figured I'd just continue offering food until he took it.
A couple weeks later he started sneezing. Not loudly, not consistently. They were very few and far wide. He wasn't wheezing, his mouth/throat wasn't swollen, and there were no other symptoms of illness. This still concerned me as he still wasn't eating and was starting to lose weight. I raised his temperatures a little.
About a month after he stopped eating, I decided to take him to the vet. The vet couldn't hear anything wrong with his breathing and said Smeagol's lung sounded fine. The vet gave me antibiotics to treat a RI since "what I described sounded like a mild respiratory infection".
I gave Smeagol the antibiotics for a few weeks, to no avail. He is still exactly the same. I can feel his throat rattling when I put my fingers on his neck, and he occasionally sneezes/makes a wheezing sound, but it's not consistent. He had a really bad shed a few days ago, which is also really unusual. It's been about 2 months since he's eaten and I'm getting really concerned for his health.
I'm not sure if I'm being premature or freaking out when I shouldn't be, or if his health is in serious danger and I should be freaking out more than I am. This isn't consistent with how his last RI was and though I suspected it was at first, I'm pretty confident that this isn't a RI. I think I might take him back to the vet for more thorough testing but again I don't know if I'm just overreacting and I'd like to hear from you guys first. It would be great if you guys could give me any opinions or advice on the matter.
I've had Smeagol for about eight years now. He has never refused a meal except for about a month long period around 4 or 5 years ago that he had a respiratory infection. Other than that he has been in perfect health, always sheds great, and always eats.
About two months ago he just stopped eating out of the blue. I understand that some snakes do this but Smeagol never has, so it struck me as extremely strange. He didn't show any signs of illness or act strange, so I figured I'd just continue offering food until he took it.
A couple weeks later he started sneezing. Not loudly, not consistently. They were very few and far wide. He wasn't wheezing, his mouth/throat wasn't swollen, and there were no other symptoms of illness. This still concerned me as he still wasn't eating and was starting to lose weight. I raised his temperatures a little.
About a month after he stopped eating, I decided to take him to the vet. The vet couldn't hear anything wrong with his breathing and said Smeagol's lung sounded fine. The vet gave me antibiotics to treat a RI since "what I described sounded like a mild respiratory infection".
I gave Smeagol the antibiotics for a few weeks, to no avail. He is still exactly the same. I can feel his throat rattling when I put my fingers on his neck, and he occasionally sneezes/makes a wheezing sound, but it's not consistent. He had a really bad shed a few days ago, which is also really unusual. It's been about 2 months since he's eaten and I'm getting really concerned for his health.
I'm not sure if I'm being premature or freaking out when I shouldn't be, or if his health is in serious danger and I should be freaking out more than I am. This isn't consistent with how his last RI was and though I suspected it was at first, I'm pretty confident that this isn't a RI. I think I might take him back to the vet for more thorough testing but again I don't know if I'm just overreacting and I'd like to hear from you guys first. It would be great if you guys could give me any opinions or advice on the matter.