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Starvation

Tango is a he?? I thought it was a she. Are you sure it's not just a male going off food for the breeding season. Mine stops eating for 3 months at a time during the spring and I've heard of males going longer.
 
No, but mine are over 500 grams so losing 50-60 grams means really nothing to them. If they stopped eating for more than the 3 months they do, they might start looking thin. I have heard of some males going off longer than that. Kathy-do you think a few weeks brumation might restart his appetite?
 
No, but my males are over 500 grams and losing the 50-60 grams that they do during their fast really is nothing to them. If they went longer than the 3 months they normally go, they would probably start looking thin. I've heard of males that have gone off food for half a year and they would definitely be looking thin. Kathy-do you think a few weeks of brumation might jumpstart his appetite?
 
as i found out today tango is a he not a she.He was 480 grams and gone down to 310 so the vet is sure its not down to the breeding season.
 
I would figure around 100 grams loss in 5 months would be reasonable and you say there is a 170 gram loss. That is more than it should be. Hope the treatment works. You might try live feeding to stimulate feeding. Try African rats too. They seem to be irrisistable to most reptiles and they are much smaller than normal rats. They do bite viciously so I'd try stunned or fresh killed on those if you have to try that.
 
From the photos I saw, he looks thin enough that if he won't eat a small meal on his own, I would start a liquid diet now and not wait around very long to see if treatments work.

I have had some customers have success with lengthening (and brightening) the photoperiod on males that have gone off feed. Let them think it is the middle of summer and breeding is already finished.

Good luck!
 
the vet is sure its not down to the breeding season.
Click to expand...

What else did the vet say? Could he give an opinion on what might be going on? Is he planning some tests on that lump? It could just be a fat lump, but there's the potential for it to be something more worrying.
 
Unfortunatley I came home tonight to find tango dead.He was laid there stiff as a board with his mouth wide open.Not quite sure what happened or why it happened as the vet is as much in the dark as i am.Thanks all for your help on thios matter but i am sorry to say it was all in vain.
 
That's so sad to hear! Are you going to get a necropsy done to see what it could have been? Hopefully he has been kept away from the rest of your collection as a precaution. Very sorry to hear of your loss, and if you plan on a necropsy, make sure you only refridgerate, not freeze him.
 
I was told i could have a necropsy done but i'm not sure i want to.Tango was my first and my favourite of the lot and the thought of him being messed with upsets me.Probably best just to let him go in peace.
 
Perhaps a necropsy would benefit others though. So I would think of it more as his gift to you and perhaps your other snakes by providing a key into what might be changed if it turns out to be something habitat wise, or something you need to watch for in your remaining collection if it's a disease that could be spread. Whatever your decision, it will be the right one for you. Again, my condolences.
 
So sorry to hear about that.

I'm inclined to agree with MegF - a necropsy would a) educate the vet and b) very probably reassure you that you didn't do anything wrong.

Also good advice to refrigerate and not freeze if you intend to go that route - freezing causes cellular damage and can obscure some features.

I understand that you wouldn't want to disturb his body, but it might give you some peace of mind, and ensure that the vet took things a bit further for another owner in the same position?
 
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