Vitamin B Deficiency?

jbd123 · #1 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 04:17 PM

Hey guys,

One of my breeder friends is having a snake that is stargazing. He has taken her to the vet and the vet claims it is a vitamin B deficiency. I looked it up online, and yes, stargazing/mental issues are some of the symptoms. I believe that the snake has gotten a vitamin B injection, but I am not 100% on that.

But my big question is how can a boa get vitamin B deficiency if it is being fed a proper diet?

Something just doesn't seem right...

Has anyone ever heard of this? It's a first for me. All I know is stargazing scares the you-know-what out of me. The snake in question has 3 other sisters and a brother that are doing just fine and live on the same racking system. I am afraid that if one has the symptoms the others will develop them as well.

morti · #2 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 05:02 PM

It could be a genetic thing... the snake's ability to properly absorb vitamin d could be compromised in some way.

But the simplest answer is, that the vet got it wrong.

jbd123 · #3 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by morti

It could be a genetic thing... the snake's ability to properly absorb vitamin d could be compromised in some way.
But the simplest answer is, that the vet got it wrong.

I think you are right. I actually have one of the syblings of these boas (Peaches) and she has a wobbly issue (but only when she is handled and wants to be put back down)...I have taken her to the vet several times and he thinks it is probably a genetic issue. And I assure you she is getting a proper diet. My vet never mentioned anything about a vitamin B deficiency either. All the big scaries (IBD, etc) have been tested for as well and have come back negative. Poor Peaches has had every test in the book done on her, and she didn't like it one bit!
It makes alot of sense. The parents have no health problems but some of the offspring developed this over time. Some got over it, some did not. When the father was bred with a different mother, and the mother with a different father, those babies developed no "wobbly" issues. Apparently that pairing had less-than-desirable genetics.

TammyJamaica · #4 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 05:21 PM

They are supposed to get all they need from their prey, if they are eating properly and being given enough of the correct prey. I hope you heard the vet right and he did not say something like "IBD deficiency"!!!

Never heard of a vitamin B deficiency in snakes unless it is part of a deficiency of everything else as well. Is this a herp vet?

Is your snake isolated, and is he eating OK?

John_White · #5 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 05:33 PM

It's my understanding that vitamin B deficiencies are mainly seen in snakes that are fed frozen/thawed fish (garter, ribbon etc.. snakes).

This document is geared toward lizards but some of the information also applies to snakes: Bearded Dragon . org - Vitamins Article

fuglyfarmhand · #6 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 07:04 PM

Kool info man.
Just like most of my meds say take with food

jbd123 · #7 (**permalink**) 11-25-2009, 07:44 PM

I have heard of the garter snake thing. It's because some fish contain a chemical of some sort that actually breaks down vitamin B.
Yes, the vet said vitamin B deficiency. I have no idea of the qualifications of the vet, this is just what the breeder told me. My vet is a qualified herp vet, and has been seeing snakes for over a decade.
Tammy, Peaches was isolated for over 6 months when I first got her, then she was moved to the room where the rest of my collection is after she got some tests done. She eats like a HORSE and is actually VERY large for her age. She's a little over a year old (born in may of 0

and is already almost 5 feet long, and eating f/t large rats! I think she inherited this large growth rate from her mother, who was over 10 feet long. She's also got incredible color...
She got mites (god knows where from) and she is isolated in my bedroom, but there was a blood python in quarantine in my room as well (other side of the bedroom of course) that got her mites just a week later (I know for a fact that they came from Peaches because someone *not saying names* was handling Peaches without my permission, then handled the blood python!). The python has been showing no symptoms whatsoever which really leads me to believe that she's not a carrier of IBD (like I mentioned earlier my vet did tests and they came back negative, but you never know). Needless to say two months later and the mites have been gone for a while and the blood python is just fine. I'm pretty sure something would have happened with that blood python if she had a virus of any kind. This Python is staying in quarantine for a LONG WHILE until I am sure but from what I gather (and what my vet tells me) there's no IBD around.
My vet has concluded that Peaches has a genetic issue going on. Whether it be some sort of a issue with breaking down vitamins (or she's just a little messed up in the head) we will never know. She has had this problem ever since she was a very little baby boa. I'm sure if it was a virus she would not be here and she would have missed a few meals. I just hope that her siblings are just having the same genetic issue and not something more serious.

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