first regurge ever......

jjmetro · #1 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 06:50 AM

My baby honduran regurged today. he has kept three meals down in my care previous to this. i had been feeding him every five days due to his gross underfeeding at petco...... temps are approx 90 +/- 2deg on the hot side and 82 +/- 2 deg on the cool. hides on both sides, handling no earlier than 48 hours after feeding. Humidity is about 55%. he had a mite issue when i brought him home and i have treated with no signs of return. Any ideas on why this happened?? I know not to feed him again for 10-14 days, and he is soaking now and will once a day untill his next feed, i am feeding app sized rat pinks, i cant figure out why he regurged, he had soaked himself in his water bowl for about two hours a day for the last week or so. any and all help would be appreciated...

Thanks in advance

JD

louise · #2 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 07:23 AM

check the water for mites. sometimes the eggs hatch 2 weeks later. i dont know if mites causes regurg but he soaks alot.

unluckyseventeen · #3 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 03:21 PM

Actually, Giovanni just regurged a couple days ago, and I have had some regurge-prone snakes in the past, even though I've never had a problem holding temperature.

This was the first time my current boa has ever regurged, and I bet it was just a bad rat (had been thawed once and put back... probably didn't go down too pleasantly). I guess I learned my lesson there.

Like Louise said, check the water for mites. However, I've dealt with a mite problem before and the feeding schedule remained the same. I've never seen regurges directly associated with having mites before, but the reason he's soaking all the time might be because of that.

I guess the best relationship between the two is your snake decided to soak to get the mites off of him (if they are there), and the temperature of his body was too low from sitting in the water. Thus, he couldn't digest and up came the food.

Anywho, I would probably just try again. Chances are your snake either will, or has hit the water bowl pretty hard, as they use a lot of the moisture in their body to get the rat/mouse out of there. He'll probably be a little lethargic for a couple of days because throwing up doesn't feel good for anybody. After a few days he'll perk up and seem really happy. Just don't panic. Give him at least a week before you feed again, and by my bets, he should be just fine. The reason you should wait is so the snake can restore it's gut flora, and so the snake's insides can reset after being turned all backwards from throwing up the food. Trust me, it hurts the snake pretty bad. It'd be like if a human hacked up an entire hamburger, unchewed and undigested.

If you have another regurge the next time you feed him, get a check-up scheduled with your vet. He might have parasites (which isn't terribly likely), but my guesses were he just wasn't warm enough in his water bowl, or he just plain didn't like the food!

Let us know how it works out.

louise · #4 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 03:26 PM

try to take a fecal to the vet with you when you go. if you have to go. but i bet like unlucky that he will be fine.
as for checking for mites, look in the water bowl for little black dots.

Alika · #5 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 04:27 PM

I don't know everything, not by a long shot, but isn't feeding any more often than every seven days over feeding? I've always been told not to feed more often than that no matter what. It seems like maybe you're over compensating for his poor care - feeding him more often than he should be fed isn't really any better than less often if he doesn't have time to digest his meals in between.

Like I said, I don't know for sure, but that's the first thing I would look at... maybe he regurged because you've been feeding him too often.

jay08037 · #6 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 04:37 PM

I wish i could find a post i just read 2 days ago on this same issue but i googled it again and cant find it. It was a post on mites and the destruction they can cause to your snake. I know it said Mites WILL cause your snake to regurgetate there meals. Alot of times the mites are there, you just cant see them. They get bedded in under the snakes scales and are very hard to find or see, like louise said about the water bowl, if he is soaking just keep checking the bottom of the bowl for tiny black specks or dots. Even if u find only one that means there are definately more. I read on the post that you can buy Repel tick/misqueto spray with NO DEET!! its just as good if not better than the expensive mite spray they sell at the petstore. As long as it has NO DEET in it it They say it is perfectly safe. The guy in the post said he fought with mites for a yr and then found out about using repel and ever sense he hasnt had a mite issue. This is just my opinion going by the article i read so if i were you i would research it more, it could be he just got a bad rat or maybe got aggitated for some odd reason? Hopefully it was just a fluke thing and he will eat his next meal with no problems. I really would do everything you can to make sure every mite and eggs are gone thou just to be safe... Good luck!!!

louise · #7 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 05:25 PM

http://www.animalhospitals-usa.com/r...parasitic.html

that is the google ad. it can cause regurg among many other things.
alika is right you are feeding to often. it takes 7 days for the last meal to be fully digested. you dont want to over work thier digestive system. get him on a 7 day feeding schedule. hope this helps.

louise · #8 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 05:28 PM

Regurgitation
The main causes of regurgitation are stress or handling too soon after eating, improper environmental conditions, and undiagnosed illness. Wait two days after feeding your snake before handling it (moving it from one enclosure to another or to clean is fine as long as it isn't too stressful). Also, allow your snake to have a warmer spot to move to after eating to aid digestion. You'll probably notice that your snake naturally retreats to this area for a day or two of warm privacy after feeding. Temperatures that are too cold will also cause regurgitation of meals, and should be corrected to the proper range right away. Always make sure food is unspoiled and of appropriate size. If your snake regurgitates on more than one occasion, and both stress and improper conditions have been eliminated, then suspect an underlying illness. Regurgitation should not be taken lightly. While it may occur on only one occasion with no apparent reason, repeat occurrences could lead to psychological problems in which the snake avoids the type of food that it can't seem to keep down.

http://www.klsnet.com/sicksnake.html

muzixman · #9 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 06:02 PM

JD I took your post , that you are going to soak him everyday if so I wouldn,t he should be left alone for a couple of weeks and then try feeding him again in at least 14 days. If he was under feed and you are feeding him every five days that is to often he is not getting enough time to biuld up his gut flora to digest his food and that will cause a regurg everytime and like everyone else says watch for signs of mights and take poo sample to the vet for around $20.

snakebitten69 · #10 (**permalink**) 01-08-2006, 06:11 PM

well my ball regurg two weeks ago after handling too soon i gave him 48hr and thats just not enought time with a good size meal! i wait 72hr now! but now my male ball wont eat! i guess he just needs more time!

jjmetro · #11 (**permalink**) 01-09-2006, 07:34 AM

like i said in the original post, i dont handle him for at least 48 hours after feeding except to put him back in his cage from the feeding tote.... his temps are good and the mites are gone, i have had mites in the past and have always had success in getting rid of them in the same manner i used on this little guy. as for the five day feedings, this is what i was told by my vet just untill he put on a little weight. which he has, i hope this regurge wont reverse that bit that he has improved. as for his next feed it will be at least 10 days...... And afterwards i will make his water bowl smaller so he cant soak in it for about four days after the feed, but can still drink. and I'll mist daily to make sure he stays hydrated.. As for his food, i buy live and fresh freeze them, for the safty of the snake and to kill parasites. this way i know they are not freezer burned and in good shape. thanks to all for your help, and just to let you know, I'm not a newbie to this, i was just wondering what could have caused it because all the usual reasons don't really apply, ie. temps humidity handling and what not.. But thank you all for your advice.

snakebitten69 · #12 (**permalink**) 01-09-2006, 09:22 AM

cool all i am saying is 48 is not enough time! i would wait 72 hrs if i was you!

muzixman · #13 (**permalink**) 01-09-2006, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjmetro

any and all help would be appreciated...
Thanks in advance
JD

Just trying to help, Your vet told you to feed a malnutritioned snake every 5 days from the get go??

jjmetro · #14 (**permalink**) 01-10-2006, 01:58 AM

just untill he put on a little weight, yes.

jjmetro · #15 (**permalink**) 01-17-2006, 02:08 AM

Just got back from the vet and they did a fecal, result is two prescriptions, one for metronidasole, and the other for Panacur. I hope this works, i dont think that he can survive another regurge...... Wish him luck!!!!

jjmetro · #16 (**permalink**) 01-17-2006, 06:45 AM

I was funny at the vet, cause my new guy, now named Archer, bit the male nurse about five times! never even bit or struck at me! later on we came to find out he was handling rabbits about ten min before! haha, serves him right!!

Adrya · #17 (**permalink**) 01-17-2006, 07:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjmetro

Just got back from the vet and they did a fecal, result is two prescriptions, one for metronidasole, and the other for Panacur. I hope this works, i dont think that he can survive another regurge...... Wish him luck!!!!

Hmm.... Metronidazole was one of many prescriptions given to my parrot a long time ago.

So I'm guessing your new little guy has internal parasites and a bacterial infection? Could you tell us the prescribed doses for each? Just curious.

I had a ball python that developed an odd swelling in its mouth several months ago and she was prescribed Baytril, but Julius told me the more correct dosages I should give her.... The vet was a new guy cause the old one retired and the old one was more experienced with exotics. So the dosages the new vet prescribed apparently were too much. So I'm glad JS corrected me and she's better now and eating great on her own. So that's why I was curious as to the dosages.

But other than that, I wish luck to your little guy.

jjmetro · #18 (**permalink**) 01-17-2006, 07:18 AM

the doses are .02 ml of each per day, for four days, mind you this little guy is tiney...... he weighed in at 38.5 grams! thats why i'm so concerned about him, i dont think he can go to much longer w/out food. the vet also said to get him on some smaller food, untill he gets some meals down. i told him i have fuzzy mice for my corns, and that should do for now. he is sooooo skinny.

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