respitory infection?

never25 · 02-22-09, 09:07 PM

hey everyone,
i was holding all my snakes today and two of my corns were breathing kinda weird. i could hear them breathing a little but other than that they seemed fine. one of them hasn't eaten for the past two weeks and barely lost any weight, they are both about 3 1/2 years old.
the temp in the room is fine, i am currently using a space heater, i could up the humidity but i don't know if it will help. i want to breed them soon but want to be sure they are all healthy. any thoughts? they seem fine but just wanted to be sure. thanks.

Chu'Wuti · 02-24-09, 01:43 PM

Hi, Never25! Is it possible they were breathing harder or weirdly because you were holding them? Have you seen any kind of discharge from their mouths? (e.g., mucous, foamy liquid)? Are they behaving normally while in their enclosures?

Tell us more about the enclosures you have them in. What kind of heating sources do you have (other than your room space heater--heating sources in/on the enclosures themselves)? What are the humidity levels of the enclosures?

Smilts · 02-24-09, 01:47 PM

Unless the humidity is really high it shouldnt be a problem. Has the brewathing gotten ny wierder since you posted this?

never25 · 02-24-09, 02:33 PM

they are in sterilite tubs and i have heat tape set up but it isnt on right now. the snakes breathing seems to have gotten better. i haven't held them because i need to feed them today. i looked into their cages, they seem fine and when i opened the cage i couldnt hear the breathing anymore. thanks for all the help

Smilts · 02-24-09, 07:15 PM

well glad to hear that they are doing well.

never25 · 02-24-09, 07:31 PM

thanks guys

Chu'Wuti · 02-24-09, 09:41 PM

Some snakes get pretty stressed by being held. Actually, most snakes do. How long have you had them? Remember, you're Godzilla to them.

never25 · 02-24-09, 10:51 PM

i got them as babies at a reptile show about three years ago. i dont know what was going on but they are fine now. thanks

Chu'Wuti · 02-25-09, 05:22 PM

You are welcome. Maybe they were stressing each other out. Do you know what sexes you have? It's possible that they have matured enough that one or more of them has sexual hormones activating mating responses. If you have two males & a female, the two males might have been stressed by each other as potential competition for the female. Just a thought.

never25 · 02-25-09, 11:10 PM

they are all females thanks again