| Author |
 Topic  |
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
 Posted - 01/09/2010 : 21:20:25
|
I had the unpleasant experience of a surprise regurgitation about ten days back, and wanted to offer the event up as a (hopefully helpful) lesson for any Brazilian owners who may experience a similar issue in the future.
Overview
For those unfamiliar, a regurg is when a snake “throws up” its last meal before completely digesting it. It is an extremely stressful event for the animal: one experienced breeder compared it to a person regurgitating a watermelon.
With Brazilian Rainbows, a regurg is usually caused by one of four possible triggers:
1. Poor environmental parameters, such as high temps or low humidity
2. Improper handling, in other words too soon after a meal
3. An unrelated health issue, such as mites or disease
4. A genetic predisposition, such as suffered by the dominant hypomelanistic line
Case Example
The snake in question is Prometheus, an eleven-month old Brazilian Rainbow Boa. As of his most recent month-end exam, he weighed in at 174 grams. The month before that, he weighed 142 grams, and the month before that, 118 grams. He has never had any prior health issues.
Prometheus has always been a good eater. As with all my young Brazilians, he is offered a weekly frozen/thawed rodent appropriate to his size. Up until August, it was a rat fuzzie; in August, he was upgraded to a rat pup, in line with his current growth. This particular Tuesday was his third pup meal. All three meals were taken with enthusiasm and no sign of distress afterward.
On Tuesday, August 17, in the late evening, Prometheus was fed a rat pup.
He was not disturbed for the next three (almost four) days.
On Saturday, August 21, in the mid-afternoon, Prometheus was handled. I removed him from his hide and took him into my room, where I placed him on the bed to exercise and explore while I read a book. His behavior was completely normal. After about ten minutes, I returned him to his cage, which was spot-cleaned and misted to boost humidity. As of my last sweep before I left for dinner with friends, all was fine.
On Sunday, August 22, in the mid-afternoon, I was cleaning the adult cages and noticed a little pink pile by his hide door. It was the bottom half of a pup. His water dish was also soiled, with an absolutely immense poop floating in it. I immediately cleaned and changed the water, removed the carcass, and checked him. His behavior was normal. After misting, I returned him to his cage.
Later that afternoon, I saw him out and exploring (unusual for a baby at this time of day – they usually only do that when they’re hungry). I double-checked temps; they were normal at 75-78 degrees; he himself clocked in at 76.5 degrees.
On Monday, August 23, in the early morning, he was again up and exploring.
Later that night, he was in his mini-hide near the front of the cage, and acted very alert and curious when I peeked in on him.
Analysis
This one is a puzzler. Looking back at the list of reasons….
For the first trigger, his environmental factors are fine. Temps are normal (both by my measure and the computer’s), humidity is good (there is condensation on the inside lid of his hide, always a good sign). As a confirmation, all 20 other Brazilians in the room are fine.
For the second, most people wait 48 hours to handle after a meal. I usually wait 72, and have handled Prometheus fine at that mark on other occasions. This time I waited about 90 hours.
For the third, I’ve acquired no new animals since early June – and both of those snakes are under strict quarantine, and both seem healthy anyway. I have not acquired any supplies that would be a possible source of contamination, either, such as moss.
For the fourth, Prometheus is a normal. He has no hypo blood whatsoever.
In the end, looking at the huge poop, I wonder if maybe the little guy’s digestive system was just backed up from the switch to larger meals. If he hadn’t cleared the last meal, maybe he just couldn’t handle the current one, and with the stress of a long handling session on top of that, it was just too much for him. At least, because he looks and acts fine, that’s the best guess I can come up with.
Treatment
The first task following any regurg is to fix the cause: temp, humidity, handling practice, etc. In this case, there does not seem to be a specific trigger to fix. I nevertheless re-checked everything just to be sure.
The second task is to rebuild the snake’s digestive system. Regurgitation is tough on any snake’s system, but especially a baby’s. The snake needs time to allow its gut bacteria to regrow. So, it is best to delay the next feeding by a few weeks, even if the snake seems hungry and ready to feed (contrary to popular keeper perception, this will not hurt your pet: snakes are capable of going weeks without food without suffering any ill effects). In addition, the next few meals should be smaller than normal. If you rush the process, either in timing or volume, you risk a repeat regurg because the snake’s recovering digestive system cannot handle the sudden load.
Therefore, I will skip this week’s regular feeding and the next week’s as well, resuming the following week (so, after a 16-day break). That meal will not only be delayed, but one step down in size from what he usually takes. If that feeding goes well, I will wait another two weeks before feeding again, and again go with the smaller meal. If that goes well too, I will move him back to weekly, probably starting with a fuzzy and then alternating those with pups for a month before moving him back to pups fulltime.
I hope this summary proves helpful to someone. If you have any questions or feedback, please let me know! |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
Welly
Hatchling
United Kingdom
164 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2010 : 21:52:50
|
| Interesting read |
0.1.0 Royal Python
0.0.1 Mexican Black King
1.0.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa
 |
 |
|
|
IncurableFlirt
Yearling
USA
516 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2010 : 23:46:39
|
| Awesome information. I have not yet had the displeasure of experiencing a regurg, but I'm sure some day I will. It is great to know what to expect and what to do when it happens. Thanks for sharing, it is greatly appreciated! |
Jenn.
11.8 Ball pythons
1.0 BCI boa
1.0 Brazilian Rainbow boa |
|
|
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
Posted - 02/09/2010 : 01:36:18
|
| Thank you both! I checked the patient last night, and he looked fine, acted fine, and weighed in at 10 grams more than last month. One more week to next feeding.... |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
Posted - 09/09/2010 : 16:34:32
|
| Update: the patient downed his first meal in 16 days on Tuesday night, a rat fuzzie (one size down from the pups he'd been on), and seems fine so far. Fingers crossed! |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
|
Kazerella
Forum Admin
United Kingdom
721 Posts |
Posted - 10/09/2010 : 12:37:57
|
Great info Snakesitter & glad he's eaten again  |
  |
|
|
|
hiper2009
Banned
United Kingdom
845 Posts |
Posted - 12/10/2010 : 00:58:19
|
Great info Cliff  . |
|
|
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
Posted - 12/10/2010 : 19:15:24
|
| Thanks Ash. He's now gained over 30 grams, shed once, pooped once, and just took his first pup since the incident. If all is still well in two weeks, he's good again. |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
|
IncurableFlirt
Yearling
USA
516 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 03:42:22
|
| I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you! |
Jenn.
11.8 Ball pythons
1.0 BCI boa
1.0 Brazilian Rainbow boa |
|
|
|
sullysteve
Hatchling
United Kingdom
107 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 10:04:46
|
I had a slight encounter of regurge....
When i fed her on Sunday, i went over to the RUB to check if she had finnished. She got to the tail and feet of the fuzzy then all of a sudden, she spat it out! I can only think that i went over to the RUB a little too quick and might have scared her. In the end she ate and all has been fine, with no regurge since.
Has anyone else experienced this?
Ta
Sully |
|
|
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 20:01:02
|
| Yes, that does happen, and it does indeed mean you startled her. It is also technically not a regurge -- the meal never made it to her stomach -- so not nearly as bad as it could be. Just be careful in the future to give her another 10-15 minutes before peeking. ;-) |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
|
sullysteve
Hatchling
United Kingdom
107 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 20:15:50
|
OMG!!!! I think I have a problem!
Just got home to find the fuzzy I fed her on Sunday , HALF DIGESTED in the faun!!! It really stinks too! I have cleaned it out fully and put her back in. I haven't handled her since Sunday cos I thought she had gone to shed as her nose has gone like a grey/black Color and her eyes seem to be cloudy!
I have soaked her in warm water just to get rid of any germs that may have formed on the regurge.
Her skin has gone a little saggy and she has the odd scale that looks to be like a yellow Color and sticks out slightly.
Other than that she seems to have a good grip and was active whilst I had her out to bath her.
Her humidity has been set perfect at an average of 86% and temp in warm end has been at 78-82f
Help please. !
Sully |
|
|
|
hiper2009
Banned
United Kingdom
845 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 20:58:50
|
quote:
Originally posted by sullysteve
OMG!!!! I think I have a problem!
Just got home to find the fuzzy I fed her on Sunday , HALF DIGESTED in the faun!!! It really stinks too! I have cleaned it out fully and put her back in. I haven't handled her since Sunday cos I thought she had gone to shed as her nose has gone like a grey/black Color and her eyes seem to be cloudy!
I have soaked her in warm water just to get rid of any germs that may have formed on the regurge.
Her skin has gone a little saggy and she has the odd scale that looks to be like a yellow Color and sticks out slightly.
Other than that she seems to have a good grip and was active whilst I had her out to bath her.
Her humidity has been set perfect at an average of 86% and temp in warm end has been at 78-82f
Help please. !
Sully
Sorry can't help you with this but Cliff will be here soon to help you with the problems.. |
|
|
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 21:23:39
|
Sully, in that case you have now experienced a real regurg. It's serious, but manageable -- I just pulled through a case myself. Please read the initial post in this thread, which describes what to do in detail. After you've read it and compared to your setup, please feel free to report anything unusual, or ask any followup questions you might have, and I will try to help.
BTW, a feeding/shed/poop/handling history for the last two weeks would be useful as well. |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
|
sullysteve
Hatchling
United Kingdom
107 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 23:17:22
|
thanks,
Is the saggy skin anything to worry about? Also, the scales that a sticking out? |
|
|
|
Snakesitter
Rainbow Master
USA
2718 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 23:24:17
|
| Would you be able to get a picture, if you can do so with minimal stress? It's hard to say otherwise. |
Cliff Earle
Living Gems Reptiles
Premium Brazilian Rainbow Boas from a disease-tested facility
Website, Facebook |
|
|
|
Topic |
|
|
|
Case Example: Regurgitation
