kingsnake poops out whole mouse! help!

ok...maybe hes puking i up im not sure. its really thin and bloody....he still poops a little.......but it seems like he doesnt eat anything. this ahs went on two feedings so far.....his cage is about 75-85 all the time......no UV lighting just a heat lamp....this is what i was told to have...i do handle him a little the day after he eats...sometimes....ummmm....i dont know what else to say. im scared he sick...or im doing something wrong...i thaw the frzen dead things out in the fridge for about an hour...then i give it to him..........i dont know what im doing wrong!! how long should i not touch him for after eating?!?! PLEASE HELP IM SCARED!!!

 

Courtesy of kingsnake.com

I'd say its time for a vet check

 

ok!! thanks very much. how can i find a vet in my area i live in hamilton ont canada! do you know how to ligth/heat properly??? i have a heat lamp and a heat pad...im pretty sure hes fine with this.....like i said its about 75 -85 in the whole tank. i do handle him alot. how long should i leave him alone for after feeding him??? its soooo hard to do that hes so cuuute! and what do i feed him? hes about one year and a half. one foot 1/4 i think long. i fed him a rat pup the first time...then i tried.....fuzzies..... what should i try next?!?! feeding time is this thrusday!!! (the store told me to buy him rat pups....they said he was fne with them.) im guessing its the handling deal.......thanks so much for the quick reply!

 

I'd cut back on the handling for a while and don't handle him for at least 2 days after he eats. Feed him the rodent that is no bigger than the width of the biggest part of his body.

When you thaw out the rat make sure you thaw it out for a few hours outside of the fridge then heat it up by running it under some hot water or use a hairdryer. One hour in the fridge is not near long enough to thaw a small rodent out. Have you been feeling the temp of the rodent before you feed it to your snake? Does it still feel cold?? If it does then don't feed it yet and let it warm up some more.

Good luck with him!

 

thanks. the freakin pet store gave me that bad advice!!! it has been cold but they didnt say andything about it.....i wont touch him for a while i guess but its soooooooooooooo hard!!! thank you so much for your help. one more thing his eyes are clouding? it just means hes going to shed soon right? thing is he just shed about 3 wks ago!! so what could be wrong?! how often do they shed?!

 

How often they shed depends on how much they are growing or if they have skin conditions. It's not abnormal for a ball to shed in 3 weeks time. Yes, it is most likely that he is going into shed if both of his eyes are beginning to get cloudy.

During this time you definitely do not want to handle him or try to feed him. Make sure the humidity in your tank is good or that you have a humid hide and just let him be until you see him again and he has shed his skin.

Oh yeah, forget most of what the pet store told you and feel free to ask more questions.

 

If it is black and bloody then it was puked up. This happens when snakes either get sick from parasites or just get like a week "cold" I have seen both. Just give it some rest and feed it a day or so from now then you should see improvement. If you don't then you should take it to the vet.

 

You really think he should try to feed the snake when it's going opaque?

 

After a few days of no handling and if the snake is not lethargic then yes.
Never mind. If he's sheding no. I only read the first post. Thought he was just throwing the mice back up.

 

but it has been three weeks of this regurgitating!!!!!!!!!!! ever since i brought him home he wont keep it down. i put a sour cream container with a hole for an entrance and wet paper towels in it. should it be on the warm or cool side of his tank???

 

That really shouldn't matter.

Has this also happened since you tried thawing the mouse for a longer period of time and made sure it's warm to the touch?

If this has happened since trying these new techniques? Is he done shedding? Have you been able to find a vet in CA yet?

 

Here are a list of vets in Hamilton... I would just start calling and see which handles reps... I would imagine any one of them could tell you who in your area DOES deal with reps...

Good luck... keeping fingers crossed for you!

Hamilton
Blue Cross Animal Hospital
612 King Street West Hamilton L8P 1C2
tel: 905-522-6879
fax: 905-522-5966

Cat Clinic of Hamilton
391 Concession Street Hamilton L9A 1B8
tel: 905-387-4151
fax: 905-387-2762

Dr. Murray Bonshor Services
253 St. Clair Boulevard Hamilton L8M 2P3
tel: 905-545-9761

Gagemount Animal Hospital
701 Mohawk Road East Hamilton L8T 2P7
tel: 905-389-7387
fax: 905-389-2247

Halton-Wentworth Emergency Vet. Clinic
505 King Street West Hamilton L8P 1B9
tel: 905-529-1004
fax: 905-529-9998

Kingsway Animal Hospital
1770 King Street East Hamilton L8K 1V7
tel: 905-547-1206
fax: 905-547-0889

McGrogan Fish Veterinary Services
290 Emerson Street Hamilton L8S 1L8
tel: 905-777-9838
fax: 905-777-9058

McMaster University Veterinary Services
Central Animal Facility McMaster University
1200 Main Street West Hamilton L8N 3Z5
tel: 905-525-9140
fax: 905-522-3580

Mohawk Animal Clinic
962 Upper James Street Hamilton L9C 3A5
tel: 905-389-2286
fax: 905-389-9942

Mountain Animal Hospital
738 Upper James Street Hamilton L9C 3A2
tel: 905-385-5354
fax: 905-385-8488

Rockland Veterinary Hospital
10 Rockland Avenue Hamilton L8W 3B7
tel: 905-575-8595
fax: 905-575-5580

Southmount Animal Hospital
1400 Upper James St., Unit #14 Hamilton L9B 1K3
tel: 905-387-7387
fax: 905-387-1413

Stone Church Animal Clinic
634 Stone Church Road West Hamilton L9B 1A7
tel: 905-575-1425
fax: 905-575-7809

Stoney Ridge Animal Hospital
6-2200 Rymal Rd E Hamilton ON L0R 1P0
tel: 905-692-2111
fax: 905-692-2115

The Cat Clinic
391 Concession Street Hamilton L9A 1B8
tel: 905-387-4151
fax: 905-387-2762

West Park Animal Hospital
1632 Main Street West Hamilton L8S 1G4
tel: 905-527-7426
fax: 905-527-7872


Cory

 

That was cool, Cory.

 

lol.... wideglide, its amazing what you can find on google when you have no life and are bored to tears at work ...

Cory

 

LOL!! I hear ya'!

 

thank you all so much for your help for a frantic first timer like moi. im happy to announce.....i thawed it a lot longer...ran it under warm water....AND heated it with a blow dryer!!! ANNNNNNND didnt handle him for four days after he ate....and guess what...he finally KEPT THE BUGGER DOWN!!!!!!!! im so happy. but one more thing!! 4 days of not holding my lil buddy is too long? is two days sufficient? i fed him thurs. then held him sun night. id like to be able to hold him sooner. AND THANKS CORY FOR ALL YOUR HELP!!! IVE CALLED A VET AND FOUND OUT THEY DID TAKE REPS AND THEN HE WAS FINE. BUT THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR HELP!! THATS VERY KIND OF YOU. THIS BOARD IS AMAZING!

 

and yes it happened to wrok right after he shed. so is that normal??

 

It's normal for a snake to feed after a shed. As far as handling goes I don't think you'll have a problem if you handle him just two days after you feed him. Especially at this point since he's getting smaller food. So yeah, go ahead and pick him up a couple days later and as he gets older you'll know by his behavior if you should start leaving him alone longer when he starts getting bigger pray.

 

will he not eat live food?
i have had snakes (none currently) but use to have 2 pythons and they always ate live food. never heard of feeding them FROZEN rats, a friend of mine use to feed hers dead rats, but they were at LEAST room temp.
remember that snakes are natural hunters and where you may be able to get him to eat dead rats he probbaly isn't going to be very happy about them being cold. it will make him cold (like you drinking a milk shake and getting a freezy headache) and every one knows that snakes DON"T like to be cold.just a little opinion of mine, could be wrong but try it out.

 

If you can get your snake to eat frozen/thawed rodents it's much better than feeding live. Feeding live not only poses the risk of the pray injuring the snake but live may also be carriers of parasites that freezing would usually kill off. It's ALWAYS best to feed f/t if the snake will take it and usually most will take a thawed rat just fine.