Head Wobble

[toddnbecka]

My soon-to-be-ex wife returned from another week in NY with her new boyfriend Sunday. He's been evicted from his apartment, and won't have the new one for 2 more weeks, so she brought his snake collection, 6 boas and 5 balls, here in the meantime.
When I got home from work I noticed that one of the boas had dumped the water bowl and pooped, so I opened the tub to clean it out. First I'd actually even looked at the snake, when they arrived I simply set the tubs on heat mats and added water bowls. I've heard of spider gene ball pythons having a head wobble, apparently similar to jaguar carpet pythons, but never a young BCI. Any idea what's up with that?

[Albert Clark]

Maybe he was crawling around it and tilted it over? What makes you think it has a wobble or has anything to do with a wobble? I'm perplexed.

[toddnbecka]

After rereading my post I see that I didn't clearly state the question. His head wobbles from side to side when he moves, and sometimes he seems disoriented and turns it sideways (I saw that when he stretched upwards). I have no doubt he dumped the water bowl moving around, that's nothing unusual. What I'm asking about is the strange motion. I've never personally seen a ball or carpet python with the neuro issues, but the descriptions sound similar to what I see with the boa.

[Aaron_S]

If you can take a video I'd happily let you know if it has wobble or not.

A normal BCI, like a normal ball python, should not have a wobble. It would come from some type of poison, head trauma or a really rare birth defect.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Scorias have wobble, but highly doubtful that's what you've got. lol

Second Aaron here, it's likely some sort of trauma. Overheating will also do it.

[Andy_G]

Poisoning, head trauma, congenital abnormality, heat stroke, some types of cancers, certain bacterial infections, or (rarely) IBD.

Just be sure to keep his snakes far away from yours just as if you were quarantining a new purchase. And maybe make the soon-to-be ex wife do the poop scoopin too. Not your snakes. ;)

[macandchz]

you must be pretty understanding to let your soon to be ex bring her boyfriend's snakes into your home.

[toddnbecka]

you must be pretty understanding to let your soon to be ex bring her boyfriend's snakes into your home.

I have more sympathy for the snakes than the boyfriend, though he has some serious issues as well. As for the wfe, I'm working toward maintaining some positive relationship going forward rather than ending up hating each other bitterly.
The wobbly boa has been housed together with his brother, and only one of the tanks any of the snakes were kept in had a heat mat. One of the other baby boas has soe stuck shed, so I sprayed down the paper towels with water to raise humidity. Fortunately I had a number of spare ultratherm heat mats on hand, so the tubs all have humidity with warm and cool ends to thermoregulate if not precisely controlled temps. The ball pythons are mainly staying on the heat, the baby boas are a little more active, and the big (7') boa seems content lying on the old towel on the warm end of her big tub. Much better than the cat carrier she arrived in anyway.