What should I do?

[CORN_SNAKE91]

I think my snake regurgitated today. My snake ate on Monday 12 of January and I posted about it not digesting for a long time. I looked in the terrarium and found something sticking to his house (It didn't look like feces because it was a lot bigger). Also, I looked at my snake and it no longer had a bulge in its body. So I could only come to a conclusion that it regurgitated the mouse. I got a substrate heater on Saturday (I promised I would) but i guess it didn't work. What do I do now? When do I feed it again?

[Dragon_Slave]

Or maybe it digested it and pooed it out, but it just looks different.

[alex_33]

If it is in fact regurge, you should be able to tell by the horrendous smell, a smell that is incomparable to any other smell in the world :p.

[sapphire_moon]

That is not true alex_33. when my corn regurged it was fresh and no smell at all.........

corn snake: can you post a pic of it?

[Auskan]

Yeah, my regurg didn't smell bad either. Jan 12th is a long time for it to be regurg though. Usually regurg is within 48-72 hours or feeding and I had it happen once within the first few hours of feeding.

If it really is regurgitated food, wait 10 days to 2 weeks before trying to feed again (if not sure, I would wait that long to be on the safe side - your snake can go that long without eating without any ill effects). That will give the snake's digestive system time to recover before feeding again. Then when you do feed, try to feed a smaller meal than the last one. You have the heat now (and hopefully a dimmer & thermometer so you know the temps are good?) After feeding, DO NOT handle the snake at all for at least 3 days. Make sure there is fresh water, a hide on the cool and warm end, and if possible, even cover the enclosure with a dark towel for this period. Check once per day and spot clean without disturbing the snake. Hopefully all of these things will aid in faster digestion next time around and you can follow that feeding with another meal 5-7 days later.

If you continue to have problems with regurging despite doing all of these things (i.e., if he regurges the next meal), take him to a vet to be checked out as there could be something wrong with him.

[Linds]

If your snake regurgitated its food, and had blood in its urates, I think a vet visit is definitely in order. Your snake could have a bacterial infection or parasites, amongst other things you need to rule out. Also make sure your temps are low-mid 70's to mid 80's. If they are too cold or too hot they can cause a regurgitation, however from what you describe, it sounds like they were too cold. Corns have fairly quick metabolisms, if it seemed at all slow your snake was probably too cold.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

Sorry for the long reply back, I had trouble with my internet. I bought the Exoterra Substrate Heater on Saturday 17 (like i promised) and the guy at the store it would be fine. I come home to put it on, and i wait for it to heat up. The terrarium thermometer still had 73 degrees C on it. I called the same guy who sold me it at the store and he said it isn't supposed to say on the thermometer, because it heats up the substrate. He said to wait 4 days till feeding it and if the same problem occured, i can return the heater for a new one. I don't have a digi cam so i couldn't show u how the regurg (or w/e it was) looked like. Also, what colour is blood for snakes? If it's red, there wasn't any on the stuff i thought it threw out.

[Vengeance]

I hope you have something attached to that heater to contoll the tempature? Those heating pads can usually heat the substrate to over 100o F if not monitored correctly. You need to hook it up to a rehostat to controll the heat. Also how are you monitoring youre temps? You will need a digital thermometer with a tempature probe to get accurate tempatures of your substrate. That or a temp gun that can take instant surface temps.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

how do u connect the rehostat to it?

[sapphire_moon]

You can also use a lamp dimmer....

[Vengeance]

Originally posted by sapphire_moon
You can also use a lamp dimmer....

Arn't they the same thing :D

I followed the instructions in this thread to make them, have worked great for me and and inexpensive.

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8858

But how are you measuring temps, I think I may have made the same mistake you did when I was first measuring temps. I bought a thermometer that measured the air temps and not the actual surface temps. You should get something with a probe your be very suprisied by exactly how hot it is.

[Auskan]

What about setting one of those little round thermometers with the dial, directly on the substrate over the heat pad? Will that accurately measure temps?

[sapphire_moon]

a lamp dimmer is easier to do for people that can't do that kind of thing...........I don't know about the little round dial thing. I would just use the digi thermometer with probe, put the probe on the bottom of the enclosure right up against the UTH. That way if the snake wants to it can burrow down into the substrate to get warmer.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

how much does the thermometer cost? And are you sure a rheostat works with the heat pads that heat the substrate? Also, I fed my snake two days ago (Jan. 25). He was pretty fast in swallowing it , (i put the mouse on the warm side), but he hid on the cool side. Anything I should worry about?

[Auskan]

Don't worry if he wants to hide on the cool side - leave the choice up to him. But if you don't have the heat pad hooked into a dimmer or rheostat yet, it may well be that the hot side is too hot for him.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

I just checked his cool hide today (I fed him 3 days ago) and he STILL has a big lump. He didn't take this long when i fed him the first time (it was live). What am i doing wrong? The warm side is there for him and i'm sure its not to warm. But he still won't go there. The air temp is 80 degrees F. I do have the heat pad but not the rheostat or the thermometer probe yet.

[vanderkm]

If you don't have a temperature probe, you can guess at the temperature over the heating pad by placing your hand directly on the glass. If it feels so warm that you cannot keep your hand on it (for a long time) then it is too warm for your snake and he is likely avoiding it because it is too hot there. The little round thermometers will be off by up to 5 degrees, so are not reliable at all, but you can also place it directly on the glass to get an idea. It should not be over 85 degrees.

Does he have a hidebox on the warm side as well? Corns will choose to be hidden in a dark, tight spot over being warm enough every time - so if his hiding spots on the warm and cool side are different and the warm side is not too hot, then put the hiding spot he likes near the warm end, partly over the heating pad and that may encourage him to spend more time there.

Three days is not too long for a large bump if the mouse was quite big - I wouldn't handle him until it is more digested though - especially if he regurged before.

Basically if you provide a hide at both the warm and cool ends (or use a paper towel tube between the warm and cool ends and he can choose his own spot) and leave him alone for a few more days, he will likely be able to digest the mouse. Baby corns also prefer hiding places that are a tight fit, so try to provide something that he can feel secure in. We use puppy food bowls and they crawl under them through the indentations in the sides.

On the smell of regurgitation - they don't smell bad if they come back up within 12 hours, but if they are in the stomach over 2 days before regurged, they really stink - there is nothing like it!

Good luck with him,

mary v.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

This is starting to scare me. Today (6 days after feeding) it regurged again....this time I could actually see that it was a mouse (unlike the first regurgitation which was a mess). I called the store where I bought my snake and they said the mouse was probably too big for him. Or, he might not be able to eat thawed mice. The first feeding I gave him was live, and he didn't have problems. He regurged both the thawed mice. She said to wait till Tuesday and then feed him live. Is this good advice?

[Auskan]

No, that is terrible advice. You should wait at least a week between a regurg and another feeding attempt, and I would recommend two weeks. Also, I have never heard of a snake that cannot digest a thawed mouse (correct me if I'm wrong, please). As long as the mice have been frozen immediately after being killed and not defrosted then left to sit and gather bacteria for several hours, there should be no difference in digestion between a mouse that was killed and then frozen, and one that was killed by the snake and eaten immediately.

I would get this snake to a vet immediately. Six days is an unusual amount of time after eating before regurging, and since he has now regurged at least twice that I know of, it indicates that there could be something more serious wrong with him, and it needs to be investigated. No one on a forum is going to be able to give you a definitive answer on that one - he needs to be seen by an experienced herp or exotic pet vet.

[sapphire_moon]

10-14 days between regurge and feeding attempt.

While he is in this stage put him in a "hospital type" enclosure. Put down paper towels or news print, water bowl and hides, nothing decorative. The more stuff you have in there the more stuff you have to disinfect.

Put him in an EXTREME low traffic area with a towel around the cage so he can't see out.

make sure he has enough water, then leave him alone for about 1 week (7 days) then check his water, clean up any messes, and leave him alone for another 1 week.

After the 10days-2weeks, attempt feeding, if he feeds successfully, do the same thing, leave him alone until the next feeding, do not handle, spot clean, and give fresh water. If he feeds successfully for 4 feedings then take the towel off the cage but leave him where he is. after he feeds successfully atleast 2 more times you can put his cage back in his original spot.

I agree with Auskan. Do not take advice from a pet shop. They are there to (usually) make a sale.
If nothing gets better and he regurges one more time, take a fecal, the regurge and take it to the vet to be tested (along with the snake) for internal parasites.

If it does turn out to have internal parasites.

I personally would go to the store and inform them in no uncertain terms that they sell sick animals (at the busiest time of the day/week, and loud enough for atleast 10 other customers to hear) then I would get ahold of either their biggest boss or head quarters. <---but that is only my opinion/expierence.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

I don't have another cage to put him in....what else can I do
???

[vanderkm]

The advice here on waiting at least 10 days before attempting another feeding is good. Definately do not feed again before 10-14 days have passed since the last regurg. They get into a pattern of repeated regurgitation if their gut doesn't have a chance to settle down. It is likely that pattern and not the fact that both were thawed that caused the second regurg.

A 'hospital cage' would make cleanup easier for you but if you don't have another set-up - it is not essential and he will be comfortable in familiar surroundings.

When you feed the next time, make sure the mouse is much smaller than what he fed on the first time (give a pinky if he was taking fuzzies, a fuzzy if the live one was a hopper, etc). Make sure the mouse is warmed to body temperature before feeding it. Make sure the snake has a secure hide box in the warm area of the tank. No handling the snake for at least a week after feeding.

If it regurges after another small mouse and you have followed advice given here - I would return it to the store or you will have to go through getting veterinary care and it can be hard to locate veterinarians who are experienced with snakes,

mary v.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

I am making the "hospital" for him now. One question. What do I clean the cage with?

[CORN_SNAKE91]

I took out all the decorations and substrate, cleaned the tank with water and put paper towels for substrate and two paper towel rolls as hides and a water basin. I also put towels covering it. Is it ok to have the towels that have designs? I do not have any white ones.

[crazyboy]

you can clean the cage with a 10% bleach to water solution.

[CORN_SNAKE91]

it's a little too late now lol...