My snake died- Why????

[RX7-2nr]

Last year my grandfather had an anuerysm, he wasnt supposed to live through it. I have been in Atlanta, GA visiting him for the summer. Ive only been here a little over a month. I left my BP with my mom, (she didnt mind taking care of him, and she was also the only person that i could think of who could take care of him.) My stepfather called at around 7am this morning and told me that Zero had died sometime in the night. He was curled up in his upside-down clay pot just like usual.

I had had him for nearly 3 years. The person i got him from said he didnt know how old he was. I dont understand it, he was healthy, a little over 4 lbs. My mom said that he was very active. She fed him about 3 weeks ago, changed the water all the time, all the same things i did. The temp was about 82 daytime, and a little cooler at night- just like i had always done.

I can think of only 1 thing she did that was different than i did. I used to use Amquel in his water (to take out the Ammonia), she bought a bottle of Amquel+ because the pet store was out of the regular kind. I dont believe that that is the cause though.

Im pretty upset- I would just like to know what caused it. Any ideas????

[Kevin McRae]

Sometimes people and animals just die.........................but I am very sorry for lose.

I'm sure Zero was a very happy snake.

[latazyo]

blue was old, and that's what old people do

in all seriousness, sorry for your loss....that Amquel is an interesting one...I always give my animals straight tap water

I have never thought of the affects using amquel may cause....that may be something to investigate

[mykee]

I would have said that the snake being at 82 degrees would have killed him for sure, but that must have been a typo. Other than that, for peace of mind, why not have a necropsy done (animal autopsy) to find out the cause of death?

[PrinceOfPythons]

I agree, a necropsy is the best solution. Sorry for your loss.

Paul Snyder

[Invictus]

I hope that 82 was a typo. If not, you have your possible cause of death right there. But, if what you meant was 92, maybe he was just old. I'm assuming he was already an adult when you got him?

[Nicky]

Sorry to hear for your lose , i have no idea why though, if the guy didn't know how old he was then maybe he was alot older than you suspected.
Kayla

[RX7-2nr]

ive always kept his little area where he lays at around 80 or so. ( just to have a little warm spot where he lays though, not the whole tank. ) is 82 too hot????? ive read that that was about right for belly temp many times.....

[Jayson]

Actually 82 is to cold for proper food digestion. At 82 the food in his belly may actually start to rot and then cause death.
For future reference for balls 90-95 in a more suitable basking temp.
Sorry about your loss.

[hhw]

Originally posted by RX7-2nr
ive always kept his little area where he lays at around 80 or so. ( just to have a little warm spot where he lays though, not the whole tank. ) is 82 too hot????? ive read that that was about right for belly temp many times.....

You want 82 or so on the cold side and 92 or so on the warm side. You can let it drop a little bit at night; this will usually happen without you trying, due to the room itself getting cooler. If you didn't have one, get a digital thermometer with a probe next time that can monitor both ends at once.

Anyway, sorry for your loss but make sure you learn from it so that you will have proper temperatures the next time around.

[mykee]

There's your quite probable cause of death; no research.

[Ryan and Katie]

I have to agree that a necropsy will be the best way to figure out why he died. I would let the vet know that the active ingredent in Amquel is sodium hydroxymethanesulfonate and at certain doses can kill. There is virtually no info on the effects of that product on reptiles so i can't say if it is related to the death of your snake or not but it would be worth looking into...
Sorry about your loss..