Sick Snake at Zoo?

[Falconeer999]

I was at the local zoo here in South Carolina over the weekend (Riverbanks Zoo) and in their reptile house they had a kingsnake that to me seemed to be having some difficulty. Most of the body was buried under substrate (looked like coconut husks) except for the head which was sticking straight up out of it. The snake would sit with it's mouth wide open and every few seconds one half of the bottom jaw would close about half way up, then a few seconds later the other side of the bottom jaw would close about halfway up. It would then close its mouth for about 10-15 seconds, then open it wide again and repeat the process. I'd say the mouth was open for 30-40 seconds for every 10-15 it was closed. I've never seen that in any kind of snake.

The rest of the body was buried and behind thick glass so I couldn't really tell if it was gasping/breathing heavy. Does this sound like something I should call the zoo about in case they hadn't noticed?

[shaunyboy]

i know some of my carpets behave like that right before they shed,my take on is.....

it's their way of loosening the shed,around the mouth and nostrils

that said another reason for all the mouth gaping,could be a respiritory infection,substrate stuck in mouth,etc

cheers shaun

[rmfsnakes32]

The only time I have seen a snake do that is my big boa that we are struggling with an RI maybe a call to the zoo wouldnt hurt I'm sure they dont have time to watch everything each animal does