Dehydrated?

[Mack86]

I'm fairly sure my snake has lost condition, he has skin folds and looks dehydrated. Would a vet trip be in order? Unsure where to go from here.

I didn't want to post another question in here as I feel I am an annoyance to members but I'm actually quite concerned.

 

[Snapped]

Do you have a pic of your snake? What's the humidity like in his enclosure?
If you think he's dehydrated you can always give him a soak in a tub of water for 20 mins (not too deep, just about covering 3/4 of his body, in almost luke-warm water).

Is he eating well? My pythons have just got back into eating big time in the last 2 weeks, but I'm in SA.

 

[Mack86]

Hasn't eaten since 3rd July when he was 5 months old.

Update: He's been out and about resting on top of his hides rather than under - something I have never seen him do the entire time I've had him. I'll take this as a good sign that he is coming out of brumation.

 

[Bluetongue1]

Firstly, to determine if it is losing condition, I would suggest that you weigh your snake. This will then give you a baseline to track and quantify any loss or gain in body condition. Dehydration is relatively straight-forward to determine visually, once you know what to look for, and this can be addressed separately.

Dehydration in snakes results in the skin becoming drier and loose, and also loosing much of its natural elasticity. To test for dehydration, pinch the skin on the side of the body, say a hand length or two behind the head, and gently pull it out a little way, then release it. It should immediately bounce back to its normal position. If it is slow to do so (referred to as “tenting”) this indicates it is dehydrated. Another sign can be seen when the snake’s body curves tightly back on itself. In a dehydrated individual the skin on the inside of this curve will form ripples. The more dehydrated a snake is, the more gthe skin tends to form ruffles here. You can see this in the folllowing photo of two dehydrated Ball pythons (from the net) . The one on the left is also very underweight.

Examples of how skin folds form on body curves in two dehydrated pythons ​

The lack of sufficient body fluids also results in dryness of the mouth and tongue. The tongue and mucous membrane first become sticky and then become dry as dehydration gets worse. I have not mentioned the effects on skin and the eye spectacles, as these are initially similar to pre-slough condition and I don’t want to risk you jumping to incorrect conclusions.

 

[Mack86]

Yeah mine looks like the left picture when body curves back on itself. I'm overwhelmed and as mentioned before, out of my depth unfortunately. Thanks for responding Bluetongue. Will look into those things mentioned.

 

[Bluetongue1]

If you have confirmed your snake is dehydrated, then correcting this is your first priority. This is usually not too difficult to do. Please note that the snake should NOT be fed until it is properly hydrated. it is actually unlikely to accept a meal if offered, as dehydration is one of the factors that can cause snakes to go off feeding.

A snake that is dehydrated has lost not only a significant amount of water from its body, but also a significant amount of the electrolytes that are an integral part of that fluid. It is therefore essential in the rehydration process to not only replace the lost water, but also the lost electrolytes. The simplest way to do this is placing the snake in a tepid bath (28 – 30 degrees C) containing electrolytes in the water Snakes will normally drink some of the bath water. As well, fluid that enters the cloaca can be absorbed through the mucous membranes there. This should be done using a shallow container with a clip-lock lid that has some holes in it for fresh air. The bath water should about 1 – 2 cm deep (not entirely covering the body), and consist of 1 part water to 1 part electrolyte replacement drink such as Staminade, Gatorade, Powerade or similar. Place the snake in the bath, fasten the lid and keep an eye on it for the next 20 – 30 minutes, before removing and gently towelling dry the animal. If need be, this process can be repeated after several hours break. If this technique does not work after say three treatments, then you are best advised to visit an experienced reptile vet. I personally would not recommend beginners attempting to syringe fluid into the animal via its mouth. You need to know how to do so and how much to use, and first attempts should only be performed under experienced supervision.

Once that is attended to, it is important to try and work out how and why your snake got dehydrated in the first place. This is so it not happen again. If you would like assistance with that, just say so. You may feel you are out of your depth at the moment, but it has just been an unusually steep learning curve due to circumstances. Once you are past this hiccup, you will get your confidence back and be all the wiser for the experience. Just remember the old saying: “A calm sea never made a skilled sailor”.

 

[Mack86]

If you have confirmed your snake is dehydrated, then correcting this is your first priority. This is usually not too difficult to do. Please note that the snake should NOT be fed until it is properly hydrated. it is actually unlikely to accept a meal if offered, as dehydration is one of the factors that can cause snakes to go off feeding.

A snake that is dehydrated has lost not only a significant amount of water from its body, but also a significant amount of the electrolytes that are an integral part of that fluid. It is therefore essential in the rehydration process to not only replace the lost water, but also the lost electrolytes. The simplest way to do this is placing the snake in a tepid bath (28 – 30 degrees C) containing electrolytes in the water Snakes will normally drink some of the bath water. As well, fluid that enters the cloaca can be absorbed through the mucous membranes there. This should be done using a shallow container with a clip-lock lid that has some holes in it for fresh air. The bath water should about 1 – 2 cm deep (not entirely covering the body), and consist of 1 part water to 1 part electrolyte replacement drink such as Staminade, Gatorade, Powerade or similar. Place the snake in the bath, fasten the lid and keep an eye on it for the next 20 – 30 minutes, before removing and gently towelling dry the animal. If need be, this process can be repeated after several hours break. If this technique does not work does not work after say three treatments, then you are best advised to visit an experienced reptile vet. I personally would not recommend beginners attempting to syringe fluid into the animal via its mouth. You need to know how to do so and how much to use, and first attempts should only be performed under experienced supervision.

Once that is attended to, it is important to try and work out how and why your snake got dehydrated in the first place. This is so it not happen again. If you would like assistance with that, just say so. You may feel you are out of your depth at the moment, but it has just been an unusually steep learning curve due to circumstances. Once you are past this hiccup, you will get your confidence back and be all the wiser for the experience. Just remember the old saying: “A calm sea never made a skilled sailor”.

I think my snake is stressed enough as it is so I just want to leave him be for now.

Will consider all this after a few weeks of being left alone, although I'm really not confident (because I've lost all confidence) in doing any of those things mentioned.

I'll be honest and say my next step will likely be rehoming as I just want what's best for him and that's not me as his keeper.

Thanks for responding Bluetongue

 

[Bluetongue1]

If the snake is actually dehydrated, then this would be its greatest source of stress and doing nothing will only increase this. The potential for the negative effects of its current condition to worsen can be obviated by doing something NOW.

 

[Snapped]

@Mack86 , it's been a week since you first posted about him being possibly dehydrated I agree with Bluetongue1, please get your snake into a tub (make sure it has air holes somewhere, and use Gatorade or Powerade, 1 to 1 ratio of tepid (not too warm) water and the Powerade/Gatorade. He'd probably fit into a click clack container, Sistema (I just used an unwanted container from my tupperware cupboard).

If you aren't confident doing it with the Powerade, just use tepid water and let him soak for 20 mins.

Doing nothing will make your snake sick, I understand you don't feel competent or confident at the moment....but just remember if you were dehydrated, or your dog/cat, you wouldn't do nothing. Will it stress him, maybe, maybe not (both mind love a good soak), but better that than sick/dead.

I wonder if there is a member of this community who could go and give Mack86 a hand, be a mentor of sorts? Having someone who will know what to look for, and check encl/temps/snake would be great. If you posted roughly what area you are in, there will probably be someone willing to help you.
We were all beginners once, and some members on the forum can be quite blunt, which is a shame, because it most likely stops people from asking for help.

(funny story, I had to soak one of my Albino pythons and the only thing I had was blue Gatorade, needless to say I had a slightly blue snake after the soak

 

[Bluetongue1]

Link to an update on this snake… https://www.aussiepythons.com/threads/update.229632/post-2548302

That is funny!