HELP! new snake, GREEN(!) stool!

[Jamaica]

Greetings from California!
last night I was holding my new carpet snake, & she was crawling around my waist & up the back of my shirt & she peed on me! alot of foul smelling liquid urine (not the chalky stuff, is this normal? She had a soak about 1/2 hour before this & she likes to swim around underwater, could she have swallowed some water??) AND when I took off my shirt, which I could not do fast enough, there was bright green (think crayons-grass green) , almost waxy stubstance on me (it actually reminded me of sort of pliable wax, though I did not really study it, guess I should have, but could not get in the shower fast enough!), it was smooth, in a couple small lumps, maybe the total would make up the size of a medium size thumb. DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT IT COULD POSSIBLY BE?
We already have a ball python, but know nothing about carpet snakes. (been researching on web, which is how I found this cool forum)
BACKGROUND:
9 days ago we obtained Lily from a couple who were moving and could not take her. They had her about 2 years and said she is about 5, she is 6.5-7 feet long w/ a huge head. She seems healthy, but compared to Kitty (the ball python) her skin looked really dull & rough, she has shined up (except for the top of her snout) considerably since we have had her, & are thinking the dullness was due to hard mineral deposits (they used to soak her in the bathtub w/ regular tap water, we have a filter on our tap), & she seems rather flabby compared to Kitty, maybe poor muscle tone, as from what I have been reading, her cage is way too short for her (we will remedy that shortly, meanwhile, we have been taking her out often she loves to crawl from person to person, like we are trees, but in her enclosure, she is very quiet). The people we got her from said they did not handle her often, but Lily seems to really enjoy it.
She doesn't seem like she will shed in the next couple of days, & since she is new to us & I only have ball python to compare her to, I have no idea when she is "due" for a shed. Also when we got her they told her she was due for a feed in 2-4 days, & that she would get active & push up on the top of the cage with her snout when she is hungry.
We tried feeding her 2 days after we got her, but she had nothing to do with it (we use a feeding box for Kitty, & tried the same w/ Lily, but she was previously fed in her enclosure, so maybe she doesn't like the box) she is not indicating that she is hungry, like her previous owner described, but we are trying again tonight.
She seems fine, other than the liquid urine (which may be normal for that species?) & the green stuff... she wasn't acting strange before or after the incident.

Sorry for such the long post, but I thought with all the facts, something would maybe explain this!
oh & of course any other advice you have would be useful!
thanks!
Jamaica

 

[GeckoJosh]

Snakes will pee on you when distressed, and crap as well if your lucky

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Carpet snakes, like many Australian species, experience long periods without access to water in their natural environment. They don't always live near water, and can go for months without drinking, if they have to, when conditions are dry. This does them no harm. In captivity, where they have ready access to water, they probably drink much more than they actually need, so they pass far more liquid water than they would in the wild, where their ability to concentrate urine into solid crystals is an adaption for survival.

Some keepers only supply water to their snakes every week or two, for 24 hours, and this does them no harm at all. In fact, it may have some benefit, ensuring that the water they have is fresh when they need it.

In my experience, there is an individual variation with snakes and the amount of water they pass with their normal defecation/urate elimination - some pass lots each time, some don't. Like people I guess - some drink heaps, so pee a lot, others don't...

Unless you have concerns about the evident health of the snake, I wouldn't worry too much at this point in time about the waste problem - it may have been a stress-related issue, as has been pointed out. If the crap is frequent, watery (diarrhoea) and has a very unpleasant smell, it may be worthwhile getting a stool sample checked at the vet (for amoeba or other protozoan infection), otherwise, let the animal settle in and see how it goes.

Good luck, Jamie

 

[Jamaica]

G-man- Thank you for your quick reply!
What concerns me more than being peed on, is the liquidness of the urine... is that normal for a carpet python? (my ball python has chalky, way more solid type of urine (or is there another name for it?))
& then the weird green coloring of the crap it was definitely NOT a rat! more like some sort of waxy discharge, & a color NOT found in nature!... well except maybe on parrots!

thanks Python-I, glad to know that about the water/urine issue.....
like I mentioned, I am new to Carpets so all I have to compare to is the Ball.
still concerned about the crap though.... the color was sooo welll.... parrot green,
never seen anything like it, even in animals that eat food that color!
Wish I had saved that sample.... but well.... I am pretty much a girly-girl, (except for the snake thing!)
so jumped in the shower, clothes & all!
It did smell pretty bad though... though the smell came out of my clothes w/ just a regular wash...
I am planning on taking her to the vet ASAP... thinking of waiting til I have a stool sample, as I had wondered about
amoeba/parasite type problem.
I live in California, & the only snake people I know here have other sorts of snakes.
I am so glad to have access to you all!
Jamaica

 

[Pythoninfinite]

J, I'm sure you'll find that Carpets are pretty much 'standard' pythons, they don't differ in any significant ways from most other pythons in the way they live and behave. Might be worthwhile getting a stool sample or a cloacal swab done just to rule out a parasitic infection, but the water thing - I wouldn't be too concerned at this stage.

Jamie

 

[atothej09]

Hi Jamaica,
I guess the more important issue is make sure you care for your python the correct way from now.
1. Leave it alone for a week or two, let them settle in to new surroundings
2. If they reject food, try again in a week or two.
3. Provide a hide for them to get some hiding time. Not sure if you have one or not.
Failing all that, as others have mentioned, if you're still worried, get it checked out by a vet or another experienced snake keeper for peace of mind.
It sounds like the history of the snake is sketchy, so ensure you keep accurate records from now including weight, length etc.
Good luck with it all, I am sure it will be ok.

 

[pharskie]

what was the result. i have a 3 yr old coastal with the same problem.

 

[Firedrake]

Do carpets get the fatty liver thing like BHPs?

 

[Chris1]

ive read that green urates have something to do with liver problelms, or with not having been fed for a while,....

i got a almost starved to death diamond a few years ago, her filthy enclosure was covered with green urates, they stayed green fro the first month or 2 with me where she started getting fed again, and then back to white a,d have been white since.

keep an eye on them, if they stay green once shes settled into a good routine then worry.

 

[Kitah]

A vet check is definitely indicated here- green urates in birds and reptiles strongly indicates liver disease.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Green in a snake stool doesn't necessarily mean anything sinister. The respondent didn't actually say the urates were green, just that there was a green component in the material passed. If all other health parameters are OK, appetite, activity, alertness, there may be no problem at all.

The only thing I would be concerned about is the reference to a "foul-smelling liquid" - it's sometimes a difficult call for novices who may think that all poo smells 'foul'... but the stool from a healthy snake has a distinctive smell, that from one with a gut infection/parasite such as amoebiasis has a totally different and very characteristic smell.

The amount of water is not unusual for a snake which has access to far more water than it ever would in the wild. They drink more because they can, and pass more because they can.

This is an old thread by the way

Jamie

 

[Firedrake]

Only from march and Pharskie replied yesterday asking what happened to it

what was the result. i have a 3 yr old coastal with the same problem.

 

[pharskie]

To start im so sorry about my spelling, i can structure sentences well but be stuffed if i can spell em. hahaha im special. Soooooo, my baby girl ( well 3 is still a baby in the grand pic) went to the vets today and a test was done on her urine/poo and came back negative for any parisites, in saying that the sample was on a bit of carpet from her home that was about 5 days old. As murphies law would have it 2 hours after we get home, she has another 50/50 white urine and green stool. she has been off her food for a while but im putting that down to some sort of bacterial infection in her stomach. Either way no deffinate answer was obtained. So for a precaution she has recieved a second vitamin B injection after recieveing one about 3 months ago, as well as now being put onto 0.1mls of tribrissen. She has till thursday to take a feed or im gona have to force one into her. As well as that she has had a terrible terrible shed. the skin is so so tight on her still and is refusing to budge without alot of saline and cotton bud coaxing. So all in all everything is on the up. (Fingers crossed)
The vet in Orange is really good and very willing to help, i have recieved phone calls in the past to follow up and make sure the problems are resolved. Any one around the central west of nsw i HIGHLY recomend Kim Rolls who opperated out of Orange Vet Clinic. With as much assistance as i recieve and the price tag for today being less than $70 you just have no reason not to take you beloved pets.

 

[pharskie]

update....... still having to force feed, still passing green urate along with runny white urine. passed her first meal in a few months too. she is not looking to good. She is so skinny and the thing scaring me the most is the other day i changed my light globe and put a 100 watt basking/uv light for them to see how it would affect her eating, 3 days later i come home to see her moving around a little on her shelf under the light then all of a sudden after 5 minuts of me watchin her she started doin 360's with her head...... like all the way around upside down then around again. I got her straight out and tried to calm her down by putting her in a dark click clack box but as soon as she was in my hands she was going wild. I put her on the floor boards so she didnt hurt herself thrashing around and she just looked like she was trying to move but not getting traction. i replaced the globe with a lesser watt non uv emitting globe as she is near the window and now gets natural light. I rang the vet and he didnt have much of an answer. She is becoming such a pain in the butt, for a snake that was problem free for 3 years.

 

[Morgan_dragon]

sorry to hear you are still having problems with her, what has the vet said about the sequence of events?

 

[Wally]

.

 

[Kitah]

Did the vet take any blood for a biochemistry at least? Honestly, green urates IS highly suggestive of liver disease or failure, and liver disease can result in neurological signs. The liver normally functions to metabolise toxic substances, including ammonia for example. When ammonia builds up, it is toxic to the tissues including the brain, and can cause what we call hepatic encephalopathy, i.e. neurological signs.

 

[pharskie]

I have just been at the vets since i was woken by my worried gf. My female was doing the head thurns again and this time she was not stopping. I rushed her to the vet along with the poo sample i got out of her on saturday. The vet took one glance at the jar and gave me the sad look repling with " ummmm im so sorry mate but that green stuff is in my oppinion from liver diesese/failure." She had passed the two pinkies i force fed her and they where not even digested. The head turning is the result of the poision that is building up in her system.I have been asked to get another stool sample out of her once the pinkie she ate yesterday has passed and if that doesnot digest then i will be going to my last resort of a slush type paste to tube feed her with. Must have looked pretty silly, 6.2ft tall, 22yr old with a big beard, tattoos, click clack box and tears welling in the eyes. Can someone please give me some sort of expreience story of there own, or one of a friends or anything that i can use as help. Its 9:51am and im already having massive panic attacks. please someone help. I am starting a new thread on this so i can try and get as much help as i can from everyone so please feel free to ask around and post ANYTHING OF REVELANCE. I dont want anyone to ever have this sort of worry and fear about their "family" and not have some sort of helpful answer.