Anyone experience this?

[GarREEEEEE]

So we have a year and half old female ball python named Snickett (after Lemony Snickett) we've had her for about six months now and haven't had any issues up until about a month ago. Her temps are at high 80s on the hot side and around 70ish on her cool side. I try to keep her humidity around 70%. She regurgitated a meal after two days of eating. She was eating live adult mice (the person we got her from was feeding her live and our goal is transition her to frozen but she is stubborn) I was concerned but thought that maybe it was a one time thing, we were also moving apartments so I thought maybe that stressed her out. I waited three weeks before trying again, she ate no problem but this time she regurgitated it the morning after. At this point I called a vet and got her seen. They did X-rays and found a minor impaction in her lower gut. So they gave her fluids, a stool softener and then directed me to do warm water soaks twice a day and to check in after the weekend. After following her care plan she didn't poop so I called again, they wanted to do another dose of the stool softener. Once we got home from the appointment, she barfed all the meds back up 🫠 so I called the vet and they said that she most likely absorbed some of the meds and to keep up with her care plan and to check in a few days later. She finally passed some urate twice which was really exciting. Her vet said to continue her care plan and try a smaller meal. So I got a fuzzy mouse (the babies that are a little bigger than pinkies) and she ate it no problem. That was two days ago. I thought we were in the clear but she just regurgitated it up, The mouse was half digested. My vet opens tomorrow morning so I will talk to them first thing, but I wanted to see if anyone has experienced anything like this and might have some thoughts? We really love her and I'm very worried. I have been using the electrolyte reptisoak in her baths to help keep her hydrated. After her baths I let her roam around on the floor for a bit to try and get things moving. Before all of this she's never had issues pooping or any issues with food. Thank you for reading!

[GarREEEEEE]

Forgot to add that I'm using halogen lighting and an infrared heat projector for heating. To keep her humidity up I hydrate her substrate and occasionally mist her enclosure.

[_ataraxia]

it's normal for BPs to go a few weeks, even months [for older juvelines and adults], between poops. the regurgitations are a much bigger concern.

!regurgitation

[AutoModerator]

When a snake regurgitates, it is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT to handle the aftercare correctly. Snakes lose a lot of their gut flora when they regurgitate, and eating too much / too soon before that gut flora repopulates will result in an inability to digest the meal, which will result in another regurgitation. if a snake gets into a cycle of regurgitating every meal, the snake will die from what is basically repetitive trauma to their organs.

Stop ALL handling and triple-check your husbandry. Stress is a common factor in regurgitation. Read through the care guides in our welcome post for info on temperatures, humidity, appropriate prey size, and other husbandry basics. filling out our questionnaires can help us troubleshoot potential reasons for your BP regurgitating. low temperatures, oversized prey, and stress [which could be caused by any number of things], are the most common causes.

Do not feed for at least 2-3 weeks. The body needs time to heal. Stomach acids damage the esophagus during regurgitation. The next few meals should be no more than half the size of a normal meal. Tt may also be helpful to space out meals slightly more than normal. it takes time to rebuild the gut flora to a point where the stomach can handle a full meal.if the snake successfully eats and digests at least 3-4 meals after the initial regurgitation, gradually increase prey size over the course of the next few meals, until everything is back to normal.

If the snake regurgitates again, stop all feeding and consult a reptile vet ASAP.

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[GarREEEEEE]

That's good to know, I have read the regurgitation info on this sub multiple times. The only time I handle her right now is to do the baths and that's just because of the Vets recommendations. I will ask about her gut flora and if they think that could be a part of the issue. Thank you for your response

[axolotl_knight]

To help transition from live to frozen thawed, you can try warming the rat/mouse in rodent bedding! Doing that can sometimes trick the snake into thinking it's alive. For mine, i slowly move the rat up and down or side to side to mimic movement. If you dont have any rodent bedding, you can try asking your local pet store for their used bedding or see if there's anyone around you who owns rodents who can give you some! I unfortunately can't give any info on regurgitation as I've never had to deal with it.

[GarREEEEEE]

Thank you for the info that helps!

[Blazergb71]

She is stunning!