Ball Python Death questions

[intimidator03]

Alright... ive been helping a friend of mine in the mid west with aquiring his first ball python and taking care of it and setting the tank up. well the snake refused to eat for about a week and a half. he started to turn to a bluish hue which i figured possible shedding, but no eye caps. We finally got the snake to eat a thawed pinkie ( baby ball, and no live pinkies or hoppers anywhere) he showed no intrest for the most part but he would constantly yawn and when he yawned my buddy put the pinky in his mouth and he swallowed it. The snake had appeared to have a lump near the tail and the mood of the snaked changed from extremely friendly and active to skittish. the next day my buddy went to look at the snake and he was coiled up outside of his hide but his head was inside the hide, yet it appeared as if his neck had been kinked to one side like someone broke it. yet he was still fine besides that. As the next day went by the snake had died while my friend was at work.. He came home and the snaked had defecated everywhere and was found dead next to a hide on the cool side of the tank.

I am pretty much stumped as to a little insight as to why this may have happened, the only thing i am thinking is perhaps the snake had a parasite? other than that my mind draws blank... personally i do not like feeding dead and if my friend had a choice he would be feeding live. but where he is at he cannot get live pinkies or fuzzy's. Any help would be appreciated

 

[Zoltan]

First of all I'm not a snake expert, but the constant yawning (or it's not actually yawning, but mouth-opening) is often a sign of upper respiratory infection. Other symptoms are: wet/foamy mouth, frothing/crust around the animal's lips, blowing bubbles, bloody mucous, substrate sticking to the animal's face, gurgling, whistling sounds, hacking and inflation of the chin area (from Kevin McCurley: The Complete Ball Python, p. 67.). Any of these sound familiar with the snake? Also, do you know if the snake was captive bred or wild caught? Wild caught snakes often carry parasites, and from the other things you described this case may easily be parasite or viral infection.

Ps.: why don't you like feeding dead?

 

[halfwaynowhere]

a baby ball python can take weanlings, or even small adult mice... I know it looks big, but believe me, they can handle it.
Its very likely that the snake was captive hatched, meaning its gravid momma was caught in the wild, kept until she laid her eggs, and then released. Then when the snakes are hatched, they get shipped over here. I've heard about parasites in captive hatched animals. Most people recommend taking a fecal sample to the vet to check for parasites as soon as you get the snake.
Anyways, sorry for your friend's loss. Hopefully if he decides to get another snake, it will be healthier.

 

[intimidator03]

I prefer feeding live for a more natural set up. Eraisuithon the upper respritory may be a good sign with the constant yawning. We will probably be getting another snake in the near future for him. he just wants me to start breeding first lol I appreciate the help

 

[Kid Dragon]

Get a healthy baby ball python that is already feeding from a reputable dealer. They are very inexpensive unless they get a rarer morph like albino or pied bald.

 

[halfwaynowhere]

Get a healthy baby ball python that is already feeding from a reputable dealer. They are very inexpensive unless they get a rarer morph like albino or pied bald.

yep. I paid $20 for my normal girl, while at a store like petco I would have spent nearly four times that much! And I knew she was captive bred, while the ones from stores like petco and petsmart are mostly captive hatched, and she was healthy, and eating well... I got her after her third meal, and she's never refused a meal, i feed her an adult mouse every five to seven days with no problem... All the issues I've heard about ball pythons being hard to care for, or bad eaters, have so far been non-existant with mine... So much more peace of mind going with a reputable dealer.