Siren Exotics AKA SirenSanJose - SICK ANIMALS

It's especially frustrating because when I spoke with Diana at the norcal show she seemed perfectly ok with getting me the meds and taking care of the issue. Then I hear nothing from her. I hate to say it, but I cant help but feel that she just told me what I wanted to hear to get me out of her face in the hopes that it would just die out. I'd hate to think that's it but at this point I can't think of a more logical explanation.

Have you sent her a link to this thread? Even if she doesn't respond to the message, she may come here and offer an explanation.


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Nick,
I do not feel that you have a home full of sick snakes nor would I mean to imply that. The comment about the Tylan was meant to show that if you are unsure of the bacteria strain that medicine may not be useful and potentially lethal. Tylan seems to work very well when applied to the proper diagnosis. Expect to see a significant drop in appetite after 5-6 injections. Also, Tylan leads to egg binding and difficulty with defecation. Keep your water bowl fresh and full when using Tylan. I would use this situation to get a Plan B and C together so to speak as you move forward. A solid reptile vet is a must have. They are lacking in many of areas of the country so I understand your pain there. No matter how careful and clean you are when you buy from a show you must be prepared for a worse case scenario. Not everyone will share your attention to detail and care. When you stated this animal was lost in a garage it is highly irresponsible for a seller with their apparent degree of knowledge in the this field to have offered that snake for sale to you or anyone else. If that statement is true it speaks volumes about the their credibility and care for their animals. I will send you a PM shortly if you wish to share it with everyone here you are welcome to, but I feel you should view it yourself first. Take care.

I didn't bother Melissa, she hasn't responded to me for two months. After I told her the snake would die if she didn't help (which as i said was just me being dramatic to try to elicit a response) I more or less gave up.

Scott I appreciate the info about the tylan, she's only 300 grams so no worries about egg binding, and we always keep our snakes' water clean and full. Like I said, the injections seem to be helping dramatically.

Victoria recently got into pharmacy school in Washington state so we'll be moving there in a couple weeks. I'm hoping that I'll be able to find a reliable vet there because I know I cant make every diagnosis myself. I'm not so irresponsible to think that, in this case it seemed very obvious what the issue was though.

I'm confused. Did they actually do a culture, or just stain a sample from swabbing the mouth? Those pictures are just stained direct cytology smears, not cultures. I guess it's possible you're still waiting for results.

Snakes naturally have a fair amount of bacteria in their mouths and the notes said 'oral swab.' You can expect to see gram-positive (mostly) bacteria in the mouths of healthy snakes. For a respiratory infection, they should really be getting a sterile sample from swabbing inside the glottis or, better yet, from a tracheal wash. An issue with picking random antibiotics that you can buy OTC is that Tylan doesn't work against many gram-negative bacteria, and those are behind most of the RIs in snakes.

On another note, it's perfectly believable that the snake could have had no symptoms when it was sold, and it really was a surprise to the seller. You had it almost a week before you noticed. In my opinion, it's not fair to ask the sellers to pay for the snake plus the meds, then get to keep the snake for free. Either return it and get reimbursed both costs, or keep it and ask for reimbursement for treatment.

Originally Posted by April Homich

On another note, it's perfectly believable that the snake could have had no symptoms when it was sold, and it really was a surprise to the seller. You had it almost a week before you noticed. In my opinion, it's not fair to ask the sellers to pay for the snake plus the meds, then get to keep the snake for free. Either return it and get reimbursed both costs, or keep it and ask for reimbursement for treatment.

If what Nick states is true, that they say the animal was lost in a garage for some time just before the sale. It is perfectly believable that the symptoms being displayed are a result of that. Any responsible seller would not have offered that animal for sale without a run through quarantine and a disclosure at the time of sale. Then Nick could have chosen to buy or not. I am not claiming to know for fact that the animal was indeed loose out in a garage. This is Nicks claim. I do agree with you in terms of the refund. It has to be one way or the other. And your statement regarding bacteria is spot on. It is possible that the snake displayed no symptoms on the day of sale but if what Nick has claimed is true they knew their lack of proper procedure when they recaptured the animal was more than likely the cause of this situation.

You're both absolutely correct. I was told by Diana when I spoke to her in person that the snake had been lost in their garage for an unknown period of time. Obviously I don't have proof of this as it was said in person, so you can choose to believe me or not. Regardless, the snake was sold to me sick without question.

April you could very well be correct, my fields are chemistry and physics so I have no idea how stains work. My understanding was the the shape and characteristics of the bacteria seen from the oral swab were indicative of bacteria related to respiratory infections.

You're also both right in saying I can't have it all. I absolutely do not expect to have them pay for everything AND I keep the snake. I simply want them to take responsibility. I expect them to pay for the meds, refund the cost of the snake, and pay for return shipping once she's healthy enough to send back. That or they can make the 6 hour drive and come personally pick her up. At this point I will settle for them even responding to me.

I just sent siren a link on facebook to this BOI thread and told them to feel free to comment. Even if they don't care about the animals, maybe they'll care enough about their reputation to come say something.

The facebook message I sent was seen at 10am PST, so about 6 hours ago. So maybe we'll hear something in terms of an explanation now? (And no, they didn't bother responding to my facebook message. Big surprise).