Quote:
Originally Posted by ajmmilitar
I just purchased an albino hognose about a little over two months ago. At first he did not want to eat then he ate a fuzzy about three weeks from the time I got him. Since then he has not eaten and its been about 5weeks and yesterday he started some unusual behavior. He opens his mouth real wide and twists his neck from side to side. What does this mean? I keep the warm side of his cage at 87-91 degrees he is a little over a year and the tank is a 20 gallon tank. He always has fresh water and I clean his cage once a month. I have no clue whats wrong or why he doesnt eat. I want to refrain from going to a vet unless its an emergency. The snake does not look sick he still active comes out of his hide and he is not that skinny. should i be concerned? ill try to capture the behavior on video.
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It's hard to say for sure what that is, and I am not a vet. I have kept thousands of snakes, though. I would start with checking for stuck shed. Snakes with one or more layers of un-shed skin can act this way. Put the snake in a wet pillow case or cloth bag of some kind. (Don't submerge the snake and pillow case in water!) Leave it in the bag on the cool side and check to see if the skin has loosened up after a few hours. It may take several hours or multiple days of trying, but just leave the snake in for six hours or so per day. You should start to see a whitish layer on the snake if it is skin. The skin should come off on its own or you can help it when the skin is wet and soft. It may be a neurological disorder, but it seems more likely it's stuck shed. If you don't have one already, make sure the snake has a hide box that is humid. This can be accomplished by placing moist moss or damp paper towels in a mostly enclosed plastic box. Keep in mind that even though Western hognose snakes are found in drier parts of the U.S., it spends most of it's time in highly humid hiding places such as under rocks or logs.
I hope this helps,
Chris Hutson
Standard Reptile Company
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