Albino Ball Python Died!!

The sad truth is, snakes die...as do every other living thing.

Why must there always be blame? The animal was drinking, eating, soaking...and while it may have developed gout AT ANY POINT, how would one have known that? Did everyone involved with that animal act responsibly in the manner it which it was cared for? I'm quite certain they did, to the best of their ability and knowledge.

I've never met Adam, but I have no doubt that he's quite capable of caring for ball pythons of any age. I did meet Kevin at the White Plains show a few months ago, and each of his animals were beyond reproach and gorgeous. I can't imagine that Kevin doesn't know how to care for ball pythons, either....hatchling or not.

Adam, are you thinking that this is a genetic defect that is manifesting itself for the first time in this clutch? If so, can you conclusively say how many animals were born of this clutch, and how many of them perished because of gout? It seems that a genetic predisposition to gout is a long shot, and the likelihood of that decreases exponentially if you're talking about one animal. Throughout this, has anyone else come forward that has another animal from that clutch that has died? Has the confusion over which animals were from which clutch been cleared up?

I just think that entertaining the option of this being a genetic defect is really a wild hare with the information that exists.

In your initial post you stated that:

Per the breeder this animal was born in August and based on this information there is no possible way the time frame of two months would have allowed the animal to be dehydrated for a long enough period of time that it’s uric acid or uric salt levels could have reached a point to cause it’s death from gout as opposed to dehydration. With that in mind the conclusion is that this overproduction of uric acid and salts may be the result of a genetically inherited defect.

I know you've researched the causes of gout. Have you researched whether or not it is possible for a hatchling to become dehydrated over the time frame of 2 months, or are you basing that assumption on something else?

You stated that you thought the snake looked "like crap". What did it look like when you got it? If you didn't think it was in good condition, did you contact the seller then? Did you take it to a vet? Your posts indicate that you didn't think a thing was wrong with the snake until the regurge, yet you think the snake looked like crap. One regurge is not going to change an animals appearance noticably at all.

I just think that maybe there's alot of pride involved here. Adam stated that he hadn't had a snake die for no reason in a long time. He obviously feels he did everything right with this snake. So does Kevin. Most likely they both are right. Sometimes animals will develop a condition that is unforeseeable. IT HAPPENS. It doesn't happen often with good breeders/keepers, and both Adam and Kevin certainly fit into that category. Yet, it can and does and WILL happen.

I think there's alot to be learned from this thread, from this situation, if the primary agenda of proving who is at fault can be dropped.