First snake, he hasn’t pooped the whole time we’ve had him :(

[CarlosTheSnake]

This was such a good read with so much information, thank you for taking the time to type this all out, I really appreciate it. He’s such a rad looking snake, I love him.

We thought the enclosure might not have been adequately heated when we put him in a taller enclosure and he managed to crawl up in the gap in the lid close to where the heating bulbs were, but we thought he’d escaped and the stress and panic that caused made us move him back to the smaller one (at least till he’s big enough not to crawl in the bloody gap in the lid). Good to know we can’t cook his poo in him though.

we have a pretty large container of water kept in the larger enclosure that seems to help with the humidity in there. How often do babies go through shed? He was starting to rub up against the log hide in his enclosure today just like he did before he went into shed last time so just curious. His last shed was so perfect, all in one piece minus his little face mask

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The shop had let us know that he was a real struggle to get feeding when he started out but the two weeks leading up to us getting him he’d been eating a pinky every 5-6 days so I’m wondering if he’s only going to take one mouse at a time, should we feed him more often?
Will weigh him in a couple days when he’s done with the pinkie that’s in him. maybe he’ll have eaten the second one too who knows. What does Daisy chaining pinkies mean?

I believe dairy caining is feeding him one pinky, then when hes just about finished eating it you put another in his mouth so he eats 2 without realising hes eating the second pretty much. not sure tho im no proffesional. also let me know his weight when you weigh him mines 8-9 months old and 15g, 33cm.

 

[Bluetongue1]

Sorry, last night I meant to say thank you for your kind words, but I forgot due to being too tired.
Where appropriate, rather than just tell people what to do to, if I think it will be of benefit I’ll also explain the 'why’ behind it. Yeah, it does tend to make for longer posts, so I just don’t do as many. That has been the way I’ve operated since I started using the forum, back in 2009 (I actually joined in 2007). I think the forum these days is much more welcoming and still very helpful, thanks in no small measure to the efforts of Stuart and Rob (current admin).

You asked about feeding. Two pinkies versus one is not really going to make much difference to digestion time, as the amount of juices released is in response to the amount of undigested food present in the gut. Given the increase in amount of food, you may wish to feed it say weekly. At this stage it is not critical, so its entirely up to you whether you leave it as is or otherwise.

 

[DittiMaru]

You can leave it overnight and see if he takes it. You can feed two together by daisy -chaining them. BTW, what does your snake weigh? I started on the following yesterday, but got interrupted. Hopefully I have now removed any duplication…
That is a great looking little critter you have got there.

Heya i weighed him today and he's 14g, i don't know what he should weigh or what we should be aiming for but he's still very small. he did not end up eating the second pinkie so we removed it from his enclosure. he's nearly 40cm in length as well though i think weight is the better metric than length

 

[DittiMaru]

Hey again. He’s eaten and he’s pooped!! I noticed his little exit is a bit red but that might just be the colour of his body, tried not to Google and saw some horrific prolapse pictures that I really could’ve gone without so I know it’s not that. His poo* (have been informed that its urate not poo) was also very white but that might’ve been just from it sitting there for a while before i noticed it. maybe it’s just in my head but the little one looks to be gaining some chunk

thank you to all of you that have given advice and tips, I really appreciate it immensely. Reptiles are so so different to having cats and dogs, quite counter intuitive but fabulous

 

[Herpetology]

white is urate, not poop, poop is brown

 

[HerpDerp]

Hey again. He’s eaten and he’s pooped!! I noticed his little exit is a bit red but that might just be the colour of his body, tried not to Google and saw some horrific prolapse pictures that I really could’ve gone without so I know it’s not that. His poo* (have been informed that its urate not poo) was also very white but that might’ve been just from it sitting there for a while before i noticed it. maybe it’s just in my head but the little one looks to be gaining some chunk

thank you to all of you that have given advice and tips, I really appreciate it immensely. Reptiles are so so different to having cats and dogs, quite counter intuitive but fabulous

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*DISCLAIMER* I am a human nurse not a vet nurse and certainly not an exotics/reptile nurse. everything below is merely a best guess

I would be very careful about any redness, especially around an orifice.
1. constipation can cause tiny little cuts in the skin around the opening which can become infected
2. any kind of opening is always susceptible to colonisation by bacteria

I wouldn't panic or particularly worry at this point but I would monitor it very closely. If the redness starts to spread becomes a deeper red or gets worse in any other way then I would probably head to the vet just in case. if it resolves I would continue to monitor the area when you have the chance to watch for a reoccurrence.

EDIT
if it doesn't resolve but also doesn't get any worse I would likely dismiss it as it's normal colouring but I would add it to the list of things to check with the vet at it's next check up just for piece of mind.

 

[DittiMaru]

*DISCLAIMER* I am a human nurse not a vet nurse and certainly not an exotics/reptile nurse. everything below is merely a best guess

I would be very careful about any redness, especially around an orifice.
1. constipation can cause tiny little cuts in the skin around the opening which can become infected
2. any kind of opening is always susceptible to colonisation by bacteria

I wouldn't panic or particularly worry at this point but I would monitor it very closely. If the redness starts to spread becomes a deeper red or gets worse in any other way then I would probably head to the vet just in case. if it resolves I would continue to monitor the area when you have the chance to watch for a reoccurrence.

EDIT
if it doesn't resolve but also doesn't get any worse I would likely dismiss it as it's normal colouring but I would add it to the list of things to check with the vet at it's next check up just for piece of mind.

Thank you! Yes we have booked in with a vet for a normal check up but I will bring it up at our appointment. We’re being very diligent with cleaning his substrate and keeping water fresh in the mean time just to try avoid making it worse.

*DISCLAIMER* I am a human nurse not a vet nurse and certainly not an exotics/reptile nurse. everything below is merely a best guess

I would be very careful about any redness, especially around an orifice.
1. constipation can cause tiny little cuts in the skin around the opening which can become infected
2. any kind of opening is always susceptible to colonisation by bacteria

I wouldn't panic or particularly worry at this point but I would monitor it very closely. If the redness starts to spread becomes a deeper red or gets worse in any other way then I would probably head to the vet just in case. if it resolves I would continue to monitor the area when you have the chance to watch for a reoccurrence.

EDIT
if it doesn't resolve but also doesn't get any worse I would likely dismiss it as it's normal colouring but I would add it to the list of things to check with the vet at it's next check up just for piece of mind.

Updates and probably my last (in this thread at least haha, i'm sure i'll have more questions to ask you lovely people in the future) The redness at his pooter seems to be gone today, so not sure what had happened but he had a poo and some urate in the enclosure this morning and he's back to his usual activities, warming up in his hide during the day, roaming the enclosure in the evening. he's eating, he's pooping, he's a chill little noodle with a head.
thanks again everyone <3

 

[Timmah]

@CarlosTheSnake @DittiMaru, for reference, my boy is 52cm, 67 grams (weighed tonight) and as far as I know (need to ask store actual age) he's around 4-5 months old. I fed him once a week, pinkies now weeners (up to 5th week of weeners this Thursday).

He's a chilli little noodle with a head.

Have you been watching Clints on YouTube? That's what he calls snakes!

 

[DittiMaru]

@CarlosTheSnake @DittiMaru, for reference, my boy is 52cm, 67 grams (weighed tonight) and as far as I know (need to ask store actual age) he's around 4-5 months old. I fed him once a week, pinkies now weeners (up to 5th week of weeners this Thursday).



Have you been watching Clints on YouTube? That's what he calls snakes!

Woah your boy is so much bigger than mine. We weighed him today and he’s at 15g hecc. What species is yours!!

Also yeah I’ve been watching Clint for ages but my partner has been bingeing his stuff now that we have a snake

 

[CarlosTheSnake]

Woah your boy is so much bigger than mine. We weighed him today and he’s at 15g hecc. What species is yours!!

Also yeah I’ve been watching Clint for ages but my partner has been bingeing his stuff now that we have a snake

I agree 5 months old stimmie and 52 cm?!

 

[Herpetology]

4-5mths old is impossible unless the breeder had a weird as cooling cycle?? lol

for the most part stimsons lay september/october , sometimes november

it'd be closer to a year old @Timmah

 

[Timmah]

Ok thanks @Hertepology, that was just a random guess on my part! That makes more sense. I was thinking he was some freak of nature haha. Glad he's more normal sized than I thought.

 

[DittiMaru]

Ok thanks @Hertepology, that was just a random guess on my part! That makes more sense. I was thinking he was some freak of nature haha. Glad he's more normal sized than I thought.

bhahaha perfect, so he's at least 3 months older than Casper so i shouldn't be worried too bad even though Casper was the runt so probably wouldn't be at a normal weight anyway. your stimmie is gorgeous though, really lovely pattern on him


Umm slight worry, Casper nommed the head of the pinky, then let it go and now he’s just sitting like this for the last five minutes…is he okay?? What is happening.

 

[Herpetology]

assuming hot spot is still around 32-34c and has a cold end, probably realised theres no point wasting energy on such a small feed lol

bump the size up to fuzzies

 

[DittiMaru]

assuming hot spot is still around 32-34c and has a cold end, probably realised theres no point wasting energy on such a small feed lol

bump the size up to fuzzies

Yeah we’re just gonna go and get bigger mice coz he’s been a bit meh about eating for the last two. Just feel bad about the pinkies going to waste

 

[Timmah]

4-5mths old is impossible unless the breeder had a weird as cooling cycle?? lol

for the most part stimsons lay september/october , sometimes november

it'd be closer to a year old @Timmah

So I went to the store I bought Smaug from today, and they confirmed he was born in December 2020. So he's definitely 9 and a half months old now!

 

[DittiMaru]

So I went to the store I bought Smaug from today, and they confirmed he was born in December 2020. So he's definitely 9 and a half months old now!

Ayyy he’s the same age as Casper!

 

[dzdleodoreandshogun]

Hey again. He’s eaten and he’s pooped!! I noticed his little exit is a bit red but that might just be the colour of his body, tried not to Google and saw some horrific prolapse pictures that I really could’ve gone without so I know it’s not that. His poo* (have been informed that its urate not poo) was also very white but that might’ve been just from it sitting there for a while before i noticed it. maybe it’s just in my head but the little one looks to be gaining some chunk

thank you to all of you that have given advice and tips, I really appreciate it immensely. Reptiles are so so different to having cats and dogs, quite counter intuitive but fabulous

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Glad he pooped! And there should be urate (white stuff) and brown solid waste (poop) as well as some amount of liquid, which usually just soaks into the substrate so you rarely notice that.
A couple tips!
- sometimes I worry a snake is constipated, but it turns out they pooped and it's just hidden in the substrate. If you haven't found anything in a couple feedings and you're worried, try sifting through there (make sure to put him somewhere else for that, it's likely to really stress him out otherwise). Periodically messing with the substrate in a non-bioactive enclosure can be good enrichment too, piling it up in different places and changing the smell a bit, as well as keeping mold from forming if anything gets too damp.
- someone else said this, but if there's an obstruction you may be able to see/feel a bump or bulge at / just before the vent. I don't keep Stimson's, so can't say for sure that that isn't his coloring, but his vent does look inflamed in those pictures. Hopefully that means he was constipated and isn't anymore! I'd make sure to change the water often, and check on that whenever you have him out just to make sure it's healing and doesn't start to show signs of an infection.
- sometimes constipation is a result of dehydration (in your case my guess would be the stress of moving though! Hopefully he continues to eat, poop, and act normally!). If a snake isn't pooping, I make sure there's plenty of clean water in a clean bowl to encourage them to drink. And sometimes I'll use warm water to fill the bowl, usually at night to make sure they don't need to cool off, so they can soak if they want. A warm water soak/swim can help a lot, and if I do that they often come check out the water bowl, wiggle around in it for a bit, and then poop right in the water. Obviously, if this happens you've got to clean the bowl again, but no more constipation, yay!

If he keeps getting constipated, it could be too much heat as stated by others. Try setting more hides at various temperatures to make sure he has varied thermoregulation options?

Best of luck!

 

[DittiMaru]

Glad he pooped! And there should be urate (white stuff) and brown solid waste (poop) as well as some amount of liquid, which usually just soaks into the substrate so you rarely notice that.
A couple tips!
- sometimes I worry a snake is constipated, but it turns out they pooped and it's just hidden in the substrate. If you haven't found anything in a couple feedings and you're worried, try sifting through there (make sure to put him somewhere else for that, it's likely to really stress him out otherwise). Periodically messing with the substrate in a non-bioactive enclosure can be good enrichment too, piling it up in different places and changing the smell a bit, as well as keeping mold from forming if anything gets too damp.
- someone else said this, but if there's an obstruction you may be able to see/feel a bump or bulge at / just before the vent. I don't keep Stimson's, so can't say for sure that that isn't his coloring, but his vent does look inflamed in those pictures. Hopefully that means he was constipated and isn't anymore! I'd make sure to change the water often, and check on that whenever you have him out just to make sure it's healing and doesn't start to show signs of an infection.
- sometimes constipation is a result of dehydration (in your case my guess would be the stress of moving though! Hopefully he continues to eat, poop, and act normally!). If a snake isn't pooping, I make sure there's plenty of clean water in a clean bowl to encourage them to drink. And sometimes I'll use warm water to fill the bowl, usually at night to make sure they don't need to cool off, so they can soak if they want. A warm water soak/swim can help a lot, and if I do that they often come check out the water bowl, wiggle around in it for a bit, and then poop right in the water. Obviously, if this happens you've got to clean the bowl again, but no more constipation, yay!

If he keeps getting constipated, it could be too much heat as stated by others. Try setting more hides at various temperatures to make sure he has varied thermoregulation options?

Best of luck!

Thank you for taking the time to write all this out! I appreciate it

Moving his hides and substrate around seem to have made him want to explore his little enclosure more, I’ve been noticing him slithering about so good call on that front.
he has pooped in the water dish the one time I filled it with warm water hasn’t done it again but he seems to poop in a similar spot every week.

we upped him to fuzzies and he’s back at it with the excited strike and constrict so he seems to be back to normal.

his little pooper is also no longer red and angry looking, it actually seemed to resolve itself quite quickly after his poo so I’m hoping it was just that the poor thing hadn’t passed a motion in a while. Vet looked him over and said other than being small for his age, he’s in good health but he’s not surprised that he’s so small looking at his feeding records from before I got him. There was a period where he was needing to be assist fed rat tails and he really didn’t eat much for a few months so I’m just happy the little noodle is eating now.

 

[Kaydee2508]

No advice, but just wanted to say your danger noodle is absolutely gorgeous!!!