greydlt: A few days ago, we posted an emergency signal boost message about my snake Ivy (a.k.a. Bug/
greydlt: A few days ago, we posted an emergency signal boost message about my snake Ivy (a.k.a. Bug/Buggy), who ate a 100% polyester hand towel/washcloth and we were desperately asking for any advice, especially if there was anyone who had ever experienced something similar. We received an overwhelming response of over 500 notes in two days, and countless tips, suggestions, and ideas - good wishes and prayers, all for which we are very thankful. However, it seems there were only about 2 or 3 similar cases ever recorded, so we had very little idea of what really was going to happen. Not a single veterinarian in Laredo, San Antonio, or College Station (Texas) had ever seen or had to treat a case like this - so everyone was pretty much clueless (though I received great help and support from some of these veterinarians). So I decided to post about Ivy’s case in case that (GOD FORBID) anyone’s snake ever has to go through this. In a matter of 2 days, Ivy’s stomach acids had dissolved the towel (as it appears on the x-rays), but she still runs the risk of not being able to excrete the few undigested fibers that might still be inside her. Although she already excreted a couple along with her urine, as you can see on the photo I’ve attached (seen under the microscope at 40x magnification).She is swimming in the bath tub every day (to increase metabolic rate) and has been drinking a lot of water (to avoid dehydration/towel sucking up gastric juices). BUT she might be able to manage just fine after this without the need of surgery (as it was initially suggested, but later retracted). She will be under observation for the next couple of weeks, but we’re hoping she will make a full recovery.PLEASE if you’re a snake owner, or know someone who owns snakes, even veterinarians or vet techs, let our unfortunate event serve as a lesson that 1) Snakes CAN eat weird crap they’re not supposed to. I NEVER, in a million years, would have believed that Ivy would swallow a towel. So please, be careful with the objects you leave in your snake’s tank.2) A snake’s stomach acids can break down just about anything. Except metals and perhaps hard plastics. This was a problem to me because no vets nor wild life experts really knew whether or not a snake could digest polyester because, well, THEY HAVE NEVER HAD TO FIND OUT. Now they know. Now we all know.3) Surgery can cost over $1,000 - so if you ever experience something similar to this, don’t rush your snake into surgery. They also run a big risk of not surviving the surgery. Not many vets are experienced in operating on snakes, and the way their organs are laid out makes it a very delicate procedure, especially if your vet does not usually do these types of operations (they mostly only operate on cats and dogs). Opening the digestive tract is also very dangerous, and your snake is very prone to infections. And following up with antibiotics can prove to be extremely difficult.4) And finally, less literal and more of a lesson learned, don’t take your snake for granted. These past few days were hell for my family, friends, and myself. I barely caught any sleep supervising her at night, and I broke down over thinking that could probably be the last time I held her. Ivy has been with us for 6 years, so we, as a family, are very attached to her. I don’t want for anyone else to have to experience what we did. So just a request, if you own a snake, or know someone that does, please share this with them. I want for this to be out there because one of the worst feelings in the world is being in crisis and not being able to find any useful information anywhere. Not google, yahoo answers, pet owners, wildlife experts, nor vets. If something good can come out of this, I hope that it can help someone else some day.Thank you everyone for your advice, love, support, kind thoughts and prayers, commissions and donations on mayucva‘s account. The money from those funds helped us pay for the consultation and X-Rays. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts and will forever be grateful to you all.Best,-Grey -- source link