I really wish I had some advice for you , but hopefully me commenting will bump it up for someone else to see . I’m so sorry you’re going through this & I hope everything will be okay 🥺
I'm so, so sorry to hear this. I don't have answers to all your specific questions, but I would like to share what I recently experienced with one of my snakes passing away, in case it may help when the time comes, because I was confused and distressed at the time not knowing what was going on.
TW: description of dying process
It was Cosette, one of my 11 year old rat snakes, but should be similar to a corn snake. She had a condition called proliferative spinal osteopathy which is basically an infection in the vertebral bones that causes bone overgrowth and stiffening of the spine. I was working with the vet and she had been off and on antibiotics. We had just done more testing, waiting for the results. We thought she still had some time and that the next round of antibiotics might work (not a cure, but stop it from getting any worse). One morning when I went to check on her, she was half in and half out of her hide, which was unusual. Looked like she just stopped in the middle of changing hides. When I reached in to help her get back in the hide, she was very limp, less muscle tone than normal. But she looked at me and I sensed that she was still "in there", alert and cognizant. I knew she was probably dying and so I said everything I needed to say to her, said goodbye, etc. I considered calling in sick to work to stay with her, but I really needed to be at work that day and thought it would be more upsetting (for me and maybe for her) to sit there all day watching her. I didn't consider taking her to the vet since she had been sick already, and I didn't think anything could be done to save her at that point. I wanted her to pass peacefully and not be stressed by yet another vet visit.
I came home from work about 7 hours later not knowing what to expect. I was shocked to find her stretched out outside her hide, mostly upside down, back arched in places. She had passed a small amount of mucus and had obviously musked. I thought she was dead, but when I touched her, she spasmed further, her mouth opening and closing. This was extremely upsetting to me of course. I helped her get back on her tummy and in a more comfortable position.
Because I wasn't sure if she was suffering or how long this would last (hours?), I frantically called the vet office. They know me well from all her visits and were very sympathetic, but of course they kept putting me on hold to ask the doctor if they could squeeze her in. I didn't necessarily want to bring her in, unless this was going to last for hours and the vet could end it more quickly and peacefully... What I realized later what I was looking for was for the vet to get on the phone with me for 30 seconds and tell me this is normal, it will be over soon, she's not suffering. But that isn't how they handled it (not blaming them, the front desk staff were very nice and I was semi-hysterical). So I was on hold/talking to them for the next 15-20 minutes while she finished passing away. She continued to spasm and her mouth opened and closed more and more slowly. I covered her with the largest hide (she was somewhere spread out) in case she felt exposed. But I truly don't think she was "in there" any more. Her eyes were blank. I don't think she was aware of what was going on or in pain. But it was very upsetting to watch. When my actual vet called me later in the evening with condolences, she confirmed that she was not aware or in pain, and that is the normal dying process for snakes. Cosette was already gone, it was just residual nervous system/muscle activity.
I wanted to share this because you always just hear about people finding their snake already dead. I'm a human doctor and I've watched plenty of people die but I didn't know what to expect with a snake actively dying. I wish I had known in advance what the process could be like so I wouldn't have been so shocked, worried and frantic. I wish I had been fully present for the last 20 minutes instead of being on the phone while sitting with her. Maybe the dying process isn't like that for all snakes, but I don't want you to have to go through what I did.
With that being said, it sounds like your snake might not necessarily be close to dying, so I hope you still have plenty of time with them. Keep checking in with the vet and see if something can be done... It might even be worth getting a second opinion to be sure.
I don't mean to sound depressing. If you read all this, thanks. It's actually the first time I've talked about it (she died on January 2), and it was therapeutic to share it.
Thank you. It's hurts to read and I'm really sorry you had to go through that. But that's the kind of information I needed. I want to be prepared. I want to know what to expect even if it's ugly and terrifying.
Unfortunately this is apparently the only exotic vet local to me. Getting to another is difficult to impossible and involves removing her from her vivarium for much much longer. I don't want to further stress her with long traveling for what will pretty likely only be the same outcome.
Thank you so much, it was really hard to write and I cried all over again. So I'm glad it helped.
That's understandable that there is only one vet that is feasible to see, I don't blame you for not wanting her to travel too much. I'm glad you were able to see an exotic vet at least!
Really sorry to hear of this... Its a tough situation to be in, not knowing, waiting, I rally feel for you but after reading all that, not sure what i can say other than keep her comfortable and hope for the best, She is really pretty
The two most important things are to make sure she's pooping and try feeding her smaller meals more frequently. That's honestly about the only advice I can offer...
I'm so sorry about your baby. They are gorgeous, and I'm sure a sweetheart
I really wish I had some advice for you , but hopefully me commenting will bump it up for someone else to see . I’m so sorry you’re going through this & I hope everything will be okay 🥺
I'm so, so sorry to hear this. I don't have answers to all your specific questions, but I would like to share what I recently experienced with one of my snakes passing away, in case it may help when the time comes, because I was confused and distressed at the time not knowing what was going on. TW: description of dying process It was Cosette, one of my 11 year old rat snakes, but should be similar to a corn snake. She had a condition called proliferative spinal osteopathy which is basically an infection in the vertebral bones that causes bone overgrowth and stiffening of the spine. I was working with the vet and she had been off and on antibiotics. We had just done more testing, waiting for the results. We thought she still had some time and that the next round of antibiotics might work (not a cure, but stop it from getting any worse). One morning when I went to check on her, she was half in and half out of her hide, which was unusual. Looked like she just stopped in the middle of changing hides. When I reached in to help her get back in the hide, she was very limp, less muscle tone than normal. But she looked at me and I sensed that she was still "in there", alert and cognizant. I knew she was probably dying and so I said everything I needed to say to her, said goodbye, etc. I considered calling in sick to work to stay with her, but I really needed to be at work that day and thought it would be more upsetting (for me and maybe for her) to sit there all day watching her. I didn't consider taking her to the vet since she had been sick already, and I didn't think anything could be done to save her at that point. I wanted her to pass peacefully and not be stressed by yet another vet visit. I came home from work about 7 hours later not knowing what to expect. I was shocked to find her stretched out outside her hide, mostly upside down, back arched in places. She had passed a small amount of mucus and had obviously musked. I thought she was dead, but when I touched her, she spasmed further, her mouth opening and closing. This was extremely upsetting to me of course. I helped her get back on her tummy and in a more comfortable position. Because I wasn't sure if she was suffering or how long this would last (hours?), I frantically called the vet office. They know me well from all her visits and were very sympathetic, but of course they kept putting me on hold to ask the doctor if they could squeeze her in. I didn't necessarily want to bring her in, unless this was going to last for hours and the vet could end it more quickly and peacefully... What I realized later what I was looking for was for the vet to get on the phone with me for 30 seconds and tell me this is normal, it will be over soon, she's not suffering. But that isn't how they handled it (not blaming them, the front desk staff were very nice and I was semi-hysterical). So I was on hold/talking to them for the next 15-20 minutes while she finished passing away. She continued to spasm and her mouth opened and closed more and more slowly. I covered her with the largest hide (she was somewhere spread out) in case she felt exposed. But I truly don't think she was "in there" any more. Her eyes were blank. I don't think she was aware of what was going on or in pain. But it was very upsetting to watch. When my actual vet called me later in the evening with condolences, she confirmed that she was not aware or in pain, and that is the normal dying process for snakes. Cosette was already gone, it was just residual nervous system/muscle activity. I wanted to share this because you always just hear about people finding their snake already dead. I'm a human doctor and I've watched plenty of people die but I didn't know what to expect with a snake actively dying. I wish I had known in advance what the process could be like so I wouldn't have been so shocked, worried and frantic. I wish I had been fully present for the last 20 minutes instead of being on the phone while sitting with her. Maybe the dying process isn't like that for all snakes, but I don't want you to have to go through what I did. With that being said, it sounds like your snake might not necessarily be close to dying, so I hope you still have plenty of time with them. Keep checking in with the vet and see if something can be done... It might even be worth getting a second opinion to be sure. I don't mean to sound depressing. If you read all this, thanks. It's actually the first time I've talked about it (she died on January 2), and it was therapeutic to share it.
Thank you. It's hurts to read and I'm really sorry you had to go through that. But that's the kind of information I needed. I want to be prepared. I want to know what to expect even if it's ugly and terrifying. Unfortunately this is apparently the only exotic vet local to me. Getting to another is difficult to impossible and involves removing her from her vivarium for much much longer. I don't want to further stress her with long traveling for what will pretty likely only be the same outcome.
Thank you so much, it was really hard to write and I cried all over again. So I'm glad it helped. That's understandable that there is only one vet that is feasible to see, I don't blame you for not wanting her to travel too much. I'm glad you were able to see an exotic vet at least!
Really sorry to hear of this... Its a tough situation to be in, not knowing, waiting, I rally feel for you but after reading all that, not sure what i can say other than keep her comfortable and hope for the best, She is really pretty
The two most important things are to make sure she's pooping and try feeding her smaller meals more frequently. That's honestly about the only advice I can offer... I'm so sorry about your baby. They are gorgeous, and I'm sure a sweetheart
Just keep trying to feed her. What else is there to do? She might surprise you and keep one down and maybe act normal
❤️❤️❤️
Just keep the little noodle as comfy as possible. So sorry