Can bug spray kill a snake if it's used in the same house?

Question

My snake recently died very suddenly and the only thing I can put it down to is the bug spray I used in the house. I never sprayed in the room the tank was in but would the chemicals be able to permeate the tank and poison the snake?

Answer 1

Yes, it's possible the fumes caused the death of the snake.  The chemicals permeate the air, and diffuse throughout the area.  It's very possible minute amounts of the insecticide settled on his skin and in his water, especially if you had a screen top on his tank.

We never spray insecticide, or even paint a room in the house, unless the animals are removed from the premises during treatment/drying.

Birds especially, are susceptible to toxic fumes.  My sister recently lost her beloved cockatoo, Cosmo, when she sprayed paint in her garage, not realizing the fumes would leech into the house.

Our pets are very sensitive to their environment and airborne contaminants.

I'm sorry for your loss, and hope this might be useful in the future.  

Answer 2

It's possible, but it doesn't sound likely.  For the most part, you'd need a lot of bug spray for it to effect something as large as a snake.  If you didn't spray directly into the tank, I don't see how it would really be a problem.

What are the chances that some of the spray got into the snake's water or food supply?  Ingesting it directly would have a bigger effect, so that might be worth looking into.