Help with fat cornsnake please!! Experienced advice wanted?

Question

I have just rescued a 7 year old albino cornsnake who seems to be very large on the back end, the overall shape would indicate she is constipated, but she does not have any hard masses that indicate a uric acid and waste build up, and she is not regurgitating her food.

Infact we gave her her first feed yesterday, and watched her consume the mouse then take a large drink of water. I know about bathing her in warm water several times a day, but i like to avoid practises like that if at all possible, because i believe it just puts uneccessary stress on the snake.

I would like some advice on any medicines or other practices that can be used to , not only treat constipation but diagnose it in the first place!!

Is it just possible that as a fully grown adult shes just become a little plump??!!

We know very little about the snake other than she used to belong to a man aged under 30 years old, she is used to being handled and has tank shared previously (as she is now)

Thanks ♥

Answer 1

i'm not a "run your reptile to the vet" all the time but i agree with jason h ... it could be egg binding and you probably should take the snake to the vet...they can x-ray her to find out for sure what is going on.  i think in your description that you said that your snake shared its tank with another snake with her previous owner and is sharing its tank with another snake now...with that in mind it really could be egg binding.  

good luck.

Answer 2

Take her to the vet for a full check up. You dont know anything about her or how she was previously kept so start now. Any problems will be highlighted and can be sorted.

Answer 3

She is just ready to breed.  Take it as a good thing.  There are many snake breeders out there that would love for their females to ovulate as your snake is doing.  It's a sure sign that you are taking very good care of her.

Answer 4

The description sounds like  egg binding(dystocia)or simple ovulation ( it is just after the breeding season) with that said any strange bulge your not sure about  is a trip to the vet so get moving!!

Answer 5

Cornsnakes can get fat if they're overfed and it's common for fat snakes to have a big bulge where the tail begins at the cloaca, because they don't really put on fat round the tail. It needs a diet. Feed a modest sized food item every 10-14 days. She needs to lose weight until the visible lump is gone, and the lower body just flows straight into the tail.

It's a bit late now for your snake or be ovulating, or even laying eggs although its possible. You would be able to feel the eggs if she had them inside her and if any individual eggs were atuck they would create odd, uneven looking lumps that may even change position over several days. If she's accepting food readily then it's even more unlikely.