My little snake is dead

[snickersnake]

I woke up this morning and found my little snake lying upside down on the bottom of the cage. I don't know what happened. Everything has been good.

The only thing I can think of is that I might have fed her too much two days ago. I feed her earthworms that I have raised in my farms in the basement. They are earthworms, not red worms. I know they are fine and healthy. I do not feed fish and I was planning to add pinkies in a month or so.

Anyway, the only think I can think of is that I overfed her. She was ravenous and downed everything fast. The worms were small, not tiny, but she's just a little snake. But I gave her 7 of them. I don't know what else it could be. I use viva paper toweling on the bottom of the cage. She has a large bowl of water she can swim in if she wants, and a hidey cave half over the heater.

She has a heater underneath the cage and an infrared light at the top. I turn off the overhead light at night. I keep the room warmer than the rest of the house...I leave the space heater on low all day and night (but its definitely not too warm...I live in Michigan). She wasn't having dryness or respiratory issues. Anyway, I want to know what I did wrong.

[chris-uk]

Sorry for your loss. :(


Anyway, I want to know what I did wrong.

Quite probably nothing. But none of us can tell you that for certain. You've missed some details in how you've kept her though, so if you want more answers you'll need to fill some gaps -
What temperatures did you keep her at (hot and cold sides)?
How old was she? What species? What did she weigh and how long was she?
Has she been eating normally over the last month? When you say the worms were small, how big were they?
Any external signs of trauma? Any lumps or bumps you can feel anywhere on her body? Any problems shedding recently?

Many of us have lost young snakes unexpectedly, the cause is rarely clear. I don't know how many have died from over-feeding, but suspect that would not be the cause of death.

[Stefan-A]

Sorry to hear it.

[CrazyHedgehog]

so sorry to hear, but agree with Chris in that you probably did nothing wrong..
Garter snakes tend to hide any problems well anyway.. :(

[guidofatherof5]

Sorry you lot your little scrub.

[Selkielass]

Was this Lucy or a different snake?
Conditions sound good, so long as temperatures were within acceptable ranges.
With little snakes its very hard to say what could have gone wrong. They are sp good at hiding distress until its too late.
You have my condolences.

[Invisible Snake]

I'm sorry for your loss :(

[ProXimuS]

Sorry to hear this :(

[Ruth]

Very sorry to hear this. I'm sure Chris is right and that it probably wasn't you. I lost one of my guinea pigs last night, went to feed them and he passed away in front of me. He was a happy seemingly healthy chap but these things happen. Hope you get some answers to put your mind at rest.

[kueluck]

Always sad to read about the death of a friend. Sorry for your loss.

[DIRK]

oh, that´s not good. I´m sorry.
But it´s possible, that you didn´t make anything wrong.

I know that. 3 of my San Francisco Garters died between 4 weeks without any reason.... all snakes had an age of 4 years, and a few days before the ate very good....

[EKS56]

:(