I came home from work the other morning and found my adult female Cali looking odd. You would have to understand, she was my favorite. I always checked her first, then the other snakes. When homework was getting to be too much I would turn around and watch her. I've tried not to have a favorite, kind of like your children you know? But her death hit me harder than any other death has. I couldn't even bring myself to come here and tell everyone for 3 days. I have no idea what she died of. She was a bit over weight, I think. She was eating good, drinking, pooping. She did not have babies this year. I came home and found her laying kind of limp. There were no lumps or knots in her digestive tract. If anything her belly felt overly soft. I soaked her off and on for over 2 hours, stroking her belly. She began to take deep gasps every couple of minutes, but there was no rattle or clicking sound when she did it. Then she died. I know my family would laugh at me crying over a snake, but I can't stop thinking about it. What did I miss, what did I do or not do that I should have? Why didn't I realize she was having problems sooner? I'm going to be kicking myself for a long time. Now I have a tiny 26 inch male alone in a 5 x 2 cage, he acts so lost without her, I can't bear to watch him.