how can you tell if your snake has worms?

[nessy]

i've never fed my snake anything that didn't come out of a freezer. it stopped eating during shedding - as usual, but hasn't eaten since (a week later). It is as active as before the shedding and the shed itself was complete and had no problems.

i have noticed that it defocated smaller amounts each time, but with more frequency than before. and the dried faeces had small fleshy things like dried fish eggs (which was what i thought it was - undigested). the faeces is otherwise the usual consistency - no blood or lumps.

are these signs of intestinal worms? if so how serious is it (i'd imagine that wild snakes would be rife with it)?

[adamanteus]

Hi Nessy, It does sound rather suspect. I would recommend taking a faecal sample to your vet. He can perform a faecal floatation, in which parasites and their eggs are separated from the other matter for identification.

[Cazador]

Ditto. Could be the reproductive stage of tapeworms (proglottids) that you noticed. It will probably resume eating, but anything unusual about the feces is cause for concern.

Rick

[Thamnophis]

And do not assume that what comes out of a freezer cannot contain wormeggs. This is very well possible.

[Cazador]

And do not assume that what comes out of a freezer cannot contain wormeggs. This is very well possible.

This is very true. It just reduces the number of many types of parasites, but does not eliminate them all.

[nessy]

these fish were bought fit for human consumption, not caught and frozen. I've had the garter for over a year now, i cant imagine it getting worms from the food i gave it. I soaked one of the things in water, and it definitely does look like eggs. could it have got the worms a year ago!? surely human food wouldn't contain worms?
how do i get rid of them?
thanks

[drache]

actually
there is a high incidence of parasites in fish for human consumption
it's not much of an issue with processed (cooked, pickled, smoked, etc) fish, but they do tell pregnant women and immune deficient persons to stay away from sushi for that reason

[adamanteus]

Nessy, if you suspect your snake has worms, the best course of action is to visit the vet,

[nessy]

cheers guys, defo will do.