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  1. #1
    Forum Moderator aSnakeLovinBabe's Avatar
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    Enlarged Heart...?

    My little male albino redsided passed away this morning. I knew it was coming, for a while now I have known -something- was wrong with him. He and the female have always eaten large meals but he never really grew.. only a little bit. It got to the point where the female is 3 times his size and 2 weeks ago, he went off feed and his pupils seemed fixated... and he just was kind of "there", but not all there.

    So last night I went through my 09's and I noticed he had a pronounced swelling in his upper body. I held him up to the light, as i do with my albino snakes and realized it was where his heart was supposed to be. Only, I could not see his heart beating. This was weird to me as you can always see it in the albinos. I pulled all my other albino 09's out and held them up to the light, no swelling, and their hearts were very clearly beating away. I palpated the area and I could feel the swelling in the area. His pupils were still constricted and he seemed a bit weak. I put him back knowing that in the morning I would probably have to put him down. well I got up this morning and he was dead. So I pulled him out to examine him, the swelling was no longer as visible but it was still there enough for me to take some pictures. Last night it was larger than this, large enough to really freak me out!

    Just to be sure it was his heart and not something else I did open him up to examine it. It was his heart, nothing else was there, just a swollen heart. Does anyone know what the heck this is about? His heart wasn't always swollen and sticking out like this... but he did never really grow...







    Mother of many snakes and a beautiful baby girl! I am also a polymer clay artist!


  2. #2
    Domos Ophiusa gregmonsta's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    Never seen anything like it
    Keeping - 'Florida blue' sirtalis, concinnus, infernalis, parietalis, radix, marcianus and ocellatus.

  3. #3
    Ophiuchus rhea drache's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    no, me neither
    rhea
    "you cannot depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus" Mark Twain


  4. #4
    Mr Thamnophis ssssnakeluvr's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    thats sad... no idea what caused it either, have never seen it. could be a genetic abnormality.

  5. #5
    Forum Moderator Stefan-A's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    Quote Originally Posted by ssssnakeluvr View Post
    thats sad... no idea what caused it either, have never seen it. could be a genetic abnormality.
    Could be, it's known to be genetic in some pets. Then again, it could just be developmental.

  6. #6
    "Third shed, A Success" ScimitarX's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    we had a male pine snake that we had to put down in the end with something similar. he had a huge lump in that same area. the vet wasnt sure what it was, he tried to drain the lump at one point but the needle was filled blood.
    Claire

  7. #7
    T. radix Ranch guidofatherof5's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    Sorry to hear about your loss.
    Steve
    5 awesome kids!
    Emmy, Kale, Molly, Gabby, Hailee
    They are not just snakes. They're garter snakes.
    http://www.youtube.com/user/thamnophis14?feature=mhee

  8. #8
    matris ut plures Mommy2many's Avatar
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    Re: Enlarged Heart...?

    Sorry to hear of your loss, Shannon. I guess everyone can have heart disease.
    Le Ann

    "Research shows that if you're afraid of spiders, you are more likely to find one in your bedroom. I'm really afraid of Johnny Depp."

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