my gravid girl

[drache]

one of my favourite garters is due any time now, and I've been hovering

this girl came to me last year from a friend who could no longer keep her collection
She has a tendency toward slenderness, and totally stopped eating a couple of months ago, so she is a bit too thin for my taste
up until about a week ago I wasn't entirely sure that she was gravid, but she did look big in the bottom for her skinny neck
she shed Tuesday, and suddenly looked really really gravid - lumpy in fact
since then she has had some "spotting" of blood now and then - should that worry me?
the lumpy mass has "dropped" toward the vent (yesterday morning there was still a small narrower "waist" before the vent) - there just isn't much happening, and I can't get her to exercise much
I smelled her vent and there is no smell - it looks clean and smooth
I don't think she has much energy, and her back end is too cumbersome to drag to the water bowl to go drink, so I drop her into lukewarm water a few times per day
at one point I was thinking that she's not gravid at all and that this is some grotesque ballooning abdominal infection, but the past few hours she's making birthing type movements from time to time, so I think this is just going to be one of those long drawn-out kind of things
I just hope there'll be a survivor or two

[andycul]

really hope she is O.K. and you have lots of cute healthy babies soon

[guidofatherof5]

Keep us posted, Rhea.
She is in our prayers.

[kibakiba]

I hope everything goes well for you Rhea! Hopefully you'll have a ton of babies to show us soon!

[PINJOHN]

fingers crossed.

[gregmonsta]

Hoping for the best Rhea.

[ConcinusMan]

Sounds like a normal labor. Stay positive. I predict live ones.

[drache]

nothing yet . . .

[drache]

things are not looking good at this time, and I took the girl to the vet this morning This vet feels that some intervention is called for that she can't do. My best hope would be getting her to the good vet - over two hours away if I had a car, and not an option
at this point I can only hope that these babies will come out one way or another
she is still acting normal for a snake with a humongous rear end to drag around, so I don't feel inclined to take drastic measures myself yet

[guidofatherof5]

Hoping all goes well.