OK, I've had relative success with my blood up untill about a week ago. He's been eating well and has gotten firmer and stronger than he was when I first got him about 6 weeks ago.
This last week when I took him out to feed him, I could see that he was going through a shed but his breathing was also squeeky!
The thing is, Is that the temps down here dipped into the teens which is rare down here. It sucked all the humidity out of the air!
Five days ago we had a high of 33 Degrees, While todays high was 71.
I added a lot of moisture to the tank to bring up the humidity over the last week.
The breathing sounds a lot better but, He still squeeks a little.

Today, I put him in a bag to visit my snake friend. It was a fight to get him into a bag(Pillow case)!
He Peeed all over me! When My friend opened the bag, He Peeed all over him and me too! I was 3 feet away!
He peed and pooped. All three barrels!
It was at this time that he showed us both his hemipenes and his anus! Quite clearly!
It was an "Educational" sight.
This was one angry snake!

He also told me he has mites.
I don't have the eye sight to see mites unless they are floating in water.
I do have some Mite mist.

I've decided to put him on shredded paper towel for now to monitor the mite problem.
I also do have a mite spray.

Today is the first day I've learned of a mite problem!

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Git'er Done!

woah that sounds like quite a day! good luck with the mites. thank god my snakes have never had them but I hear and read they're quite a pain. it might be easier to use just non shredded paper towels though. just laying the paper towels down without shredding them would probably make it easier to see the mites than if they were under pieces.

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yes i am a she ^_^

~My Babies~

1 Rosy Boa (male) Chaos
1 Snow Corn (male) Blizzard
1 Anertherystic Corn (male) Bullet
1 Senegal Parrot (male) Shadow
2 dogs (male) Spot and Bear

Wow,, that is quite the day! I agree though just place the paper towels in there so you can remove them everyday. This helps to get rid of the mites. While also using your spray.
SEPERATE him from the others,, make sure he is as far away as possible from your other reptiles,, those things can travel a lot farther than you give them credit for. An outbreak of mites throughout your whole herd is expensive and a royal pain (believe me I know, lol)

Make sure you follow the directions on the bottle,,
I would say soak him,, but what you are describing also sounds like URI, which needs vet care. He may need antibiotics. I would definately say you need to take him to the vet,,, Respitory infections can lead to pneumonia and can be fatal ,, a vet is definately in order, another thing too,, when mite infestations are bad they can dehydrate the animal,, so you may need subcue fluids also.
Let us know jow it goes at the vet

Also kick up his temps just a little higher until he gets to the vet.

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I have sucker tattood on my forehead

I know how you feel about the mites. One of my Blue tongues had them before and the mites seemed to blend in with the darker colored areas. They wern't easy to spot.

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Mike
"Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you." - Mother Teresa

The noise your snake is making might be caused by shed stuck to the snake's nostrils or mites in its nostrils. Is it breathing with its mouth open? Are there any bubbles or slime coming out of its nose or mouth? If so, you need to take it to a vet for antibiotics.

Generally speaking, handling a snake while it's in shed is not a good idea. They are usually more aggressive at that time and they can end up shedding in pieces and your hands usually end up full of holes and bleeding! I tend to think my snakes feel really lousy at shed time (like I feel when I have the flu).

As far as mites go: BUMMER! Here is an article I put together for HC on getting rid of mites. Spraying mite spray isn't going to do it. And you REALLY have to hope they don't spread to the rest of your collection.
This is the method I used when my new snake brought mites into our house: all I can say is IT WORKS...
http://reptileguides.herpcenter.com/...tion-t155.html

PS -- good luck

He breaths with his mouth closed.
No bubbles or slime.
Actually, If it were a person I was listening to, i would say they have a stopped up nose.

If you're right Blackjack, I believe the combination of low humidity and mites could be THE Majority if not all the problem. Dang!, It must suck to be an animal that can't pick it's own nose! Imagine having a nose full of bugs and having Zero limbs or fingers!

The more humidity I've introduced, The better the breathing has got. As of today he is not squeeking, But rather just breathing hard.
I believe providing the most humid conditions possible along with an area that he can completely dry out in, Is the answer!

I do have a Antibiotic shot lined up though if the situation gets worse.

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Git'er Done!

I'm not a vet and can't make a proper diagnosis. Watch him carefully and make sure the temps are on the high side of his range. If it IS a respiratory infection, too much humidity could make things worse.
Keep a close eye on him.
Good luck!

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Andrea

I called a vet and the earliest appointment I can get is on the 15th. This is the vet recommended to me by my regular vet that sees only dogs and cats.

But today, There is no squeeking or raspy breathing. there are a lot of little black dots on the paper towels after starting the mite spray.
I took him out and handled him a bit. he didn't pee on me this time but some shed came off in my hand. I resprayed again. This time I held him by the tail and let the spray run down the body to his neck and nose.
I put a large piece of ceramic tile 12" X 12" so he can have a place to dry out as well as have the rest of the tank very wet.

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Git'er Done!

OK, Today I come home from work and checked him out. He had completely shed. There was no sound out of him at all. I rubbed along his body with my finger which is something he doesn't like and gets him breathing hard. I could hear nothing. Not even heavy breathing.
This whole situation started when he first got dull colored beginning his shed.
I will be keeping a close eye on him, But I am going with the idea that this is a shed problem.

I'm still dealing with the mite problem.
I put a large piece of ceramic tile in there and it seems that he rubbed and rubbed on the edge of it to get his shed off because all the shed was in pieces in one spot right next to the edge of the tile. He actually got up under the tile to do this. It's big and somewhat heavy it's 12"X12".
I'm going now to take him to someone who has the eyesight to see mites and see if he's doing any better. I can't even read the phone book without my reading glasses AND a magnifying glass!

I have a reptile vet within 20 miles that sees herps twice a week if symptoms reoccur.

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Git'er Done!

OK, I'm back now from seeing the person who has good eyesight. He still has mites but, I did give him a small rat a few minutes ago and he took it quickly. I feed both my pythons live prey. Before feeding I take the bag they come in and give it a good Whack against the wall. It might sound cruel to some, but I myself would rather die quickly than to be suffocated to death by Co2.

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Git'er Done!