Here's something interesting I just noticed... Talyn and Q have started using eachother's "languages"!
I've had Talyn since September and she never once "puffed" (a short air burst sound -- I guess it's like hissing but it's more like a "puff" than a "hiss"). Talyn's "leave me alone" message was vibrating her whole body.
Q never vibrated but she always "puffed" once or twice each time I took her out.
Now both snakes do both!!! I guess it took them a while to figure out what "leave me alone" meant in each other's languages -- now they obviously both feel comfortable saying it both ways!

Another thing I noticed is that Q makes a wide range of whistling noises! I checked her over and there is no sign of respiratory infection symptoms, but she not only "puffs" but she makes dolphin-like whistling sounds and something that sounds like the mew of a kitten! It's really bizarre! When I put her back after a short handling yesterday, she soaked in the pool and made a wide range of these noises for quite a while!

Anybody else have experiences like this???

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Andrea

are you sure that it's not an RI or something that one had and passed to the other?

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Brent Strande
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I was thinking the same thing,,,keep an eye out Andrea, I know you had a run of bad luck but make sure it's not respitory. maybe seperate em for a few days and see if there's any behavior change.

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Ken
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Doesn't sound to healthy to me either, Pixel did a jurky vibrating movement when he had RI......

Andrea I hate to say it but I have to agree here. Snakes do not generally make noises other than hissing. The various sounds you are describing lead me to think RI. There would not necessarily be any external signs during the early stages. The heavy mucus and bubbling come later. I would have them checked out.

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Merlin,
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Wow... hmmm I had thought about that at first, but I really didn't see any other signs. And with my UNLIMITED capacity for denial, I allowed myself the fantasy of "language sharing" and ignored the more likely possiblity of "disease sharing" !!
Brent: feel free to send me a HUGE "I told you so!!" post!

When I had them both at the vet, she opened Q's mouth and it looked fine.
Are there any other early signs? How is this diagnosed? X-Ray?
Talyn only made the puffing noise yesterday when I wanted to take her out. It sounded like a warning. (She's in her blue phase now and VERY irritable.)

With my luck, I'm not taking any chances. I'll try to get an appointment tomorrow.

As for the vibrating: that doesn't worry me. Talyn has always done it. She does it when I wake her up and want to take her out (but stops when she realizes it's me) and she vibrates when I put her back into her terrarium after handling or when it's been cleaned.

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Andrea

Hi everyone... I've been in a miserable state since I read the replies this morning! I immediately made an appt with the vet for tomorrow, but now I'm just not sure.
Q is not exhibiting any of the symptoms I've read about: she is energetic, eats very well, does not hold her head up, she does not breathe with her mouth open, she has no bubbles coming out of her nose and her mouth looks clean and free of mucous.
The only thing she does is make odd whistling, puffing and/or mewing sounds when I hold her or when I've just put her back. (Just a few now and then, not constant)
Martin got 2 pretty nice pics of the inside of her mouth today. Take a look and please let me know what you think. Is the vet going to do anything different than look in her mouth? -- Should I keep the appt or cancel it and just observe her for a while??? What would YOU do? HELP!!!
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Andrea

The symptoms you described Andrea sounds like RI. The photos look fine but just looking can be misleading. You say the symptoms are not constant ? ANd Q is the only one of the 2 doing this,,,while both are in the same tank ? She might just be irritable, unfortunately the only way to tell is to keep the appointment. I would recommend taking the trip to the vet,,,it's the only way to be sure.

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Ken
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem." -- Ronald Reagan

Thanks for the reply Ken.
The only "symptoms" are the odd sounds she makes when I take her out or disturb her -- otherwise she's energetic and seems healthy.
Talyn made the "puff" sound twice yesterday while I was trying to pick her up out of her hidebox. It really seemed like a "don't bother me" warning. She didn't make it again after I had her out or when I put her back. She's also not showing any symptoms of illness.

I'll keep the appt to be on the safe side... it's just so bizarre!

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Andrea

did you ever find out what was causing it? how'd the vet appointment go?

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