Garter is having seizures, help/advice needed!

[BLUESIRTALIS]

Areed! I have seen young snakes with b1 deficiency before. The only other thing i could think of would be contaminants in the fish.
deficiency. I also think some snake are more susceptible to the issue.
Just my opinion.[/QUOTE]

[ProXimuS]

I don't know much about this kind of stuff, but I would think it could be possible, even in the short period of time, that it might be B1 deficiency, mostly because of the size of the snake. It would probably be easier for the thiaminase to affect such a tiny body.

[RedSidedSPR]

first thing i thought as well, minnows often result in sudden seizure-like death.

[Kantar]

are you absolutely sure? seems like the talk of euthanization came pretty quick...

did it shed recently? is there a piece of shed stuck to its head? my snake did the same thing because it had a piece of loose shed stuck to its head

[BLUESIRTALIS]

Try giving the snake increased amounts of vitamin b and see what happens. I have seen snakes saved like this before. It may be too late but it's worth a try if it might save him and don't feed this snake no more fish for awhile.

[Buck]

I thought guppies were thiaminase free (or at least have incredibly low, and safe amounts of it)..? Isn't it just the rosies that are a concern here?

If I'm affirmed to be correct, then you could breed guppies! That's what I plan on doing as prices are expensive up here too.

http://guppyplace.tripod.com/Breeding.html

If you just need to wait until he regains enough Vitamin B, then still keep guppy breeding in mind as a cost-saving (and entertaining) option. Once he's hungry enough he'll have no problem eating fish fillet or worms! Also, if you live near a river, standard corner stores may sell nightcrawlers.

[Selkielass]

No more rosies.
Dust minnows with b rich vitamin supplement and hope for the best.
Switch to guppies, tilapia, salmon, and other safe foods.
I hope it recovers.

[EasternGirl]

Yes, you are correct...sorry about that...it is the rosies that are unsafe. But I have also heard of snakes developing this problem from eating a diet of fish only...like Richard mentioned with the salmon. I always try to switch things up a bit so that my snakes are not eating too much fish. I will give them fish for maybe two feedings in a row...but then I will give them worms or pinkies the next feeding.

[Invisible Snake]

Thank you everyone for your concern and input, but several hours after my last post my little baby flame died.

Cause of death was dehydration and ultimately me. My improper husbandry with this particular guy led to his death. I had him in quarantine in a RUB with too much humidity.

Lesson learned. And it will never happen again.

[ConcinusMan]

Thank you everyone for your concern and input, but several hours after my last post my little baby flame died.

Cause of death was dehydration and ultimately me. My improper husbandry with this particular guy led to his death. I had him in quarantine in a RUB with too much humidity.

Lesson learned. And it will never happen again.

I highly doubt it on both counts. That is, that it will never happen again, and that you were the cause. I still highly doubt that it a thiaminase issue. Lots of things can cause neurological symptoms, particularly when the snake is about to die.

There is no lesson to be learned here other than the fact that **** happens sometimes no matter how good your husbandry is. Unless you give up on keeping garters, it will happen again or something similar. Trust me. The second lesson is, the cause is usually never known. Any guesses or attempt to guess as to the cause will only lead you to frustration and self-blaming so without a conclusive necropsy, don't even try to guess.