Clinical guidelines in the general pathology of ophidians in captivity

Abstract

The pathology of reptiles includes a series of peculiarities that refer both to the etiology and pathogenesis, and to the diagnosis and therapeutic conduct. Among reptiles, the ophidians have an increased degree of difficulty regarding pathology and medical intervention, for at least two reasons: significant anatomical-physiological differences (even compared to other families or orders with which they have close phylogenetic links) and difficult or even risky handling (especially for venomous species and large constrictors). From a taxonomic point of view, families and subfamilies include a multitude of species with extremely different behaviors or pathologies, sometimes even within the same genus. This is why ophidians are usually divided into two categories in which the main criterion is hunting and feeding behavior: venomous (with venom with main hemolytic composition or with venom with main neurotoxic composition) and constrictors (which hunt based mainly on the strength of the body muscles and sometimes on the ability to immobilize prey with the help of the buccal apparatus).