My last post did something funny and I can't access it anymore so I've written it again with a little more info:

MY BALL PYTHON, Howard is not doing well. He was not well taken care of in the past. He is nearly two years old and around 2 feet long. He is constantly lethargic and has trouble swallowing his meals even though they are the right size (if not a little small) for him. He strikes at me more often than my other snake and is very sensitive to touch. He is always hiding. Within the last two days I have noticed an outbreak of redness spreading over him. It began with just one spot which I thought was a sore so I began treating it with neosporin. I've literally WATCHED as his body has become red. This is the first spot:

Supposedly he hasn't shed in 6 months and was being fed once a month. His water wasn't filled when it needed to be and he went weeks without it sometimes. His skin is very dry and wrinkly, I've began soaking him some to help and I've kept his water full.

Here are more pictures of the redness:


As you can see, it's pretty intense. I've checked for mites, and he doesn't have them. The only thing I can think of at this point is scale rot, but I can't even tell because all the images I find when I look it up are if much more advanced stages of the problem. Also, as he is very thin, is it a bad idea to power feed him during this time to fatten him up a bit??


Can anybody help me?! I don't want to lose my new friend. I love him to death and am willing to do whatever needs to be done to save him.

Here are a few more pictures:


Ps, my hands have henna, I'm not just filthy.