Will my snake hate me forever for giving shots?

[Lirenn]

My baby Lucy needs antibiotic shots and the vet has us administering them at home. I tried to do the first one myself just now and failed horribly and she seemed really upset. The vet made it look so easy, but I couldn't even get the needle in.

Is she going to be afraid of me for life because of this, or am I just being a dramatic snake mommy? Any tips on giving shots? I will be trying again with my husband's help later.

[tttaylorrr]

My baby Lucy needs antibiotic shots and the vet has us administering them at home. I tried to do the first one myself just now and failed horribly and she seemed really upset. The vet made it look so easy, but I couldn't even get the needle in.

Is she going to be afraid of me for life because of this, or am I just being a dramatic snake mommy? Any tips on giving shots? I will be trying again with my husband's help later.

just a tad over dramatic. snakes harbor no grudges, and do not love or hate. she might be a bit more timid and defensive afterwards, but she has 20+ years to get over it.

ive never had to give shots, so i hope someone here can offer advice to help make the next time a bit easier on everyone.

good luck!

[Craiga 01453]

I've never had to administer shots either, so unfortunately I won't be any help there.

But yes, you're be overdramatic. But that's ok, I'll take an overdramatic snake keeper over a neglectful snake keeper any day. It can't hurt to ask, that's what the forum is here for. But no, your snake won't hate you. She may be a little more apprehensive than usual, but it won't last.

Good luck with the next attempt, I'm sure somebody with experience will offer food soon.

[Sonny1318]

I’ve had to do for a boa that injured its mouth striking its cage. It’s definitely easier to do with two people in my opinion. And hopefully the vet thoroughly explained how to properly do it . Like going in between the scales with the injection, and proper location on the snake (so you hit muscle). And yes it can be a little stressful. Hopefully with your husbands help everything will go smoothly. And if done properly, I believe the snake feels minimum discomfort (not as sensitive as us). Good luck.

[Kcl]

I've done it before. It's a bit tricky because you have to push harder than you think, but still not too hard. Within a few, I got good enough that the snake barely noticed. Make sure you're doing it in the right direction so if they wiggle, they wiggle towards the syringe instead of wiggling it out. Also, if you want to gain confidence, you can practice on a raw chicken breast - sounds silly, but it's recommended because the texture helps people understand.

[zina10]

Its very important that you go "between" scales. You are never going to be able to push through a scale..

Its almost as if you use the needle to gently lift up a scale and slip the needle underneath of the scale. You have to do this at a angle, not straight down.

Keep control of your hands, it DOES take a bit of effort to punch through the skin, more then one thinks, but once you are through the skin, the needle slides through much easier. So you have to be very careful that you don't keep that pressure high after you punch through the skin, or your needle will go in far to deep.

Imagine it more of a very short but strong push, in which you only want the tip of the needle to penetrate. Once "in" you can gently insert slightly deeper..It doesn't have to be ONE strong motion all the way through, or you chance to go far to deep.

[CALM Pythons]

Its very important that you go "between" scales. You are never going to be able to push through a scale..

Its almost as if you use the needle to gently lift up a scale and slip the needle underneath of the scale. You have to do this at a angle, not straight down.

Keep control of your hands, it DOES take a bit of effort to punch through the skin, more then one thinks, but once you are through the skin, the needle slides through much easier. So you have to be very careful that you don't keep that pressure high after you punch through the skin, or your needle will go in far to deep.

Imagine it more of a very short but strong push, in which you only want the tip of the needle to penetrate. Once "in" you can gently insert slightly deeper..It doesn't have to be ONE strong motion all the way through, or you chance to go far to deep.

Great info... But I feel sick now hahahhha

[Ax01]

i had to inject my Cat who came to me w/o a heat pack and an URI. my cat is this girl BTW:




those are pix from the vet. mucus is more visible in the second pix. anyway the exotic vet had me put her on 30 days of antibiotic injections initially and then another 2 weeks when she still had symptoms. that's like 45 days and 22-23 injections (administered every other day). the vet and vet tech showed me how to do it. it's better w/ 2 people but u can wrap the snake around your waist or leg and press against something like a couch to keep them from squirming too much. she took it fine, did not show signs of increased aggression and doesn't hate me (at least not forever).

i think the whole process was probably more traumatic for me. i didn't want to poke her and hurt her. i hated giving her injections and just felt so bad for her.

[zina10]

Great info... But I feel sick now hahahhha

Wait until you have to give injections to a horse, LOL.

Their skin is TOUGH, and you kind of "punch" (well, not punch like taking out someone, but a nice decisive poke) the needle in. Oh yeah, and if the horse isn't happy about it, it adds a lot of excitement to the entire experience

[Aedryan Methyus]

I am having to give one of my Ball Pythons antibiotic shots for an RI right now, too. It's definitely a huge pain to do by yourself, but nowhere near as hard as trying to force a syringe in a snake's mouth to give medicine orally! The hardest part is she won't sit still. One time, I must have hit a scale, because the needle bent right over, so i'm hoping i'll be able to reuse one of the other needles to get the medicine out of that syringe. Otherwise, im going to have to go back to the vet to replace one of her treatments. It's amazing how difficult it is to push the needle through! One thing that helps to at least limit her range of motion and "sorta" free one of my hands up is, i've been having her crawl into a cardboard tube, while i'm giving the shot. Still 4 more shots to go for this girl... Aaargh!