black discoloration and now a black ulcer?!?!!

I previously took my baby 76g yellowbelly bp from an expo straight to the vet because of a symmetrical discolored patch between the front teeth.

i took her to the vet and he informed me that it was nothing to worry about and he suggest that i pay him 120$ for a series of shots that would treat a general infection, which i declined because what if it wasnt a general infection.. (and i could buy another yb for that much)
after this i peroxided the discoloration 3x and waited.. nothing happened so i figured this guy was right.

4 months later, 120g healthy little girl.. ive been checking the sides of her mouth regularly.. today i open it with a toothpick and deep in the back of the throat is a huge black ulcer looking thing!? i tried to take a picture because its interesting an horrifying and it would help a lot but i only have two hand and shes a little piss when it comes to me deciding where she goes and when.


80$ flippin vet bill wasted

well since i live in a part of jersey where there is only 1 snake vet for 200 miles, i have to go back to the same guy, i would like to go there knowing whats wrong so he cannot rip me off, and also so i can do the best i can for my lil girl. shes eating great, (live hoppers about 15g 1x~5days)

Where in NJ are you?

There are 2 Exotic Vets in North Jersey that have experience.

1. Veterinary Health Care Center in Clifton,NJ
Dr. John Cataldi (973)472-8883
2. Animal Clinic of Morris Plains in Dover,NJ
Dr. Paul Sedlacek (973)539-2775

actually there are a lot in nj, ive been to a few. Im in central jersey. (the 200miles statement was a hyperbole) but ive been ripped off and slighted. at the moment i have an appointment for Thursday at plainsborough exotics and demanded a culture. but i still want to know if anyone else knows what this is or what the best medication to ask for is.

Pictures might help.

ill try posting some tm, her mouth is so small and shes so squirmy that its very difficult.

Do you often open their mouths with toothpicks to look in?

I hope your vet visit goes well. Depending on the area, the costs sound fairly reasonable.

I'm in central NJ too. Have you checked out Northstar Vets in Robbinsville? I've never used them for my snakes, but I've used them for my other animals. If they can't help you, I'm sure they can send you to someone who can. They have a great reputation and a great network of doctors.

Hi,

Hindsight is a bugger. :(

If you had taken the injections for the infection when offered you might well have avoided this situation. This would have worked out cheaper than having a second consult and still having to pay for the injections anyway.

Peroxide isn't the best thing to use as it damages healthy tissue as well - a diluted betadine solution would have been better.

But for deeper infections neither will really do much. You might want to get the vet to culture the infection and run a sensitivity test. It will cost slightly more initially but it should mean you end up getting the right antibiotic to cure it. They usually put the snake on a broad spectrum immediately until the test results come back.


dr del

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wolfy-hound

Do you often open their mouths with toothpicks to look in?

I hope your vet visit goes well. Depending on the area, the costs sound fairly reasonable.

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yea i use toothpicks, the vet suggested ear swabs but the fluff on the end got caught in the teeth once and that was NOOO GOOD



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Thanks Dr del im def. asking for a culture and an antibiotic, i would prefer that as opposed to guessing what it Could be
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also i havent considered northstar because i havent heard anything about them treating snakes before. Though i have brought my dog there before!

So you don't want to pay the vet bill, you'd rather the animal suffer and die to save some money on the next snake? Why even keep snakes if that's how you think?