Mouth rot or not?

You guys have been a life saver to me in the past, so I am hoping you may be able to give me some insight now. Please note, I am not using this as a replacement for a professional opinion. I will take my python to the vet if my concerns are not completely false.

Im paranoid just as any other pet owner, so today when I came home from house sitting, I decided to check my ball for any signs of RI. To do this, I gently grasped the jaw bones at the back of his skull, and applied little force. I then wedged the middle of a q-tip (the non-fuzzy part) into his mouth. Naturally he didn't like it, so I was only able to get a few seconds look. He has no signs of RI, but his gums looked fairly pale in comparison to a "healthy" ball python mouth. I also noticed behind the right row of upper teeth, there was a blood spot, which looked similar to a vein that had come close to the surface. My first thought was mouth rot, however he's been eating and drinking just fine, and shows no other signs of the condition.

Im very alarmed, and Im going to try to take another look just to make sure. I cant keep his mouth open long enough to get any pictures, unfortunately. I hope you guys can help a newbie out, the last thing I want is my ball to suffer without me knowing.

I checked him again and the blood spot is definitely there and not a trick of the light. I also notice a crackling when he breathes, which he didn't have a week ago.

Hi,

Sounds perfectly normal to me - mouth rot would be swollen and inflamed looking - with a kind of cheesy looking buildup in bad cases.


dr del