Reoccurring abscesses

Here is the original post if you'd like to read through it. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...s-this-Abscess

Almost exactly a year later and she's got another one (I'm fairly certain). This time it's on the opposite side of her gums/mouth, so I know it's not from the first one not getting cleaned out properly.

I've been watching it for a couple weeks now (this one is not nearly as fast/dramatic/large as the last one) to make sure she wasn't just a bit swollen from rubbing. I was hoping that was it because this one is closer to the front/nose end than the last.

I'll get pictures of it later when I'm home from work. Just thought I'd post this up in the mean time. I'd love to hear further insight on people with experience, or examples of others' experience.

In the year that's passed she's nearly doubled her weight (~11lbs last time I weighed her). I'm debating if it's time for a vet trip or if I should wait a couple weeks. On Friday (5/23) I'm having all 4 of my wisdom teeth removed and am not sure if I want to be tackling an 11-12lb rope of muscle multiple times a day to fill the abscess hole with antibiotics.

This is the girl that gave me a really nice bloody tag a couple months ago (I'll include pics in this thread of course), and she's actually been pretty moody since then (throwing her body when I touch her - cracked my shoulder like you crack your knuckles, hissing, whipping her head to follow my every move, very defensive). So basically not looking forward to this process lol

The bite from a couple months ago

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/...ps261e66bc.jpghttp://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/...ps77cf9b05.jpghttp://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/...ps15100edc.jpghttp://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/...ps2fd45e67.jpg

next day

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/...ps15f54e74.jpg

Okay so I never posted photos because when I went home to take them, the lump was gone!

But on 5-27-14 it was back.

http://i1289.photobucket.com/albums/...ps1pu0o13a.jpg

The next day or two it was gone again and is not back yet. Her appointment is for Wednesday at 7am. Anyone have any idea what's going on?!

Is it possible she had a tooth hang up on something?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DooLittle

Is it possible she had a tooth hang up on something?

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That actually has been my second thought. At first I thought abscess because she has had one before. But now I'm thinking - she has been grumpy ever since she bit me. I'm wondering if she messed up a tooth or two when she did that. I did not pull away when she latched on, rather let her unhook her teeth. But it was kind of like pulling a blackberry bush from being stuck in your clothes (her teeth stuck in my skin). I'm definitely thinking she could have injured a tooth causing an infection/swelling. She only eats frozen/thawed and generally doesn't really even strike them. I normally just set the thawed rat in her cage and she mozies over there and begins eating after smelling it for a good 30 minutes

Ripley did this one day. She apparently didn't like my husband and repeatedly struck the glass. She actually got a tooth through her lip. Which I had to undo.

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/06/02/sutatage.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/06/02/9yhamy5u.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DooLittle

Ripley did this one day. She apparently didn't like my husband and repeatedly struck the glass. She actually got a tooth through her lip. Which I had to undo.

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/06/02/sutatage.jpg

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/06/02/9yhamy5u.jpg

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Thanks for the info! I think I'm definitely throwing out the idea of an abscess because of the way the swelling is behaving. I'll make sure to inform the vet about the recent bite and what's going on with the swelling

Keep us posted. I'm curious to see what it is.