Average price for abcess treatment for adult ball?

I rescued an adult female pin. She was in really gross conditions. Long story short, she seems healthy except for two bumps. A very small one on her nose (I’m assuming a rat bite as it’s on the bridge, not the tip where they rub). And a much larger one on the bottom right side of her mouth. I intend to bring her to the vet ASAP but I want to know what the average price is generally so I'm not blindsided. I’m not an expert and I don’t trust myself to do home remedies so I think that the vet is best.

The issue is that with any vet you will have to shop around and price what you need, however make sure you are dealing with a vet specializing with reptiles since the animal will likely be under anesthesia.

Your cost will likely involve

Drainage
Anesthesia
Anti-biotics

I know a few members dealt with this so hopefully they will chime in.

I’d expect to be spending a few hundred bucks for sure. Abscess surgery I had to schedule for an animal recently was somewhere in that ballpark.


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Abscess removal on a smooth-sided toad in Massachusetts by a 'Veterinary Exotic Specialist' $400+/- a few bucks.

My area is expensive though.

It depends on a few things - I'll use the about the prices from my clinic for an example (but expect the exotics fee and antibiotics to be more expensive)

Scenario 1: able to lance and clean without surgery
Exam Visit $50
Wound Care $30-$50 depending on size
Oral antibiotics $27 - $60 or injectable antibiotics $75
OSHA Disposal Fee $3

Scenario 2: Abscess needs debridement, surgery, a drain to be place, then removed (not as common in mammals)
Exam Visit $50
General Anesthesia and Surgery $250-$600 depending again on size and complication
Oral antibiotics $27 - $60 or injectable antibiotics $75
Topical wound care medication $0-$30
Recheck Visit $45 (may need multiple)

Now, I will say that you are going to need injectable antibiotics for a snake, probably baytril (enrofloxacin) or taxicef (ceftazadimine) as orals don't work well for snakes. I don't know about the exotics visit, but the ones in my town are between $60 and $85. Abscesses in mammals rarely require surgery, usually they get lanced then flushed. The resulting "hole" is left open to drain and heal from the inside out. Antibiotics are given to help the current infection and prevent more, they are rarely bandaged (which wouldn't work on a snake anyway)

Hope this gives you some help

So it looks like, given the best scenario, it will be at the very least $250. That was pretty much what I expected. Thanks for the answer with prices, as that’s what I was looking for.

Please remember these prices were years ago and each vet has different pricing, both of these were in CA:
ATB nose abscess small removal, antibiotics $400 (2012)
Boa nose abscess removal surgery, antibiotics $750 (2003)

The vet should quote you before doing anything and that should only cost the office visit fee which can also vary depending on vet (~$25-65 seems to be the average, mine are usually $40-65) and as mentioned, ensure your vet deals with exotics, having worked with reptiles before is a major plus.

Make sure you look for a reptile experienced Vet.

In the long run, that will save you money. Many people have paid for needless and non working treatment and meds, because the Vets weren't familiar with reptile health care. Then you end up with an animal that is still sick, or even sicker, and an additional fee from another Vet.

If you are lucky and live somewhere where you can pick between reptile experienced Vets, I'd say the ones that are a little outside of a big city are usually a bit more reasonable with rates. Big fancy places that have all the newest equipment will also be more expensive, they have to recoup their cost. Sometimes you get what you pay for, though.

Treatment of abscesses in mammals is pretty straight forward (while extremely gross). With Reptiles it is a bit more complicated. They have mostly "solid" puss. It cannot be drained. It has to be excised thoroughly. Making sure nothing is left behind. After that the wound has to be thoroughly flushed and sanitized. Many vets use a antibiotic wash for that, and in one members case they even left antibiotic beads inside of the wound, so that the meds work time released. On top of that you should get antibiotic shots to help the snake fight any secondary infections. Some Vets will make a culture from the "stuff" that was removed, to make sure that the antibiotics given are the right ones to fight whatever bacteria is involved.

The Vet I used to have (and loved) was very reasonable AND he was wonderful. What I would give to have him nearby still.

Last one I had done on an adult retic was $500 but it was in northern Virginia (expensive) and due to his weight he needed fairly substantial doses of the antibiotics and painkillers, much more than you'd require for a ball python. So, $250-300 sounds right for your snake.