indent in my boas spine. help needed

I've had my red tail boa for around 6 months now & have had no problems until now. I noticed a couple days ago he has an indentation about half way down his spine. I handle gir regularly & have never seen it until the other day. I'm a member of arachnoboards so I posted it there trying to find some answers but all I got were 2 people arguing back & forth. So I was talking to boanerges & he suggested I join here. Could him regurgitating his meal the day before have anything to do with it? I usually feed him live but switched to frozen thawed because I didn't want him all knicked up. I also discovered he had mites lastnight & treated him for it. I think they might of came from a recently acquired snake though because he had them really bad & their enclosures are right next to one another. Any advice would be greatly appreciated & please let me know if I'm doing anything wrong. I've had a lot of experience with tarantulas but am a little new to reptiles. I tried to upload pics but I'm using my phone so it isn't letting me. I do have a photo bucket account that has pictures of it. My user name is M_MULLINS69.

Here are the images in question....

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/...011_142207.jpg

http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/...010_011440.jpg

OP, it's my guess that it's an infection from a rat bite. If it is an infection from a rat bite, it will be fatal if not treated.

It looks like a kink to me, but as you stated, it just happened. it's located is far enough past it's stomach that I don't think the regurgitaion would have anything to do with it, I would have an xray done to be on the safe side.

Hi,

I think it's also repeated about an inch from the main site in both directions?

I had a small BP hatchling develop something like that over a short period - but I could physically feel that the rids were spread out and damaged in him.

I still have no definitive answer as to what caused it but I think it was trauma.

An x-ray could certainly tell you a couple of useful things like bone density and any signs of injury.

But, unless it turned out to be a bone density problem, I can't think of any actual treatment the vet could give.

Sorry I can't be of any real help.


dr del

I called every vet in my city & none of them take exotic pets. So I'm gonna try neighboring cities. I fed him mice & I watched him eat them, he was knicked every noe & then but nothing serious so I doubt it was that but I could be wrong.

I did catch that you recently acquired a new boa and their set ups are right next to each other. Would it be possible the new boa had a disease which has spread to your other boa? After all you did say your boa may have contracted mites from the new boa, which I would interpret this as the new boa was living in a potential less than sanitary set up.

Just a thought.

Good luck!

I would say this looks like MBD in lizards, but I don't know how a snake would get it because they get the proper ratio of calcium to phosphorous in their feeders unless your feeders were seriously un-healthy...but really, that is what it looks like, or a kink of some type.

But snakes can and do develop diseases and genetic things that make them get like this as they age. One thing called Osteitis Deformans causes things that look like this, like bone swellings or an area where the spine is deviated.

I checked my other snake when I discovered the spot on this one & he has nothing like that it looks completely healthy. I did manage to find a vet that treats reptiles but I've got to wait until Thursday because that's when I get paid. I also was feeling around the area ( very lightly) it felt like his ribs vere very compressed to the point where they might snap.

Well I just got home from work & checked on him & he isn't very responsive. He normally jerks his head away like a ball python if you touch it, and now he just lays there. I don't think he's gonna make it until Thursday.

Hi,

Maybe you could explain the payday thing to the vet and see if he would treat the animal earlier?


dr del

I agree with Derek. If it's a vet worth seeing, they will treat now and worry about payment later. I know for a FACT my vet would.

Its worth a try. I'm callin now. Just in case he doesn't is there anything I can do so he doesn't die before Thursday?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by M_MULLINS

Its worth a try. I'm callin now. Just in case he doesn't is there anything I can do so he doesn't die before Thursday?

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I would say to just leave him be in a quiet, warm enclosure. Don't feed or handle him in any way until you need to take him out to get to the vet.

It looks like some sort of injury to me, like something fell on his back. :confuzd: :(

Good luck with him. I hope the vet is able to offer some solid answers and help.

The only things I have in his cage are his water bowl & a limb for him to climb on. I was afraid the limb would fall on him so I used a hot glue to attach it to the glas & the limb is very light.

Ok so I took him to the vet today & got absolutely no answers what so ever. After waiting for almost 2 in the waiting room, the vet finally took some x-rays & said he has no idea what it is. I also told him about the regurgitating & he said it could be too much stress from the frequent handling. He asked if he's had mites since ive had him which he has. I also found out he has them AGAIN! I think he could be gettiing them from the bedding because I had no problems with mites until I started using it. I'm just going to make him as comfortable as I can & hope for the best.

it does look like broken ribs or something similar.

Use Provent-A-Mite to treat the mites, it will get rid of them completely.

I hope everything works out for you and your boa! Keep us updated.

the first time i used jurassi-mite. As soon as i noticed he had mites again i bought mite off to see if it will give me better results. The petsmart & jacks near me dont carry prevent-a-mite.

You have to get Prevent-A-Mite online, but the $20 can is the only thing that will really get rid of mites, I'm afraid.

What about the lid on your enclosure? Is it a slide-on lid or do you have to weight it down?
If it's a weighted lid, it's possible he pried himself underneath it and that's how the injury occurred.

The attached branch worries me. Is there any part where it's close to the glass or side of the enclosure that he could have squeezed himself into and hurt himself?

Its a hinged & I put 2 of the cages that house tarantulas on top of it to weigh it down. In the past he has had a habit of squeezing himself between the lid & tank. As for the branch there is nowhere he can wedge between it and the cage.

You need clamps to secure lids on cages.

Even if the cage is 'weighed down' the snake will still push on it and get through and the weight will just hurt them in the end.

I feel like this may be what caused the kink.

But there's no fractures in the spine or ribs, and bones don't just bend, so it can't just be an injury I don't think...

Maybe he fell off the branch and hit his back on his water bowl?

He might of, the water bowl is right under the branch. I didn't even think about that when I put the water bowl under the branch.

He's not heavy enough to cause that kind of injury in a fall inside the cage. I'd have to agree that he had tried squeezing himself out of the cage and got part of himself stuck at some point before getting free. Just because the vet didn't see anything obvious doesn't mean there was no trauma. If there are broken bones, they may be hard to see on an x-ray - the ribs are tiny and will overlap in the image, and it would be tough getting the correct angle to see what's damaged in the spine. Damage to the muscles and cartilage around the bone would be practically impossible to see in an x-ray of such a small snake.

I would highly recommend fixing or replacing the lid so that there is no movement. Any give in the lid will encourage more escape attempts for him (if he makes it) or any other snake you house in there.