Will my BP be ok?

Ok i just joined the forum and i bought a ball python 2 months ago. He was eating great about once every week and a half. But his belly got all pinkish redish one day and i realized what i did wrong, i pulled his skin off while he was shedding. I shouldve remembered that was not a good thing to do but i now know not to do it.his skin is raw and hurts sometimes on cut areas.I had him on repti-carpet and he had a few cuts from the rubbing on the carpet and he was getting agressive striking at me in the cage. So i moved him on repti- bark and his agression went away, but now most of his stomach is rubbed off and cut up. Is he going to be ok? Or should i see a vet? Ive been applying triple antibiotic ointment and i think it helps a little but i dont want him to get hurt and possibly die.

You might want the vet to check for an infection and make sure hes alright.

Do you have pics of the belly?

First you know the mistake you made. You pulled the shed off when it wasn't ready to come off. This is sort of like pulling the skin off of a blister for us. Second stop the triple antibiotic ointment immediately. Bc it's oil based it can soften the scales opening them up for further injury, flaking, and infection. If you are trying to prevent infection use betadyne 1x a day. You can get it at any drug store. It'll heal just make sure the cage is kept clean, husbandry perfect and low stress.


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This is what it looks like. I think the brown is from the chips however

That snake needs to go to the vet ASAP...

Wow. That snake needs a vet like NOW. That looks like scale rot or poorly healing (possibly infected) severe burns to me... For. Now you need to get him/her on paper towels as substrate ans call a vet. ASAP.

Get that BP to a vet immediately. Looks like either bad scale rot or a bad burn. Eiher way that BP is in bad shape and needs to see a vet.

Uh-oh. Depending on when you pulled that skin off, and how bad his stomach is, this could be big trouble. Snake probably needs a vet visit and antibiotics as soon as possible. Otherwise it sounds like he's at severe risk for sepsis, and sepsis kills quickly.

If you can't schedule with a herp vet between now and New Year's, you might want to call one, even one out of state and ask for advice? And keep him on CLEAN paper towels until you get him to a vet.

Please do post a picture? We'll have a better idea how bad it is if we see it.

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Originally Posted by Ownagemaximus

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This is what it looks like. I think the brown is from the chips however

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Vet ASAP. Hope your little guy does okay. Looks like a burn, do you use a heat pad? If so, do you have a thermostat that regulates the heat output?

For the time being, switch him to paper towel as bedding to keep everything nice and dry and clean. Even though its new years eve tomorrow, try your best to locate a reptile vet you can see as soon as you can! Good luck

Ok i moved him onto paper towels but every vetrenairy clinic is closed tomorrow. Is there anything else i can do for the time being?

Where do you live? There are usually 24-hour "emergency" clinics that will be open.

So is this an emergency situation? Or will he make it thru monday? I used a betadine solution on him. It appears that he also has blisters on his scales

I would call that an emergency. The snake could easily die of blood poisoning (sepsis). The wound/infection is very extensive.

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Originally Posted by Ownagemaximus

So is this an emergency situation? Or will he make it thru monday? I used a betadine solution on him. It appears that he also has blisters on his scales

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What type of heat source are you using?

I am using a heating pad but i think he burned himself. He moved the chips from the reptibark out of the hide and sat on the glass. Never had a problem until i moved him onto the bark for burns

Do you have a thermostat controlling the heat pad?

Wow, that is worse than what I thought it was gonna be. He needs a vet asap, that looks like an emergency to me!!

No i do not. Im probably going to move to a lamp because of this. He didnt have any problem with heat while he was on carpet. It was just about perfect. There isnt any emergency clinics i can find around my area (Des moines Iowa) that treat exotics and herps but there is one about an hour away but it closes at 12 tomorrow. Ill try to make it their tomorrow

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Originally Posted by Ownagemaximus

No i do not. Im probably going to move to a lamp because of this. He didnt have any problem with heat while he was on carpet. It was just about perfect. There isnt any emergency clinics i can find around my area (Des moines Iowa) that treat exotics and herps but there is one about an hour away but it closes at 12 tomorrow. Ill try to make it their tomorrow

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That is what the problem is. You need a thermostat to control a heat pad, as they get extremely hot and can cause severe burns, such as what has happened to your little guy. I would turn the heat mat off for now, so it doesn't burn him more. I hope you are able to get him to the vet tomorrow, he's gotta be in a good amount of pain. :( Please keep us posted!

I will let you all know if i can make it tomorrow and what they say. Hope he makes it :( hes my first ball python and first snake.

That is severe scale rot. You can assume there's blood poisoning. Emergency vets are pricey, but if you want it to have any chance whatsoever of surviving, you need to get baytril injections or better into that animal ASAP.

Honestly, the animal's chances are 50/50 right now. Untreated, he might not last until Monday. Even if he does, the antibiotics will almost certainly be too late.

At this point I think you should weigh the price of the ER care (several hundred $$ minimum) vs. giving the animal a chance that may or may not save it.

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Originally Posted by loonunit

That is severe scale rot. You can assume there's blood poisoning. Emergency vets are pricey, but if you want it to have any chance whatsoever of surviving, you need to get baytril injections or better into that animal ASAP.

Honestly, the animal's chances are 50/50 right now. Untreated, he might not last until Monday. Even if he does, the antibiotics will almost certainly be too late.

At this point I think you should weigh the price of the ER care (several hundred $$ minimum) vs. giving the animal a chance that may or may not save it.

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Well at first i thought it was scale rot when his skin started to be abnormally colored, but from how the scales feel and how all of the substrate was dug up, i think its more likely a burn because he was sitting ontop of the glass right above the heating pad. But i still think its a 50/50 chance

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Originally Posted by Ownagemaximus

Well at first i thought it was scale rot when his skin started to be abnormally colored, but from how the scales feel and how all of the substrate was dug up, i think its more likely a burn because he was sitting ontop of the glass right above the heating pad. But i still think its a 50/50 chance

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Yeah. If you need hope, I have seen pictures of ball pythons (I think there's one in the "What's Wrong with My Snake?" book maybe) with long scars down their bellies, indicating they survived a burn of that severity. But I've also seen posts on this forum about snakes that ended up succumbing to blood poisoning even after starting the antibiotics.

Here's a post LadyOhh did on injured animals that she's acquired over the years:

http://heathersherpsblog.blogspot.co...-injuries.html

That last one looks like it had a burn/bite that was easily worse than this one.

If he makes it, make sure to get a thermostat for that heating pad. You can get a hydrofarm for pretty cheap off of Amazon. Good luck with him!

It will take optimal conditions, a vet trip and some luck, I think, for the little guy to make it.

Hopefully you can get seen at the vet today.

I couldnt get him in today :( they closed 2 hours after openning and i couldnt make it. I did talk to the vet about things to do and he said to use betadine once a day in a solution and apply neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment on once a day until we can get him in. Im still worried though, he hasnt eaten in 4 weeks and you can tell he ( or she) has lost weight :(

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Originally Posted by Ownagemaximus

I couldnt get him in today :( they closed 2 hours after openning and i couldnt make it. I did talk to the vet about things to do and he said to use betadine once a day in a solution and apply neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment on once a day until we can get him in. Im still worried though, he hasnt eaten in 4 weeks and you can tell he ( or she) has lost weight :(

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Not your fault, we were all given bad husbandry advice at some point. Its a learning experience and next time you will take that much better care for your ball python. Just make sure everything is clean and in optimal condition and get him in to the vet as soon as you possibly can. Good luck!!

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Originally Posted by Ownagemaximus

I couldnt get him in today :( they closed 2 hours after openning and i couldnt make it. I did talk to the vet about things to do and he said to use betadine once a day in a solution and apply neosporin or triple antibiotic ointment on once a day until we can get him in. Im still worried though, he hasnt eaten in 4 weeks and you can tell he ( or she) has lost weight :(

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Good luck! Hope your snake recovers. And if you use neosporin, make sure its the kind without pain relief. They're dangerous for snakes.


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Originally Posted by satomi325

Good luck! Hope your snake recovers. And if you use neosporin, make sure its the kind without pain relief. They're dangerous for snakes.


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Alright thanks for the advice

Wow that looks way worse than the description read in the beginning. Have you gotten him to the vet yet? He most likely needs abos. This is not something you can treat at home. Instead of the neosproin I would try and find silvadene cream at any drug store. Again the neosproin is oil based and could make that problem even worse than it already is. hopefully you've gotten him in to see the vet by now.


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im sorry but why dont people do some research instead of just taking some petshop guys advice as gospel.i read about ball pythons for over 6 month before buying one.i feel for you a realy do but you obviously have access to a computer,why didnt you use it?.i am yet to find a care sheet online that doesn't recommend a thermostat.

i hope the poor little guy gets better soon

I agree with moony...while it upsets me tremendoulsy that your snake is like that...it moreso upsets me you didn't do research and caused this snake that pain. If he survives, you HAVE HAVE HAVE HAVE HAVE HAVE HAVE to get a THERMOSTAT!!!! Here is a link to a cheap one: http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTPR...5684733&sr=8-1 . Without a thermostat the heat mat will get too hot for your ball and will burn it...again. The thermostat keeps the heat mat from going over a desired temperature. Use the heat lamp if you have to, but just remember it kills humidity so you'll have to mist the enclosure several times a day, specially if he is in an aquarium.

Praying for the little guy :please:

Go to any natural health store and get some collodial silver. It wont take much, and use it on him several times a day. I mist the injured area, add some to the water, and be sure he cannot get into the water or stay wet for long. Ask them the most sold brand, there can be many, but I like Sovern Silver(sp) if I dont have any made. I have my own silver maker now, I have had such great luck with it. Do not handle the snake any more than you have to, he needs to spend all available resources on the healing process and moving makes stress and burns calories. If there is a dog/cat vet that you have a rapport with you might get them to sell you Baytril but you will need to research how you may administer it and be confident but if not better to not try it at all. There might be other Herp people locally that are willing to help you, maybe even take him for a while in a better effort to save him if they have experience in this area. This injury is certainly a life threatening one, compounded by the lack of appetite. I wish you were closer to the vet clinic I work at :( Good luck!

I honestly would not use bayril without a vet or a person that knows ball python dosing well. With all abos there is a chance of doing more harm by over dosing. Kidney failure is one of the largest problems with abos. A dog or cat vet would be irresponsible to sell an unknowledged person an abo and send them on their way. They most likely won't do it. IMO its highly irresponsible to try and treat this burn at home. He needs a vet if he hasn't already seen one.


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It would be nice to get an update on this either way. Hopefully for the good.

Absolutely agree that seeing a knowledgeable vet is optimal in any illness or injury. Unfortunately, there are not always vets available with knowledge or worse those who have outdated information or even worse those that do not really care (it happens, even vets have prejudices...). You have to weigh all the factors and go from there. This snake appears to be very badly injured, for whatever reason. One can find excellent information from others and from the internet, sometimes better than some vets. Right or wrong, sometimes taking your animal to the vet is an impossibility, the closest Herp vet in my area is about 4 hours drive one way, and not everyone can afford an extended vet stay, Sucks, but it is a fact of life. So, weigh all the options, and go from there. Learn from your mistakes, do the best you can. My boss is a dog and cat vet, but he does treat exotics and attends many updated trainings for them. He may only see 10 reptiles in a year, but is dedicated to doing the best he can when he does. Good luck no matter what avenue you choose :)

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Originally Posted by Homegrownscales

I honestly would not use bayril without a vet or a person that knows ball python dosing well. With all abos there is a chance of doing more harm by over dosing. Kidney failure is one of the largest problems with abos. A dog or cat vet would be irresponsible to sell an unknowledged person an abo and send them on their way. They most likely won't do it. IMO its highly irresponsible to try and treat this burn at home. He needs a vet if he hasn't already seen one.


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