scale rot :-( HELP ASAP, vet havent helped

First off im going to say im a VERY good owner. his tank is kept clean, temps and humidity are reasonable, hes handled very often. so please dont tell me he has this problem because im a poor owner. NOW hes only had this for about 3 weeks TOPS. hes 10 years old and hes never had a single health issue until now. almost 3 weeks ago i noticed a light brown tinge on the tips of his bottom scales. didnt think much of it since he was due for a shed. the next week he shed. after he shed i noticed there was some dark brown skin clumps on his belly. i just assumed this was dead skin from the shed that had absorbed color from the fresh bark bedding(which ive used since day 1) and higher moisture levels in the tank. the next day i went to clean his tank and feed him. not only did he refuse to eat(which he never does), he bit me which he never has before, but he smelled awful. so i took him out. the whole bottom of his belly was chunking off. i took him to the vet 2 days later. until i could get him to the vet i was using polysporin and betadine on his belly. the vet gave me some soaking antibiotics and oral antibiotics. im now cleaning and steralizing his tank 2x a day and putting fresh paper towels down each time. the vet told me ther was some kind of bacteria, or fungus, or something in the bedding that i used this time.

HOWEVER hes now worse than ever. i came home tonight and there was blood trails on the paper towels, the spot where he was laying was bloody, and dark in color like hes pussing or peed and was laying in it. he bit me again. he has so many bloody sores on his belly, still smells awful, and the skin looks bad.

What should i do? hes going back to a NEW VET tomorrow but i dont know what else can be done. i cant lose him, hes my buddy :-( he spends more time with me then he does in his 55g tank

Wow, that sounds awfully serious.

One question, how do you heat his tank ? And how is the heat regulated ? Just in case it might be a burn. That seems to have gotten very bad very quickly. Scale rot is usually caused by excessive moisture, do you have a way to measure the humidity in his tank? Do you mist the bark ?

For now don't let it get wet if you can help it. The moisture is only going to irritate it more. Try to keep him as dry as possible. You can use the polysporin if he'll tolerate it. It is very good you are going to a new vet, he's going to need a lot of help to recover.

I wish you all the best. Try not to give up hope. I've seen pictures of some horrible things here, and usually the snakes make it through with good care.

Gale

Quote:

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Originally Posted by angllady2

Wow, that sounds awfully serious.

One question, how do you heat his tank ? And how is the heat regulated ? Just in case it might be a burn. That seems to have gotten very bad very quickly. Scale rot is usually caused by excessive moisture, do you have a way to measure the humidity in his tank? Do you mist the bark ?

For now don't let it get wet if you can help it. The moisture is only going to irritate it more. Try to keep him as dry as possible. You can use the polysporin if he'll tolerate it. It is very good you are going to a new vet, he's going to need a lot of help to recover.

I wish you all the best. Try not to give up hope. I've seen pictures of some horrible things here, and usually the snakes make it through with good care.

Gale

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Gale, thanks for the advice, first off I normally mist the tank.1-2x a day. I have foliage in there and a good size waterbowl. Assuming both of these help humidity. He never has wrinkled eyes or shedding issues so I've never adjusted my humidity.

However you say don't let him get wet. The one medication he's on requires to.be mixed 2tbsp. To 1/2 gallon of water and he's suppose to sit in the water for 30 minutes. Could this be causing the problem to worsen. He's also on a oral antibiotic clyndamyicin. Otherwise his tank.stays dry. His heat source was coming from an under tank heating pad and heat bulb but since its gotten miserably hot out(I don't use AC during the day) I stopped using the heat lamp

Does your heating pad have a thermostat? If not chances are your BP has been burned and doesn't have belly rot (which would explain why the treatment isn't working)

Check out this thread on cage heating:

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...04#post1845904

The caresheet might be helpful as well:

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

A quick note. Oil based ointments such as neosporin should not be used on ball pythons as they will turn the scales into mush. Water based products like Betadine are much safer.

Do you have anything telling you the hot side/cool side temperatures and or humidity? If so what are you using and what are your current readings?

I think like others have said, we need more info, and/or some pictures to help determine your problem. What are hot and cold side temps? How is heat controlled? Hopefully your little guy gets sorted out right! It doesn't sound like he is comfortable. I would make sure to keep him on dry papertowels for the time being.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

x3 for more info.

I didn't think scale rot got that bad that quick. A burn would though.

Alrighty lets see what i can come up with here. AS OF RIGHT NOW, the total tank temp stays at room temperature. because i dont use AC during the day and it gets into the upper 80s, low 90s and humid in my apartment, during the night i use AC and it gets into the mid 70s and 50-60 humidity. He does have a heat pad under his tank that ive used for all 10 years ive had him, so if it is a burn it has to be because something is wrong with that heating pad. I DO NOT use a heat lamp right now because I feel it gets warm enough without it. but he does still have a light. I havent been using his heating pad either for the past week because the vet told me not to. (again i dont fully trust this vet) he always sheds nicely, and never has wrinkled eyes, i Use Repti bark bedding and have for the 10 years ive owned him. ive always def him live mice because he wont even go near a frozen thawed no matter what. he eats 2-3 mice every saturday(hasnt eaten in almost 3 weeks.) ive never had a single problem with him, ive even taken him to the vet for check ups and they say he looks fantastic. and everything checks out

If it was a burn and not scale rot, wouldnt the meds still help him, not make him worse? i just checked the tank where the heating pads is, and its barely warm, i cant see how that could burn anything. im not saying anyone is wrong im just trying to make sense of the situation. how he could go from perfectly fine to practically on his death bed in a week :-( :-(

HOW HE LOOKED BEFORE THE VET
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j1...6-23215319.jpg

HOW HE LOOKS NOW
http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j1...7-02221428.jpg

I would take out the reptile bark and go with paper towels for awhile. I've never used repti bark, but it can't be helping. It does look more like a burn to me. I would also look quickly for a good reptile vet in your area.

Oh my god that poor animal. :(
Are you using a thermostat? That looks like a burn to me.

Good grief, that poor baby!

I do not know the situation entirely. But I will hit on a few points. It is entirely possible his heat mat went haywire, they do not last indefinitely and if it is 10 years old, it could need replacing.

You say the heat pad felt barely warm to you, but since your body temp is around 98, if it's warm to you, it's hot enough to burn him.

Burns need different treatment than scale rot. You wouldn't treat a severe burn on yourself with the same medicine you'd treat athlete's foot with.

I'm hesitant to recommend you continue the soaks, I am NOT a vet, but it seems to me keeping it dry is a better idea.

I still think you should see a different vet. The one you went to said it could be fungus, bacteria, or something else, but did no cultures or tests to find out what it might be ? I'd want a vet to tell me exactly what that is, what caused it, and how to treat it.

If that is a burn, which I suspect it is, it can easily get that bad that fast. Ever had a really bad burn, or seen pictures of one ? They go from looking not so serious to looking like death in a few days as the skin blisters and peels away. Keep your appointment with the new vet, and please let us know how he's doing.

Also, whether or not you do replace the heat mat, if you do not already have one, invest in a thermostat to control it. Some mats claim they only reach a certain temperature, but they are not always accurate, and can easily burn a snake.

Gale

just spoke with the vet, she said they overbooked and cant get me in till after the holiday, but she said i can come by and get a new medication called Batryl<-? which is an oral antibiotic used once every other day, and then she wants me to stop by walgreens and a zinc-oxide cream/ointment. she says i should continue soaking in the anti biotics then apply the cream. i asked if it may be a burn she said if it was treatment would be the same.

what to do AAHHHHH
cream or no cream
soak or dont soak
start the new meds, continue with what i have
drive an hour to see another vet or take this ones advice
heating pad or no heating pad

however my friend just gave me the number to her friend who is a total snake junkie and has seen everything, owns his own reptile shop. she said to bring him in there and have him take a look. she said he may even keep him and treat him for me :-)

if i was you i would go with the last option, the snake junkie/ the other vet

Again, since you seem to be ignoring it, do you have a thermostat?

Also, drive an hour to the vet, your snake looks in pretty bad condition.

Poor baby!

I'm afraid I can't help you much. I've never had to deal with a burn, although a neighbor did a few years back. I told him to go to a vet right away, because he didn't think it was a big deal. Well, by the time he got her to a vet, it was so far advanced she didn't make it.

Baytril can be oral or injections. Oral can cause problems of it's own, because you can accidentally get some into the snake's lung and then you have a whole new set of problems. I'm not real sure about the zinc oxide, that sounds a little odd to me, but I'm NOT a vet.

I do know I would keep that area as dry as possible. I just can't shake the feeling moisture and that condition don't mix. Also, since zinc oxide is water resistant, soaking in the antibiotics won't help unless you wipe off the ointment first, and rubbing that area seems like a VERY bad idea to me.

You can go with the snake junkie to START with. See what he makes of it first. Tell him what you have been doing, and what advise the vets have given you. Just because he owns/cares for a lot of snakes, doesn't mean he's an expert, but he might be able to help you figure out what to do for now. But ONLY until you can see a vet. This is VERY serious.

I continue to keep you in my thoughts, I hope he gets better soon for you.

Gale

My vet had me use super salty (seasalt) soaks to dry out scale rot and apply betadine and silver cream in moderation. It wasn't a very big area tho.

Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2

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Originally Posted by Otolith

My vet had me use super salty (seasalt) soaks to dry out scale rot and apply betadine and silver cream in moderation. It wasn't a very big area tho.

Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2

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Since it looks like a burn this would probably just cause a lot of pain.

If you aren't using a thermostat to control the heat pad and have switched from repti-bark to paper towels... the surface temp is going to spike wildly.

My thoughts are that you might have started with a little scale rot and when you put the snake on paper towels on an unregulated heat pad it burned its belly as well.

Keep the heat pad off for now. The soaks are only serving as a way to sterilize the area. Perhaps there is another option that doesn't involve keeping the snake submerged in water for that long?

That looks like a burn to me. I would make the drive and get him to a vet. I don't know for sure, but would imagine they will give him antibiotics to fight off any infection. And maybe something to treat the burn. I don't think I would soak him. I would get a new heat pad AND a thermostat to control it. Ouch, poor guy. Keep us posted.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

That does look a lot like a burn...

One thing I'm concerned about is that you mention "the smell". If he has actively rotting or necrotic tissue on him this needs to be debrided and removed by the vet or it can cause infection. We use zinc-oxide cream on rashes and minor burns in people, not sure what it's supposed to be doing on a snake. I'm not a vet but based on what I've been trained on burn and wound care management in humans I would suggest the following until you get a clear answer from a vet:

Do keep him dry and clean. I would go ahead with the antibiotic soaks as recommended, but pat him dry afterwards. Any excess moisture will promote infection. If you can see any obviously necrotic tissue and if you feel comfortable doing this take some clean, dry gauze and after his soak gently try to remove it. If he doesn't tolerate it or it doesn't come off easily leave it until you see the vet. I wouldn't slather the cream on heavily either, just a light coat.

Maintain a stable, 85-90'F ambient temperature, even at night. Regardless if it's a burn or not it looks like he's lost a significant chunk of his epidermis/"skin", and while they're not like humans which depend on skin for proper thermal regulation, keeping the temperature stable and constant will help him maintain homeostasis and reduce stress.

Leave him alone as much as possible and let him rest in a dark place. Hopefully the little guy'll pull through!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by snyper93

just spoke with the vet, she said they overbooked and cant get me in till after the holiday, but she said i can come by and get a new medication called Batryl<-? which is an oral antibiotic used once every other day

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if your vet is still recommending oral baytril then hes not a vet to go to. it isnt as safe or effective in an oral form. i would go to a diff vet. at this point in my opinion it looks like a burn. id turn the heat off. get some neosporin (not with pain medication though). make sure you are only using paper towels in the enclosure. keep enclosure dry dont mist it.
keep cage covered and dont stress him out. make sure he has fresh water but at intervals. i say this so that he wont soak or spill it. get him to a vet that has more knowledge than the last one. if it is bacterial then have the vet take a sample and find out what it is so he come up with a plan to treat it properly. not just to use an blanket med like baytril.
adam jeffery

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Originally Posted by OmNomNom

That does look a lot like a burn...

One thing I'm concerned about is that you mention "the smell". If he has actively rotting or necrotic tissue on him this needs to be debrided and removed by the vet or it can cause infection. We use zinc-oxide cream on rashes and minor burns in people, not sure what it's supposed to be doing on a snake. I'm not a vet but based on what I've been trained on burn and wound care management in humans I would suggest the following until you get a clear answer from a vet:

Do keep him dry and clean. I would go ahead with the antibiotic soaks as recommended, but pat him dry afterwards. Any excess moisture will promote infection. If you can see any obviously necrotic tissue and if you feel comfortable doing this take some clean, dry gauze and after his soak gently try to remove it. If he doesn't tolerate it or it doesn't come off easily leave it until you see the vet. I wouldn't slather the cream on heavily either, just a light coat.

Maintain a stable, 85-90'F ambient temperature, even at night. Regardless if it's a burn or not it looks like he's lost a significant chunk of his epidermis/"skin", and while they're not like humans which depend on skin for proper thermal regulation, keeping the temperature stable and constant will help him maintain homeostasis and reduce stress.

Leave him alone as much as possible and let him rest in a dark place. Hopefully the little guy'll pull through!

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The only part of this post I disagree with is raising the ambient temps so much. Higher temps (with moisture) promote bacterial growth, and I have personally had to reach into a hot oven with a burn already on my hand (NOT comfortable!).

There shouldn't be any harm in letting the friend's friend take a look, but do the antibiotic soaks and ointment (after soaking and patting dry) in the meantime. Continue any antibiotics you have. Give him a much smaller water bowl so he can't aggravate the wound by soaking himself. TURN OFF YOUR UTH, as this is almost definitely the cause of your problem. Something electronic not giving you trouble for years doesn't mean it isn't causing a problem now. Trash the UTH, get a new one, and get a thermostat to regulate it properly. Also, get a temp gun or digital thermometer with probe so you KNOW what the surface temp over the UTH is, rather than having to estimate.

Finally, get to a qualified vet as soon as you can. If you have to, walk in without an appointment and tell them you'll wait. No decent veterinarian would allow an animal that they know is in that condition to go another day without seeing it.

Edit: DO NOT USE NEOSPORIN. It is petroleum-based (bad for scales), and will only cause more issues with a burn. Use betadine and the antibiotic soaks you already have.

That is really bad. Poor little buddy.

I would remove anything that isn't smooth because he has chunks of flesh missing.

Anyone had experience with aloe on a snake's wound? Not from an ointment but straight from the plant?

Awwww! That poor baby! I really hope you can get your snake to a better vet soon! Good Luck and please keep us updated!

don't use neosporin. i recommend a very diluted solution of iodine and soak him in it for 3 minutes, 3 times a day, very gently pat dry with paper towels or a clean towel each time. go see snake junkie because he can for sure recommend someone if he doesn't know himself. ASAP or you will have a dead snake in no time.

I am still waiting to know it OP is using a thermostat...but they seem to have vanished as of now...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

The only part of this post I disagree with is raising the ambient temps so much. Higher temps (with moisture) promote bacterial growth, and I have personally had to reach into a hot oven with a burn already on my hand (NOT comfortable!).

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True, what's a "happy" temperature for a sick snake? You don't want him too cold and stressed out and his metabolism to drop too low that he can't heal himself, and anything near day-time temp ranges for a BP is going to make a nice incubator for bacteria regardless. All you can do is keep things as clean as possible and use the antibiotics to help stave off infection.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by hypersomniacjoo

don't use neosporin. i recommend a very diluted solution of iodine and soak him in it for 3 minutes, 3 times a day, very gently pat dry with paper towels or a clean towel each time. go see snake junkie because he can for sure recommend someone if he doesn't know himself. ASAP or you will have a dead snake in no time.

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I'm not sure about soaking him with iodine unless that came from an experienced herp. vet....particularly as sensitive as BPs seem to be, I'd worry about inhalation and toxicity to the skin.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmNomNom

True, what's a "happy" temperature for a sick snake? You don't want him too cold and stressed out and his metabolism to drop too low that he can't heal himself, and anything near day-time temp ranges for a BP is going to make a nice incubator for bacteria regardless. All you can do is keep things as clean as possible and use the antibiotics to help stave off infection.

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The OP stated the the temps in his (?) house are in the high 80s during the day and mid-70s at night. I think this should be substantial until a UTH with proper thermostat regulation can be put in place. Ideally, IMO, you would probably want to keep ambient temps ~80-82deg in a sick-snake situation, but I would rather err on the side of caution than risk aggravating the burn, especially since there doesn't seem to be a thermostat to regulate any supplemental temps.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmNomNom

I'm not sure about soaking him with iodine unless that came from an experienced herp. vet....particularly as sensitive as BPs seem to be, I'd worry about inhalation and toxicity to the skin.

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Perhaps he meant betadine? That is widely recommended on this site. I mentioned it earlier, but in hindsight, the soak with the antibiotic from the vet should do the same thing - I would pick one or the other.

I must agree with everyone that that looks like a very severe burn. Just because he's "been fine for 10 years" doesn't mean that's not the cause. Normal UTHs are VERY dangerous normally without a thermostat, and if they short out in any way they cause temps to spike even worse. I didn't read ALL the advice but I'll give my piece.

DON'T use Neosporin.
Get a plug-in lamp dimmer from a hardware store until you get a thermostat, but you NEED a thermostat.
Keep the paper towels for substrate
I honestly think that poor thing needs antibiotics. That burn looks like it's getting infected if it isn't already.
The Silvadene that I saw mentioned would be ideal, and I also think Betadine would help.
I'd also keep handling to a MINIMUM. Added stress won't help him heal.
Keep misting to a minimum

I think the biggest thing right now is getting a thermostat, and getting antibiotics. Those are my two main concerns. Good luck!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Annarose15

The OP stated the the temps in his (?) house are in the high 80s during the day and mid-70s at night. I think this should be substantial until a UTH with proper thermostat regulation can be put in place. Ideally, IMO, you would probably want to keep ambient temps ~80-82deg in a sick-snake situation, but I would rather err on the side of caution than risk aggravating the burn, especially since there doesn't seem to be a thermostat to regulate any supplemental temps.

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I would propose back-heat to be more advisable until that heals up a little though. You mention putting burned hand into a warm oven, I can imagine a burned belly being pretty sensitive to sitting on a warm tank bottom! Ow ow ow ow ow....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by OmNomNom

I would propose back-heat to be more advisable until that heals up a little though. You mention putting burned hand into a warm oven, I can imagine a burned belly being pretty sensitive to sitting on a warm tank bottom! Ow ow ow ow ow....

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Unless the snake likes to go up the sides (mine does) some sort of control for the UTH is still imperative.

im not ignoring anything, i just have a lot of questions to answer to. No, i do not have a heating pad thermostat. by the way it sounds i should invest in one. I spoke with the snake guy and he was pretty pissed about what the vet was telling me to do. he said, as most of you have as well, keep the area as dry as possible and no creams. he said the baytril should def. help clear up what he has going on. no more soaking, no more clyndamyicin, no more creams, no more heat pad. he said if it doesn't start to look better in about a week come in and see him and hell bring it to their vet and take care of things for me. so im going to go with that. and ill let you all know how everything goes!!

i appreciate everyone's responses, you all may have saved my snakes life :-)

Glad to hear that you are getting some good advice from a person that is likely familiar with this. I know how hard it is to get information from a vet, only to have people in the hobby tell you something completely opposite. Who do you believe?! It's not surprising at all that there are so many different approaches to things. I'll be honest: The best way I've found to get the correct information is to listen to everyone, focus on those with experience, those who want to genuinely help you (not just tell you you're wrong, but offer ways to fix it) and the most consistent information.

In this case, many of us here are saying burn, saying to keep it dry and to regulate your heat. By the sounds of it, that should offer relief to your animal.

I also want to agree with the person who suggested putting your UTH on the BACK of the tank/tub for now.

If you've ever burned yourself, you know how sensitive that skin gets to heat. If you have your poor boy sitting on top of heat (even at the correct temperature), it's going to be uncomfortable.

So I would offer just appropriate, indirect heat. Get the ambient temperature up in his enclosure, make sure he has a cool side and a warm side, but keep him off belly heat for now. That's going to be so painful for him for the next little while. Definitely leave him be as much as you can and only handle him when you need to. Don't 'check on it' all the time. He needs to just chill and heal for now.

Poor boy! That looks just awful.

Please keep us posted and don't be afraid to ask anymore questions if you're unsure of something :gj:

if that's a burn, then you need to be treating it most likely with Silvadene Cream. 1 percent includes 10mg of micronized silver sulfadiazine. with a burn, you need to be concern with the area becoming infected. take everything out of the tank and use paper towels and a water bowl. don't use the uth until you get the temps from it controlled. and I don't think I would even use it until this heals. the slightest heat on a burn = pain. silvadene cream is also used on humans for burns to prevent infections. keep the enclosure clean. very important. change the paper towels at least twice a day or more if needed.

Right, undertank heat pads should not, ever, no matter WHAT the manufacturer says, be used without a controlling device, whether it's a rheostat or a thermostat. Thermostats are best.

These devices get HOTTER as they age, and develop irregular hot spots. They are also designed to raise the temperature a certain amount above the AMBIENT--not just to a set temperature. Imagine that heat pad has probably been over 110F at some points!

The evidence is very clear on the belly of that poor snake.

Ball pythons NEED heat--the temperature shouldn't drop below 80F for them, and they need a 90F basking spot...I definitely second everyone's recommendation for a side-mounted heat source until this poor guy is fully healed. (Provided he can recover from such a severe burn--burns are extremely traumatic).

I've never heard anyone reputable using oral antibiotics for a snake. Should be injections.

Any vet who diagnoses a problem like that, and prescribes meds without taking cultures, is an idiot.

Ball pythons live for over 30 years. A quality thermostat is the most expensive piece of equipment you will buy for your snake, and THE MOST IMPORTANT. It's the one thing people should not skimp on, and it's the one thing pet stores never stock. Education is the only way to change this.

I feel terrible for that poor animal, he has to be in absolute agony.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by hypersomniacjoo

don't use neosporin. i recommend a very diluted solution of iodine and soak him in it for 3 minutes, 3 times a day, very gently pat dry with paper towels or a clean towel each time. go see snake junkie because he can for sure recommend someone if he doesn't know himself. ASAP or you will have a dead snake in no time.

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(no sarcastic undertone, just a general question)
i personally recommend neosporin for most small injuries. this case is more severe than any i have had to deal with. neosporin has worked wonders for a couple of my snakes and many that were rescued here locally.
is there a specific reason that you dont recommend neosporin ?
im asking for general knowledge. not being sarcastic in any tone. just wondering WHY you dont support its use.
adam jeffery

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adamjeffery

(no sarcastic undertone, just a general question)
i personally recommend neosporin for most small injuries. this case is more severe than any i have had to deal with. neosporin has worked wonders for a couple of my snakes and many that were rescued here locally.
is there a specific reason that you dont recommend neosporin ?
im asking for general knowledge. not being sarcastic in any tone. just wondering WHY you dont support its use.
adam jeffery

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Any oil based cream will turn the scales to mush. it is fine to use extremely sparingly with a single application, but if you are going to have to reapply it should not be used.

Water based products such as Betadine (watered down iodine) are much safer to use and are the preferred method of disinfecting wounds.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by adamjeffery

(no sarcastic undertone, just a general question)
i personally recommend neosporin for most small injuries. this case is more severe than any i have had to deal with. neosporin has worked wonders for a couple of my snakes and many that were rescued here locally.
is there a specific reason that you dont recommend neosporin ?
im asking for general knowledge. not being sarcastic in any tone. just wondering WHY you dont support its use.
adam jeffery

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Any kind of petroleum based product should NEVER ever ever everrrr be used on burns, that goes for humans AND reptiles.

Everyone has given all the answers and what not so I would just like to wish you very very good luck with your snake. I know how it feels for your snake to be your buddy/friend.

Just a quick update for you all, i have STOPPED all previous treatments. no more soaking, no more clyndamyicin, no more polysporin. as of now im giving .25ML of baytril every other day and thats it. the UTH has been turned off. he has also been removed from my front room and placed in a bedroom where it stays 80-90 day and night, VS the front room dropping to 70 during the night. Im still cleaning his tank 2x a day, sterilizing everything and placing fresh paper towels down.

He did come out from under his log for the first time today and was roaming for about an hour. HE DOES NOT SMELL ANYMORE, he does NOT look any better, still open wounds, stilly yucky skin in places, and hes still testy. but well see from here. ill continue to take pics and keep you all updated

What were you using to measure the temp of his hot spot?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mackynz

What were you using to measure the temp of his hot spot?

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Do you mean the surface of his uth or the warm side of the tank? I wasn't using anything to measure his spot over the heat pad. Which someone mentioned before just using my hand isn't going to work cause of how different our body temps are

I've learned quite a bit from this problem.

I would grab an Acu-rite digital thermometer with a probe and a lamp dimmer (use as a rheostat) until you can get a thermostat.

Poor bugger! I would def say with certainly that that is a burn. Glad he seems to be getting a little better. Does your vet have any silverdine cream on hand? That's usually used for burn. The most important thing is keeping the cage and him hospital clean. You may want to invest in a temp setup like a tub. Have two and youll reduce stress and you can just do a switcheroo everyday to disinfect. His caging whatever that may be does need to be sanitized everyday. Burns and even severe scale rot is hard to deal with. Betadyne, and silverdine treatments along with antibiotics tend to get the job done. But it is a painfully slow process. The vet whom told you it was some fungus..... Well I would never ever go there again.


Check out what's new on my website... www.Homegrownscales.com

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Originally Posted by Homegrownscales

Poor bugger! I would def say with certainly that that is a burn. Glad he seems to be getting a little better. Does your vet have any silverdine cream on hand?That's usually used for burn. The most important thing is keeping the cage and him hospital clean. You may want to invest in a temp setup like a tub. Have two and youll reduce stress and you can just do a switcheroo everyday to disinfect. His caging whatever that may be does need to be sanitized everyday. Burns and even severe scale rot is hard to deal with. Betadyne, and silverdine treatments along with antibiotics tend to get the job done. But it is a painfully slow process. The vet whom told you it was some fungus..... Well I would never ever go there again.

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x2 It concerns me that you aren't using anything to treat the burn itself, just the secondary infection (Baytril).

Mack, he clearly was not using anything to measure the temperature, or he would have noticed the problem.

Like so many other folks who come home from a pet store, he was probably give a 'kit' that consisted of a heat pad, a tank, a half log, and stick on thermometer (aka, useless piece of scrap plastic).

I think one of the most important things the reptile community could do would be to pressure manufacturers to stop making equipment that doesn't work, and to make all heat pad manufacturers include bold (not fine print) warning that all such devices should be controlled.

Then it's time to tackle the pet stores.

People don't know, when they walk into a pet store, that keeping a reptile is more complicated than keeping a hamster. Most folks don't need to buy a book to keep a hamster alive, and most folks expect that pet store personnel can tell them how to properly care for the animals sold in that store. Pet stores foster this attitude by actually giving advice on animal care, instead of insisting their customers get a book.

There's no point served in condemning innocent owners who THOUGHT they knew how to keep their animal safe and healthy--yes, they should have bought a book, but they didn't know that they needed to. There's a fundamental gap between the reptile community and the average pet owner, and the information isn't getting to them.

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Originally Posted by WingedWolfPsion

There's no point served in condemning innocent owners who THOUGHT they knew how to keep their animal safe and healthy--yes, they should have bought a book, but they didn't know that they needed to. There's a fundamental gap between the reptile community and the average pet owner, and the information isn't getting to them.

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Something desperately needs to be done to close that gap, pet stores need to have better caresheets, things like a thermostat must be listed. I didn't know I needed one, and somehow the previous owner got away without burns, but I was measuring the hotspot and was able to correct the problem with help from this community, and I take complete responsibility for my lack of knowledge.

In my opinion the owner should take responsibility for for the animal they are going to care for. This means doing their own reasearch, cross-referencing with multiple sources to rule out bad ideas. Not just expecting everything to be handed to you, using common sense.. I would very much like to see the care sheet that says that you should use your hand as a thermometer for the hot spot.

I am glad that the OP is genuinely interested in correcting the problem, all to often people ask for advice and then refuse it when it is given. We all have questions and it's good to see someone who really wants the answers.

So much for "being a good keeper"!!! I've never seen a burn that bad in my life. That kind of junk doesn't happen overnight and only an irresponsible snake owner would allow that to happen.
There 's been good advice given, but I am absolutely disgusted with the OP. Sickening.

This is what I did to treat one of my snake burns, at the advice of a herpetologist/registered veterinary technician who also works as a reptile keeper at the zoo:

1) Warm water soaks for 20-30 mins, once daily, to help the process of getting the dead tissue off. That tissue will just host bacteria.

2) Gently "scrub" (lightly rub) the area with a veterinary sanitizing scrub like Nolvasan (chlorhex) or Betadine. Try to ease off dead tissue but don't peel it off and cause bleeding. This is done just after the warm bath.

3) After the bath and scrub, apply an antibiotic creme made specifically for burn victims, Silvadene, once a day.

Also, during "bath time," I would sanitize her entire cage, cleaning the hide and water bowl too. I permanently removed anything extra like foliage or bark. Not only did it make daily cleaning of the cage quicker, but it gave less areas for bacteria to hide and possibly enter her compromised belly scales. I would do this daily even if she didn't pass any urates or poop. Not worth the risk of a bacterial infection after a burn.

This process worked very well for me, and I saw a huge improvement just 2-3 weeks later. Good luck on your veterinary visit...I hope it's a good prognosis.

P.S. Invest in a thermostat ASAP!

Also, take my post with a grain of salt until you see a Veterinarian. That's #1 priority.

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Originally Posted by Dwish

2) Gently "scrub" (lightly rub) the area with a veterinary sanitizing scrub like Nolvasan (chlorhex) or Betadine. Try to ease off dead tissue but don't peel it off and cause bleeding. This is done just after the warm bath.

3) After the bath and scrub, apply an antibiotic creme made specifically for burn victims, Silvadene, once a day.

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Maybe it is correct, but "scrubbing" would hardly be a word I would want to hear when it comes to removing skin from a severe burn.