Please help I am scared.

I have had my bp snake for about 4 months now. Around a month ago he was badly burned from a MALFUNCTIONING thermostat. It was an open wound burn on about 35% of his body. I got treatment for him from a vet and after doing different treatments described on here, his next shed was successful. His skin/scales was coming back nicely and he only had a little bit of damages body left. I assumed his next shed would bring him fully healed. I came home from work today and did my daily pull him out to say hello, and I noticed a large red sac hanging from his body. I thought it was something poop related at first but upon close inspection it looked like something from inside of him. I immediately looked it up and it looks like a prolapse. I called local vet hospitals and they want to charge me 150 bucks just to see him... I can no where near afford that right now, and they told me that wouldn't include the treatment. All of the vet offices near me said that they can only do a diagnoses and that they would have to refer me for this specific occurrence. My snake hasn't eaten in around a month live or frozen, and I have been trying to feed him every 5 days since his last feed. His humidity is always at or above 55% with temps 70-80 degrees. I change his newspaper every 4-5 days and clean his tank thoroughly once per month. I am scared for his life and I will not be able to afford a 500 dollar bill. I really do not want his life to end this way. Is there anything I can do to save him? I am going to add pictures now.


http://i59.tinypic.com/5n13m8.jpg

Oh man. He needs a vet with that bad of a prolapse. Until you can get him to one make a paste of sugar and water, and apply it to the prolapse to keep it moist.

Also his temps need to be 75-90*F, not 75-80*F.

I meant ambient temps. He has a hotspot with his heating pad that averages around 90.


Do you know if it is a prolapsed anus, or the other thing that starts with an h. This had to have happened today.

For now I have him in a large ice cream container layered with paper towels that are slightly damp, and have a layer of the sugar/paste mixture. It is the first thing I did when I searched on this site and saw that treatment.

That certainly looks like a bad prolapse. In needs to be kept CLEAN!!! and moist.

A vet is your best option.


If the vet is out of reach for what ever reason (cost, distance, closure...) this MAY work, i have never done this nor seen one in person, so I have no experience with such things. I can't say if it will work or cause harm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLn4CmlZK6U

The idea is solid.

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Originally Posted by BallP

Do you know if it is a prolapsed anus, or the other thing that starts with an h. This had to have happened today.

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I think you mean hemipene. And no, that's not a 'pene.

It is not a hemipene it appears to be lower intestine.


BallP Best of luck I wish I had more to offer.

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Originally Posted by kitedemon

It is not a hemipene it appears to be lower intestine.


BallP Best of luck I wish I had more to offer.

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Will the fact that it is an intestine change anything?
I have an appointment with a general herp tomorrow. She won't be able to do any surgical procedures, but she can give me advice. ,
I just cannot afford a 500 dollar surgery due to a major financial hardship that happened literally days ago.

I will see if she can do what that man did in the video. I just want him to live. I was thinking about opening up a credit card, but I don't know.

Thank you guys for your help.

Ballp...I'm going to say it, may get some flack, but here goes.

You mentioned some hardship lately. I'm sorry you are having a hard go with whatever came up. We all feel for our pets and I'm not any different. I believe we need to do all that we can within our power to provide quality care whether it be a spider, snake, horse, fish, or whatever. However, at some point, you need to ask yourself the hard questions. Talk to the vet about a payment plan before taking out credit cards for large expenses. At a point, in an animals life, it comes time to make the call. I'm not saying its easy, nor am I saying its the right thing to do. That is up to you, NOT me or anyone else. I'm just saying, you need to also worry about yourself and how much sacrifice you can handle. Best of luck to you both and whichever decisions you make.

Not gonna get any flac from me. If it were my snake and i already have the issue with the burn i would 100% end its life. Ive been through this with dogs, cats..... At some point the cost and pain for the animal outways rest. Kill it...have a good cry...and when your ready start over with a new ball python. Just my harsh 2 cents

No, sadly if it were a hemipene it would be much easier to deal with, they are fairly small and often sort out themselves.

Do not allow the prolapse to dry out!

This is critical!!! If it dries the chances drop quickly. Good on the appointment, it is the responsible thing to do. The choice of surgery is a tough one, sooner or later everyone is forced to make a hard decision, it isn't only can I pay for the cost of the procedure but partially what is the quality of life and fiscal burden. I know someone who put themselves in debt up to their eyeballs to save an animal. The animal lived and a few weeks later needed a special food that he could no longer afford. Going into debt although on the surface might seem to be right but at a certain point too much debt will also impact upon the animal too. you are the only one who can decide what is reasonable and what is not.

I hope it doesn't come to that and that a mechanical solution can be found. this is often the case, surgery is not always needed.

I wanted to add to my post. Animals are on a scale of emotional attachment for me. Dogs, cats, horses ect are on the top. On the bottom are ants, roaches, rats ect. I slide my snakes into a four square foot tub in my basement for there whole life. Not exactly "humane". I gladely kill hundreds of rats a year to feed them. To me ball pythons are in the middle somewhere on attachment, but i would never spend hundreds of dollars on a $50 snake.

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Originally Posted by BrianDallek

I wanted to add to my post. Animals are on a scale of emotional attachment for me. Dogs, cats, horses ect are on the top. On the bottom are ants, roaches, rats ect. I slide my snakes into a four square foot tub in my basement for there whole life. Not exactly "humane". I gladely kill hundreds of rats a year to feed them. To me ball pythons are in the middle somewhere on attachment, but i would never spend hundreds of dollars on a $50 snake.

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First off, if you are treating your snakes in a way you would consider "not exactly humane" you shouldn't have them... If you're meeting their needs then that's humane.
Many people on here treat their snakes as pets and are willing to spend what is needed to care for them. Yes there is a scale of necessity, and in this case it seems like the best option for both owner and snake may end up being euthanasia (or it may not, I don't know). There's no reason the OP should feel bad about wanting to spend money on his snake whether it's worth $50 or $500. I personally take responsibility for any pet of mine and what determines whether or not they get a vet procedure isn't their 'worth' it's the cost of the procedure against how likely the procedure is to work and how much pain and stress it will cause them.

:O This is pretty scary. I won't give anyone flack, after all, it is your decision, but I am that person who would go to alot of trouble for my animals. I hope the herp visit proves helpful :please:... You and your snake are in my thoughts.

Oh im not saying i treat my animals inhumane, which is why I put quotes around the word. Im just talking truth here. I take snakes and put them in a plastic drawer for my pleasure. I enjoy having them, feeding them, breeding them, showing them off..., but its still snakes in a drawer. I dont have 1 snake as my only pet. I currently have 8 and you bet your butt i would way cost of vet with value of that animal and i know im not alone.

To be honest, I think it's a lost battle.
With every minute you loose the chance. From the photo looks colon prolapse. If it' fresh, not like in the picture, the sugar paste at home and suture at vet can help easily and cheaper. If the tissue oedematous, like in the picture, much more expensive to go. Probably needs coeliotomy, which means the vet must cut up your snake to get that done. If still like this, you will be see the signs of necrosis in the tissue.
Just.. Really sorry.

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Originally Posted by Felidae

To be honest, I think it's a lost battle.
With every minute you loose the chance. From the photo looks colon prolapse. If it' fresh, not like in the picture, the sugar paste at home and suture at vet can help easily and cheaper. If the tissue oedematous, like in the picture, much more expensive to go. Probably needs coeliotomy, which means the vet must cut up your snake to get that done. If still like this, you will be see the signs of necrosis in the tissue.
Just.. Really sorry.

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is this something i could have prevented. I always made sure everything was right in his husbandry.

The way I have it now, he is wrapped up fully in a ball and he doesnt move much. I have the bottom layered with a highly saturated sugar/water mix, and his wrapped up ball has formed a bowl type thing around the prolapse. I poured the sugar paste to where the prolapse is fully submerged in it. i don't think he will move much so hopefully it sits overnight. The appointment is early so we will see.

I think you couldn't.
If you think you give a chance for him, try to put the sugar paste as many times as possible, and "if" it shrinks enough, use rubber glowes and lubricant to gentle put back in his place. If something go wrong during the process, it will be fatal, and you must ready to euthanize him ASAP. But to be honest... 95% that without vet, will be prolapse again.

*Vet tomorrow? In this case don't try to put back yourself. Hope will be turn out fine

So sorry this happened to you. I had a snake die earlier on this week with a prolapsed rectum. My prolapse was as large but less necrotic than your boy's. If you want to read my post it is in advanced husbandry. Good luck to you.

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Originally Posted by Kibbleswhites

So sorry this happened to you. I had a snake die earlier on this week with a prolapsed rectum. My prolapse was as large but less necrotic than your boy's. If you want to read my post it is in advanced husbandry. Good luck to you.

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I am really sorry about your snake :( I just hope mine has a different outcome. We will see tomorrow when the vet takes a look :(

I am so sorry about your baby please let us know what happens. Just don't blame yourself if he doesn't make it or u have to put him to sleep

I'm very sorry.

Fast Shadow

Some good news came, but I don't want to get my hopes up. I kept Mr. Slithers in a sugar solution for around 5 hours last night. The sugar solution was really thick from the heating pad under it. Anyway, after 5 hours of being fully submerged, whatever it was hanging out his vent shrunk at LEAST 60%

I compared it to the original picture at the vet and she couldn't believe it shrunk so much. It is a very dark color though, but it has no odor whatsoever, so the bet did not believe it was necrosis setting in. She thinks it might be just a bruise. She was hesitant to amputate it because she thinks its the cloaeca (I don't know how to spell it). She is going to confirm it and give me a call, though. If it is truly a hemipene she will amputate, and I have a checkup appointment on tuesday to see if she can get it back into him without amputating it, (if it is a hemipene). I am hoping for the best.

No, it is not your fault. It is your responsibility to try and correct the issue and you've proven that you are! Conditions happen to all living things and if they happen to be our pets we do the right thing and step up to the plate. You've demonstrated that! Don't throw yourself under the bus. Continue to be responsible for the animals treatment and remain positive that he will recover. Stay in peace and not pieces! Good luck. A.C. :) :) :)

After tests came back the vet called me back. She told me to go into either immediate surgery or request euthanasia. She told me the surgery may not work because the cloaca is rotted out. The surgery isn't that expensive, but I am not going to put him through all that pain.

Very sad day

:tears: Very sad indeed... I am so sorry for your loss of a lovely friend...

Hey listen, you tried and did the right thing by consulting the vet. Kudos to you for giving the bp a chance! Mourn today and get up tomorrow and get a new hatchling and move on. So many out there that need a good , caring owner like yourself. Stay in peace and not pieces. HURRY..... A.C. :gj:

I'm sorry. It's never easy losing one especially after fighting so hard to save it.

I am very sorry. You clearly have the right attitude and were diligent. There is little more to be done than that.
Alex

I'm so sorry. That is the best thing what you can do for him. You're a good owner, and I'm sure your future snakes will have a good home.

I am so sorry!!!! I cant imagine how u feel I know you feel bad but just know u did everything u could for him don't blame yourself

Losing an animal is always a tough thing.

But you, unlike many other owners that I've come across actually tried to give it a fighting chance.

You did all you could, so keep your chin up!

So sorry man.

You did your best.

I am impressed with your diligence on helping your pet in any way possible. This truly says that you cared for your boy and wanted the best for him. As for all hardships in life, try and keep a positive attitude and think that he is not suffering anymore. Take some time for yourself and hopefully in the future, you can call another one of these amazing animals your pet.

So sorry to hear about this.

You did all you could, and you did incredibly well! Hope it all goes okay, and I also hope your financial issue resolves itself soon!

Take care pal.

oh man- that looks bad :O

i hope you're able to get your snake back to full health

Se7en....animal didn't make it.

For the OP, hang in there. I'd of made the same call. YOur comment about not wanting to put the animal through it shows compassion. Hard decision for you, easy decision knowing it is what is best for the animal.

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Originally Posted by h20hunter

Se7en....animal didn't make it.

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i didn't read the whole thread, and now i feel like an ass. :tears:

So so sorry.. this hurt my heart.. you had great compassion! RIP little buddy..