Rescue Sharp Albino Redtail Boa

Hello,


I recently got a Boa as a rescue from a guy leaving the hobby. The male Boa is at 1.5kg and around 1.30m long.


The snake has a deep cut/injury on its left side and I was told that the injury was inflicted about 3 months ago. How the snake got this cut is unknown, but I am guessing it came from some inappropriate or sharp terrarium decoration. The guy had been keeping snakes for many years, and told me that he cured the cut with some topical antibiotics and also applied some kind of moisturizing cream.


According to the previous owner, the snake has been eating and shedding without any problems. The snake looks healthy and strong and active, so I believe it has no health issues except for the cut/injury. There seems to be no infection or bleeding, but the cut is very deep, I would say as deep as to the muscles.


Unfortunately, there are no vets here in my country that know anything about reptiles, so I am seeking your advice. It has been 2 days since I acquired the snake, so I haven't tried feeding but I am quite confident it will pound on its feeder and will have no problems eating it. Is there anything I can do or should do? Should I just leave the cut as it is? By the way, the snake had shed twice since the injury, the last being 4 days ago. Below are a couple of pictures of the snake and the injury.


Thanks for your help.


https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...psegf4cvhe.jpg


https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...ps0amoqhgx.jpg


https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...pskjqon2qm.jpg

Wow that's a big cut! And with lots of dead flesh. I think that snake need a vet!

Yeah that's a nasty one.. I don't think it'll be ok just being left alone. I would try to find a vet or someone knowledgeable any way you could if I were you.. looks very serious.

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With no vet available your options are very limited.

I would put the snake in a very sterile environment - just an enclosure lined with clean paper and a water bowl. Fortunately this boa is large enough it doesn't really need a hide.

Silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) is the go-to antiseptic cream for reptile injuries. Even if your local vet doesn't see snakes you might be able to purchase some from him - or it may even be available over-the-counter outside the US.

If you can't get it there's a product called Vetericyn that is also good on reptiles, you can find it on Amazon.

I would also feed very small feeders so as not to stretch the area while it heals.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bcr229

With no vet available your options are very limited.

I would put the snake in a very sterile environment - just an enclosure lined with clean paper and a water bowl. Fortunately this boa is large enough it doesn't really need a hide.

Silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) is the go-to antiseptic cream for reptile injuries. Even if your local vet doesn't see snakes you might be able to purchase some from him - or it may even be available over-the-counter outside the US.

If you can't get it there's a product called Vetericyn that is also good on reptiles, you can find it on Amazon.

I would also feed very small feeders so as not to stretch the area while it heals.

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Thank you for the input.

I already have her in a sterile and quiet place.
Today, I got my hands on some Silvadene and applied it to the injury. I will be applying the cream every day for around a week and see how it progresses. I guess I can make him skip some meals until perhaps his wound looks much better.

I will be posting some pics when I see a significant change, hopefully very soon.

I'm sorry you don't have a vet that can help you. Please keep us up to date on his progress.

Yikes! That can't smell good. Good luck with this beauty, hopefully it heals quickly.

The contrast between the dead skin and the rest of the snake almost makes it look like photoshop!

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Update:

This is 1 day after treating with Silvadene, it looks much better right now. I will keep applying the cream every day and post updated pictures daily.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...psm6n0xon0.jpg]

Would a regular vet be able to at least cut off the dead flesh? I imagine that they could still anesthetize it and I assume that it would heal better without the dead skin. I could be totally wrong though.

Is that even actually dead skin? Or is it a scab?

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Fraido

Would a regular vet be able to at least cut off the dead flesh? I imagine that they could still anesthetize it and I assume that it would heal better without the dead skin. I could be totally wrong though.

Is that even actually dead skin? Or is it a scab?

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From the looks of it, it is a scab and not dead flesh.

I wouldn't trust a regular vet with a snake, I'd rather seek help myself.

ouch that's a nasty wound. I hope you are able to get that taken care of. Good luck!

After a week of treating with Silvadene, I fed him with a jumbo sized rat. His wound seemed better and the scab was slowly shrinking and lifting. Today, he shed and the scab is completely gone. He has a much better looking (open) wound now, which I applied some Silvadene to help it recover without any complications. I can say that the wound is 90% healed and it will be fully healed next time he sheds, though he will have a scar for the rest of his life.

Here a couple of pics of his wound and the part of his shed with the scab:

The wound:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...pswtglkfdt.jpg

The shed:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...ps4pjnydlg.jpg

The shed (inside-out):
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...pskunyvjy8.jpg

that looks 10000% better than before! keep treating, and in a few more sheds it should be hardly more than a scar!

Hey, nice work. Thanks for sharing the pictures. I hope your noodle continues to do well.

Wow you've done wonders with that snake wound - great job. By the way, that is a beautiful boa. Congrats.

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Thank you for the good wishes. I just fed him 2 f/t jumbo rats (330gr and 300gr) http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forum...ies/smile1.gif He will recover well I hope.

Wow, he looks so much better. You are doing great with him. Keep up the good work. Keep the pictures coming, we look forward to seeing how he progresses.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by amok

Thank you for the good wishes. I just fed him 2 f/t jumbo rats (330gr and 300gr) https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...s%2Fsmile1.gif He will recover well I hope.

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That's a huge meal for a 1500 gram boa. Even one rat that size is a big meal; just one every 5-6 weeks is more than plenty.

What a handsome boy! Congrats on treating the wound. As others have said, keep the pictures coming!!

Glad to see he is doing better!

That is one beautiful snake. The scar gives it character.