Bubbling scales on the belly?

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/KV...=w978-h1734-no

So my girl just shed, it admittedly wasn't a very good shed but I carefully peeled off the shed on her and I think I got it all.
But then a few days later I noticed this. These scales on her belly near her rear look like their bubbling up. And some spots on her belly are pink even though she shed.
It this just some shed that I missed or something else? A burn maybe?
I would like some insight, please and thank you.

Are you using a UTH and if so is it connected to a thermostat

Yes, it is a heatmat but it's not connected to a thermostat, was never a problem before.

Well, upon doing a little research, I now see just how important that is. I'm pretty upset no one has told me about this in the 5 years I've had my snake, even people who know snakes that helped me get my enclosure set up failed to mention this so I've never heard of it before.
I ordered one and will take her to a vet once I get it set up.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

Yes, it is a heatmat but it's not connected to a thermostat, was never a problem before.

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Just because there's never been a problem doesn't mean there won't be. You can get one for $30. It's honestly irresponsible to keep animals without providing proper care.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

Well, upon doing a little research, I now see just how important that is. I'm pretty upset no one has told me about this in the 5 years I've had my snake, even people who know snakes that helped me get my enclosure set up failed to mention this so I've never heard of it before.
I ordered one and will take her to a vet once I get it set up.

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I'm sorry, but it's your pet, your responsibility to do research. It's nobody else's job care for your pet. A quick Google search on snake husbandry will show countless sources which talk about the importance of a thermostat. Just reading a care sheet or two isn't doing proper research (not implying that's what you did,I just see it way too often).
We owe it to our animals to provide proper care. They don't get a choice and rely 100% on us for their survival.

Look, I feel bad enough already. Ya, I messed up and apparently talked to the wrong people. Over the past 5 years I've seen many people talk about their snakes and enclosures and I do not recall them once mentioning a thermostat.
Thankfully, she's not bleeding anywhere and I'm going to keep an eye on her heatpad more often, unplug it when it gets too hot. Or maybe I'll just use my heatlamp and unplug the pad all together.
I'll just have to keep this up for about 2 weeks till the stuff gets here. I ordered a thermostat, a heatgun and Betadine Solution to help treat her if necessary.
...
I know your right, I'm just upset at myself.

Burns are very painful & serious on snakes- it would be best to stop using this UTH until it's properly regulated, as there's just no way to "watch" it that will work.

Vet visit recommended for your snake, & btw. heat lamps need controlled too...at least get a lamp dimmer (aka rheostat) from the nearest hardware store...they are
not expensive. And assuming you have the means to accurately measure the temps. in the cage, test the dimmed lamp while you're home as to what setting (on the
dimmer) produces safe & adequate warmth. (You can buy a lamp dimmer already installed on an extension cord...that's the easiest, just plug your lamp into it & use
the control, usually a rotary dial or a slider, to adjust.)

If you can not get your snake to a vet quickly, Mountainside Medical will sell silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) online w/o a prescription. It is better for snake burns than the petroleum-gel based antibiotic ointments.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bcr229

If you can not get your snake to a vet quickly, Mountainside Medical will sell silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) online w/o a prescription. It is better for snake burns than the petroleum-gel based antibiotic ointments.

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Yes, I also highly recommend using Silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) for this issue; I've had no snakes with burns but have used this for another skin issue on a rescued boa- it's well worth getting your hands on this product for your snake's healing.

I'll see if i can pick up a dimmer and call the vet later today.
Few more questions before I do though, will just a heatlamp be okay for a ball python, just for maybe a week or 2? The area the lamp is heating is at 32'C.
And also, I never actually got a clear answer on this, but it is in fact a burn on her?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

I'll see if i can pick up a dimmer and call the vet later today.
Few more questions before I do though, will just a heatlamp be okay for a ball python, just for maybe a week or 2? The area the lamp is heating is at 32'C.
And also, I never actually got a clear answer on this, but it is in fact a burn on her?

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The picture looks like a burn blister but it's hard to tell.

Do you have a temperature gun or IR/point thermometer so you can measure the surface temperature of the glass over the UTH?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

I'll see if i can pick up a dimmer and call the vet later today.
Few more questions before I do though, will just a heatlamp be okay for a ball python, just for maybe a week or 2? The area the lamp is heating is at 32'C.
And also, I never actually got a clear answer on this, but it is in fact a burn on her?

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I would say yes looks like second degree burns to me. Yes the snake will be a lot better off without the uth on for a couple of weeks. In fact I don't use uth's at all, and I don't recommend them to anyone, at least not for BP's. In my gallery you will see pics of two heat bulb domes one on each end of a 40 gal. The temps I keep at about 82 one side to 86 the other. The tops of the hides provide a warm spot of 88 to lay on if they want but I never see them do it much if ever.

I don't use dimmers either I have my night heat bulbs plugged into thermostat's. Dimmers you will have to adjust a lot. Thermostats keep the temp in a close range and do the adjusting for you. You can get the best one (a Herpstat) at spyderrobotics.com or you can get a Vivarium Electronics at Reptilebasics.com Those two are the best. You can also get thermostats at Amazon and walmart on line. Walmart on line sells VE thermostats from reptile basics even. I am using a Vivosun from Amazon for one of my over head heat bulbs, and Century for the other. I think Vivosun is better than Century. I use the Zilla black light night bulbs. 100 watt. They are kept on 24/7 but the thermostat's have them off most the time.
The cheaper thermostat's including Vivosun and Century are not as reliable as the Herpstat's and Ve's are, but for the overhead bulbs they do the job for now.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

I'll see if i can pick up a dimmer and call the vet later today.
Few more questions before I do though, will just a heatlamp be okay for a ball python, just for maybe a week or 2? The area the lamp is heating is at 32'C.
And also, I never actually got a clear answer on this, but it is in fact a burn on her?

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To be clear, a thermostat is preferred for safety & the higher temps that BPs require, but a dimmer is cheap-quick-readily available, & works pretty well for lights (you can use it for your own lamp later on, if you like). Heat lamp alone should be OK for the time being, but also depends how cold your room/house is as to how much added heat you need for a BP to stay healthy, so it's hard to answer you on that.

The blisters appear to be a thermal burn to me, but could also be some other skin disease...either way, not good. Logically though, with an unregulated UTH, this is most LIKELY a burn.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bcr229

If you can not get your snake to a vet quickly, Mountainside Medical will sell silvadene (silver sulfadiazine) online w/o a prescription. It is better for snake burns than the petroleum-gel based antibiotic ointments.

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Is it worth buying a bottle of that to keep on hand, as a just in case? Or does it expire pretty quickly?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gocntry

Is it worth buying a bottle of that to keep on hand, as a just in case? Or does it expire pretty quickly?

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Check the price on it...might be a different answer for different owners, depending on your budget. I don't recall how long before it deteriorates, but more than a year.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Check the price on it...might be a different answer for different owners, depending on your budget. I don't recall how long before it deteriorates, but more than a year.

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It was under $20.00 shipped for a small 20g tube, so the cost doesn't pose an issue, I can add it into the "Snake" first aid kit. A long expiration date

makes it worth it for me

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Gocntry

It was under $20.00 shipped for a small 20g tube, so the cost doesn't pose an issue, I can add it into the "Snake" first aid kit. A long expiration date

makes it worth it for me

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I agree, especially if you are someone who also takes in rescues now & then, or have friends with snakes too. It's great for wound healing on snakes, not strictly burns.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

Yes, it is a heatmat but it's not connected to a thermostat, was never a problem before.

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Famous last words.....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

Famous last words.....

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...and so easily avoidable

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Elitedog

Look, I feel bad enough already. Ya, I messed up and apparently talked to the wrong people. Over the past 5 years I've seen many people talk about their snakes and enclosures and I do not recall them once mentioning a thermostat.
Thankfully, she's not bleeding anywhere and I'm going to keep an eye on her heatpad more often, unplug it when it gets too hot. Or maybe I'll just use my heatlamp and unplug the pad all together.
I'll just have to keep this up for about 2 weeks till the stuff gets here. I ordered a thermostat, a heatgun and Betadine Solution to help treat her if necessary.
...
I know your right, I'm just upset at myself.

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PLEASE unplug the heat mat. All signs point towards a burn caused by the heat mat. So PLEASE unplug it.

Ball pythons like to have security as well as heat regulation in one convenient package, which is why it is recommended that the temperatures inside the hides be at their preferred temperatures. This is a failing of bulbs and other overhead heating solutions. Ball Pythons in the wild are rarely found outside of a hide basking, they are not basking animals, which is why having their hot spot being a basking platform of sorts is not recommended

However(!)

The golden rule of herp keeping is, if the animal is healthy, happy, and lives their entire expected lifespan (30-40 years for BPs in captivity) then the husbandry is acceptable. This is not an exact science.

Little Update:
Got a thermostat hook up and fiddled with it a bit. The glass itself wont go any higher than 36C, the bedding over top it sits around around 30C. Not the best, but I'd rather be safe.

I took her to the vet and she doesn't have any infection, it's just a burn on the outside that blistered. All things considered, that's the best case scenario. I got some cream and meds to help with it. Once my Betadine comes in, they told me it's good to give her a bath filled with it diluted.

Thank you for the people that responded to this that actually cared about my girl and provided advice

Always measure your temperatures in the hottest surface your animal can touch, this would be the glass.
If the surface of your substrate is too cool you may have too thick of a layer. Most snakes will burrow to the heat.

Awesome!! :gj:

Don't stress over the temp of the substrate. Focus on the actual surface temp of the glass above the UTH (heat mat). That's where you're "hot spot" will be.

Snakes burrow and push substrate around so you don't need to worry about the substrate temp, since the snake will likely end up in direct contact with the glass. Most of my snakes end up pushing the majority of their substrate out of their hides anyway.

Good luck with the meds and keep up the good work.