Vent looks absolutely horrifying.

[Bizzle]

I was cleaning my snake's tank tonight and when I took him/her/vet-cannot-decide/Indiana out for a quick inspection, I found Indiana's vent to be puffy to the touch with an accompanying pink streak up and down the surrounding area.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...artattack1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...artattack2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...artattack3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...artattack4.jpg

Sorry for the super bad photos. I futzed around with the colors in photoshop to best represent the right discoloration of his scales. Indy just did NOT want to hold still for me, and when I tightened my hold around his bottom half? Liquid popped out of his vent and all over my poor photo-taking mother (which was both horrifying and hilarious). I am relatively sure this WASN'T a musking, despite Indy's obvious displeasure at being handled in an uncomfortable position, as neither of us noticed any unpleasant smell with it. After this expulsion, the puffiness of his vent went down noticeably. It is now mostly just discolored.

I attempted to palpitate the extremely pissed bugger and felt a few lumps. I'm unsure if this is a still-digesting meal (he was last fed on Saturday) or feces waiting to be passed. Indiana usually eats like a horse, but has only been having two of his three usual mice the past couple of feedings. Last week he took only one. His bowel movements have still been regular and healthy, and he remains active in the late evenings.

I've investigated for mites, but have found zero evidence in his scales or the tank. When I take him to the vet on Monday (all local exotic animal veterinary offices are closed on the weekends fffff), I'll obviously have this confirmed, along with checking for respiratory disease, etc.

Indiana was born under a private breeder back in 2007. He was probed by the breeder and considered male, but my vet has labeled him as undetermined. I've never been that interested in my snake's gender since I have no intention of ever breeding him, but could the vent be reacting to ovulation? Is my he finally a definite she? Or did he somehow cut the inside of his rectum and start an infection?

I HAVE NO IDEA GUYS please give me some peace of mind to last me through the weekend.

[Kaorte]

Those pictures look like scale rot or thermal burns to me.

[Bizzle]

Those pictures look like scale rot or thermal burns to me.

I've checked the temps and haven't found anything different from the past three years, but is there anything I could be doing until Monday if scale rot/burns could possibly be the case? I google'd up some images of scale rot, and while I was too busy freaking out of the puffiness surrounding the vent, that the redness could have been the start of scale rot. Nothing smells or is flaking off, though, so I'm glad I obviously caught whatever this is super early.

(though I am totally not going to get any sleep until he sees a vet)

ETA: oh hey one of the symptoms of scale rot is blistering. I AM A HORRIBLE SNAKE MOM. I'm. Going to be over here, feeling like scum.

[Kaorte]

I've checked the temps and haven't found anything different from the past three years, but is there anything I could be doing until Monday if scale rot/burns could possibly be the case? I google'd up some images of scale rot, and while I was too busy freaking out of the puffiness surrounding the vent, that the redness could have been the start of scale rot. Nothing smells or is flaking off, though, so I'm glad I obviously caught whatever this is super early.

(though I am totally not going to get any sleep until he sees a vet)

ETA: oh hey one of the symptoms of scale rot is blistering. I AM A HORRIBLE SNAKE MOM. I'm. Going to be over here, feeling like scum.

How are you heating the enclosure and what kind of thermometers are you using?

What kind of substrate is the snake on? I would switch to paper towels right away.

[Bizzle]

How are you heating the enclosure and what kind of thermometers are you using?

What kind of substrate is the snake on? I would switch to paper towels right away.

I use an under the tank heating mat. I use both a digital prob for double-checking spots and a cheap thermometer that's used in quick glances on especially cold mornings since I have the joy of living in Maine.

I already put him on paper towels after I finished cleaning the tank tonight. Tomorrow morning I'll be driving to the pharmacy to pick up some recommended antibiotic creams and giving him a warm bath before I go in for work.

I'll be giving the tank and hides a diluted bleaching on Sunday. Monday will see a vet visit come Hell or increased visit prices. I've caught the rot before it's started to flake, so can I hope that as long as I'm diligent in treatment and avoiding moisture build-up in the hides (I'm positive this stems from his constant tipping of the water bowl, DAMN IT SNAKE), this problem can be solved and avoided from now on?

And thanks for being on at one in the morning, Kaorte.

[Foschi Exotic Serpents]

No creams! Clear regular Bacitracin is your best friend. A more affordable substitute is clear regular Neosporin. No pain killer or additives at all. Bend his tail back slightly and try to get a tiny bit inside the vent. Then rub it on the outside. This will ward off any more infection. I have used Bacitracin for everything from stuck eyecaps to the occasional enflamed vent on a breeding male.

[Bizzle]

No creams! Clear regular Bacitracin is your best friend. A more affordable substitute is clear regular Neosporin. No pain killer or additives at all. Bend his tail back slightly and try to get a tiny bit inside the vent. Then rub it on the outside. This will ward off any more infection. I have used Bacitracin for everything from stuck eyecaps to the occasional enflamed vent on a breeding male.

I should have specified that bacitracin and neosporin where what I meant. GOOD JOB, BIZ. I work for a pharmacy, so luckily I can get all this stuff on hand immediately, and double-check to make sure nothing is in there that I don't want on my poor snake --

http://pics.livejournal.com/biztheinsane/pic/0005d55t

No. No, the one in the foreground.

[Elise.m]

He's a cutie! You mentioned using an UTH and thermometers. Are you using a Lamp Dimmer or a Thermostat to control it? If not, UTH's can reach up to 130*, and that could've been what caused it.

Edit: This is a thermostat that is cheap. Of course, the more expensive ones are typically more recommended. I use two of the 500R's and they work fine.

This is a lamp dimmer that I personally use, also. It's good. Does the job!

[muddoc]

No creams! Clear regular Bacitracin is your best friend. A more affordable substitute is clear regular Neosporin. No pain killer or additives at all. Bend his tail back slightly and try to get a tiny bit inside the vent. Then rub it on the outside. This will ward off any more infection. I have used Bacitracin for everything from stuck eyecaps to the occasional enflamed vent on a breeding male.

Judging from the pics, I doesn't look like there is any blistering or burns near the vent. I think the puffy vent was probably waste building up to be expelled (as it did once the snake was handled.) Therefore, I don't think you need any ointment in the vent, unless you see some red there. As others have stated, make sure you double check the temps one more time, Also, definitely try to prevent the water bowl from spilling, as they could have accelerated the condition. A vet visit is the best idea, but it looks like a burn to me as well.

[Freakie_frog]

I'd have to agree looks like a burn.. Like Time said, keep it dry, at all time's.