Howard

[kinley]

Howard and I had a not so pleasant experience today, as I tube fed him for the first time myself. Poor guy doesn't like that very much.... Scarily, he seems to still be getting worse. Which I know perhaps it will take some time before we start to see good signs (if we do) but as a caregiver to this little baby, it disturbs me greatly. The fluid buildup under his skin has gotten much, MUCH worse.



His redness has spread even more, as you can probably see and is now beginning to become prominent on his back and neck.

He still isn't drinking anything nor is he moving around in his tank, I left for a few hours to run errands today and came home to find him in the same position, in the same spot.

Also, yesterday he weighed in at 122g... Today he weighed just 117g. I'm hoping my scale just goofed, but I check three times.



Despite this, when I took him out to feed him this morning, he seemed pretty happy and was giving me kisses and trying to get tangled in my hair. I love this little guy


Here are some pictures of him before the redness began in case you wanted to see:



Even though he's a thin dude, he's a cutie.

[Kibbleswhites]

Glad you are trying so hard to help the poor little guy. However, I would not be handleling him at all let alone doing photo shoots all of which is super stressful for the snake. He does not give kisses or love you or want attention; he would much rather be left alone. I would keep him in his tub in a very dark quiet place like a closet only bothering him to give a treatment or feed until his health starts to improve. The red bubble is most likely a burn blister that will sluff with time. Most likely it will look worse after a shed instead of better. Good luck to you.

[DVirginiana]

Agreed. Maybe have someone by to take pictures while you feed and give him meds. That way you can keep everyone updated without putting the extra stress of another handling session on him. The antibiotics are going to take some time to kick in; hopefully he will make it long enough for them to help him. That blister looks like something that's going to look worse before it looks better.

Are you sure he isn't drinking? If he isn't showing obvious symptoms of dehydration it's probably safe to assume he's drinking enough, just not while you're around. If he is showing symptoms of dehydration, you can try gently lowering his chin into his water dish. I've had success doing this with several colubrids that were too ill/weak to bother going to the water dish. Don't push it though; if he tries to move away from the water it's his way of saying he doesn't want a drink. Also, idk if you're still soaking, but that's just putting more stress on him. If he's active enough to move around when you're handling him, he's strong enough to go to his water dish

Minimizing stress and keeping him undisturbed until food/med time is top priority here though. I really hope he pulls through. The prior owner should be charged with criminal neglect or something.

[kinley]

I'm trying to keep the stress down as much as possible. All of those current pictures I took when I got him out to feed him this morning. I suppose I could've been more clear with that. As I was preparing the tube, he was being very active and attempting to climb into my hair and occasionally he would 'lick' me when he turned his head. I weighed him as I got him out to feed him tonight. There is no traffic through my bedroom, which he resides in, throughout the day, as I am usually out of the house running errands or working. And I've now just switched his lamp with my other baby's because it has a night bulb in it so at night I can peek over there to see if he's okay without him seeing me.

On the note of the previous owner, I honestly have considered filing a report, but she is a family friend and I can honestly only see it creating drama between our families and creating drama within my family alone. I had a very stern talking with her though and I believe she realizes she has done VERY wrong and I advised her to never put an animal in this situation again. Considering the fact that she sobbed for about 10 minutes saying she was sorry and offered to pitch in a little (trust me, only a little) on the medical 'bills', I think she understands at least some and hopefully she will never own a pet again.

[hungba]

I think she stated that the photoshoots were before the injury/burn whatever it is happened. She only took pics of the wound and the weighing.

[hungba]

Wait a minute, whats this thing about a previous owner? What did they do?

[bcr229]

Wait a minute, whats this thing about a previous owner? What did they do?

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...help-help-help

I wouldn't worry too much about not seeing Howard drink. IIRC tube feeding means the meals are a liquid slurry, so he should stay plenty hydrated.

[kinley]

Wait a minute, whats this thing about a previous owner? What did they do?

The previous owner had this snake and fed him once a month and didn't always refill his water when it was needed and he would go weeks without any. (She says it's because she read that snakes can survive without food for a really long time... I say it's horse crap). When I got him, he was very thin. Although, it did get worse as he started getting red. He supposedly got a bacteria related infection from the bad husbandry of his last home.


Before he started turning red, though, I thought he would be fine if I just fed him better and gave him water. I should've taken him to the vet when I first received him.

[DVirginiana]

Before he started turning red, though, I thought he would be fine if I just fed him better and gave him water. I should've taken him to the vet when I first received him.

You've already gone above and beyond. Taking an animal to the vet when they don't seem sick just stresses them out, so it was an entirely understandable decision. Don't feel bad about that.