Help rescue help

[Drake Moonslayer]

I rescued 2 ball pytons from a bad situation. One is bigger and is looking good aside from being underfed. I am feeding him to get him up to the proper weight. The smaller BP has very loose skin and a nasty looking cut on its side and I am not sure what to do to help this one. I am thinking the loose skin is just from lack of food as well but it feels really weird. Pics will follow. They are both in quarantine from the rest of the collection. Please help.

[Drake Moonslayer]

[dr del]

It actually looks as though the skin has been pulled free from the underlying flesh by whatever caused the cut doesn't it?

[Drake Moonslayer]

I have never seen anything like this and am not sure what to do to help this snake. Any advice would be appriciated. I currently have the snake in a 15qt tub on damp papertowels. It looks and feels like the snake was dehydrated. The previous owners had the snakes in dirty screentop cages in their garage in FL. They were feeding the larger snake 1 small rat per month and the smaller snake 1 or 2 mouse hoppers every 2 weeks. When I got them I fed a prekilled small rat to the larger one and a hopper mouse to the little one. Both were taken right away by the snake and I sit with the snake untill the any live mice or rats are dead to make sure they do not attack the snake.

[distaff]

The injury looks both chewed and pulled. Who knows.
Maybe it got caught on some sticky tape.
Aside from getting them healthy again, you can't fix the past.

I'm so glad they have a better home.

[bcr229]

You're doing the right thing so far with the smaller one by keeping him on paper towels. I would use Vetericyn on the smaller one's wound, you can get it at Petco or Amazon. In the meantime Neosporin without painkiller will be ok on it. Since Vetericyn is a water-based gel rather than a petroleum-based ointment it doesn't cause scale damage over time like the Neosporin can, and that wound will need to be treated for quite a while.

I would also offer him multiple smaller feeders rather than one big one to keep the skin from stretching and re-breaking while it heals. When he sheds don't be surprised if that area bleeds a bit when the scab comes off, just continue treating it. Obviously whenever he makes a mess his tub will need to be completely cleaned and sterilized.

Don't try to get weight back onto the larger one too fast, if he's offered an appropriate-sized feeder weekly he should be fine.

For both, if they take f/t or pre-killed offer the feeder wet or at least damp, as taking in the extra water will help them to rehydrate.

[DVirginiana]

Don't really have anything to add as far as how to treat the wound and get them back in good shape goes, but good on you for taking them in. I hope that wound heals up for you without too much trouble. First thing I thought when I saw it was it looks like something like a piece of stray wire or sharp edge on something kind of dug in and pulled away fishing-hook style.