Rescue snake not eating, overreacting momma?

[Armiyana]

Back in February, I took on a rescue snake with severe burn wounds. It looks like the snake got a really good hold on a heating element inside a cage. The burn was on the belly with 50% of the belly affected and the skin sloughing was down to the muscle underneath. This extended from midbelly to the very tip of the tail.
I'm happy to say that the wounds have healed amazingly well! The snake, tentatively named Zuko, still has a very visible 'limp'. The belly scales on the burned area don't exist anymore. The skin just puckered and scarred over the area while it healed so it's a scarred line and then the sidescales. I was very excited to see the snake finally exploring outside of it's hide for the first time ever in mid April.

Zuko has done so well! I don't know an exact age, but I'm assuming a little over a year. There was a bit of weight on Zuko so I wasn't worried about feeding for a long while. I've had a 6 month hunger strike on my oldest snake, so I know how this goes. I would offer food each week switching between live and fresh kill offers, but there was never interest. A young baby pastel was always happy to have an extra course in her meal. Late April- May however, Zuko did start dropping body mass. It's not to the point where the spine is entirely palpable, but I worry.

Zuko is still a bit shy about the very last 1/5th of the belly/tail area. Because of the open wound and now because of the scarring, I have only been offering smaller prey. I was worried about the stretching of the belly with the open wound if the snake did eat, now I don't know if the scarring would affect how well the snake can eat. If it were an uninjured snake I would be offering large rat pups, but I've been trying hoppers and small adult mice instead.

There's interest in the food and sometimes a couple strikes, but I think once the snake strikes it looses confidence because that's usually where it also looses balance from the scar affecting mobility. Sometimes on a strike it'll kinda flop sideways. I've left the smaller size fresh kill prey in the habitat with Zuko overnight and one time tried a live rat pinky. Another time tried braining. No luck. Just ignores it.
I've done 3 assist feedings in may at week intervals with the smaller prey items hoping to jump start the feeding instinct more. After the first assist, the interest in food did go up. More tongue flicking and posturing, but still not grabbing the meal.

My only real concern is the body mass. I know assist feeding one of these smaller prey items isn't going to help in the long run. Should I just wait it out a bit longer and see? Or should I risk offering a larger prey since the smaller items may just not be what Zuko instinctively wants and I'm just babying the snake because of the scarring?

Thanks ahead of time for any advice guys!

[Bogertophis]

How sad for what this snake has gone thru, and how wonderful that you've been trying to help her. Without seeing her, I agree with you that I'd
probably worry some about the healed area...maybe underlying muscle damage, nerve damage or still some pain?

That's a good sign that the little bit of food you got into her seemed to perk up her appetite. I'm not a fan of "assist" feeding, I prefer* (& have lots of
practice with) tube-feeding a liquid meal (Gerbers chicken baby food, thinned with a little water, reptile vitamins etc added as needed), but either way,
it's much like human hospital patients who get nutrition by way of an I.V.-which of course isn't an option for our snakes. *Done correctly, it's gentler.
When a snake or human or other animal fasts for too long, they get so they don't feel well enough to eat, & if they still don't eat, then they go into a
downward spiral & cannot recover. Her body needs food to repair the damage she suffered. I hope she's ok internally. Did she see a vet? What did
you use on the burned area?

I'd be inclined to keep offering small rodents, 'live' if you must, but only rats or mice with eyes closed so they won't bite. (eyes open, they do bite)
(Well honestly, I'd be tube-feeding her but so many are afraid to try that???) Good luck & do keep us posted. I've worked with rescues but never any
with bad burns like this. Poor snake...

[WhompingWillow]

What does your vet say about prey size and the scarring?

[C.Marie]

I wonder if Repti links be an option? They come in so many sizes and different prey items, sorry I can not be more assistance to you, what a wonderful deed you saved this sweet noodles life, wishing the best for you and your new pal Zuko.

[Armiyana]

Zuko did see a vet. The vet was the reptile specialist in the area that all other vets in the area refer to.
Treatment was:
clean paper bedding
daily soaks and a light scrub of the area to get the necrotizing skin off
very light application of silver sulfadiazine cream
Vet said:
'It will take a very long time to heal with some scarring' at the original visit
'Should do alright, just wait and see' is where we are now

I switched the snake back to coconut fiber bedding two weeks ago as the wounds are all closed and there are no scabs left. Zuko seems much more relaxed and is able to maneuver a bit better on this bedding than on the paper towels. I was hoping maybe that would further jumpstart instincts. But just seeing the snake moving about makes me happy.
The first assist feeding had a bit of fighting, but the other two were a bit easier. I don't press the feeder too far, just enough for the teeth to hook and for instinct to kick in.

I don't know the internal extent of the injuries, but urates were still passed regularly and 3 very small fecals as well. 1 not long after I got the snake in my care and the other 2 after the 2nd and 3rd assist. I take this as at leas a good sign things still work down there.

[Bogertophis]

I'm glad that you've been using "Silvadene" cream (silver sulfadiazine), that's good stuff & what I would expect from the vet (which I'm glad she saw).

Also a good sign that urates & even small amounts of fecal materials are being passed. I think you're doing as well by Zuko as anyone could, but do
get more food into her one way or another. "TLC" can go a long way, I really hope she'll just take food for you but ??? Do keep us posted.

And by the way, my familiarity with Silvadene cream (Rx) is from taking in a chronically starved Argentine boa. Turns out that when a snake is
chronically starved this way, their skin tears easily, like tissue paper or Kleenex, even after they are fed routinely & regain weight. Fortunately
I had no trouble feeding her F/T, but dealing with her torn skin all over her body was a nightmare.

[Armiyana]

I'm glad that you've been using "Silvadene" cream (silver sulfadiazine)...
Turns out that when a snake is chronically starved this way, their skin tears easily, like tissue paper or Kleenex, even after they are fed routinely & regain weight.

I've seen this happen before! It's terrible.
Was a hatchling ball python that just refused to take any food. We were tube feeding the little one, but when it had the next shed, the skin was just so delicate. Like you said, tissue paper. Because of the quality of life, we had the vet euthanized it.
It was impossible to hold the baby for feedings without doing more damage.

[Armiyana]

Also....

Here's a few progress images of Zuko I've taken over the months. I didn't want to just post the images here because the first one especially is tough on some people to see.
https://imgur.com/a/yGR69ib

The bath photo was taken a little over a week ago, so you can see how lanky Zuko has gotten.
I'm still not super concerned.... but I don't want to keep brushing the weight loss off until it is critical.

[Bogertophis]

I've seen this happen before! It's terrible.
Was a hatchling ball python that just refused to take any food. We were tube feeding the little one, but when it had the next shed, the skin was just so delicate. Like you said, tissue paper. Because of the quality of life, we had the vet euthanized it.
It was impossible to hold the baby for feedings without doing more damage.

Terrible is an understatement. The Argie was an adult, about 6-7' long. Healing was slow (she had tears all over her body that I medicated) & her skin would
never be normal...I had her for quite a while, but then turned her over to another experienced keeper in the herp society. I'm sorry you had to see this too.

[Bogertophis]

Also....

Here's a few progress images of Zuko I've taken over the months. I didn't want to just post the images here because the first one especially is tough on some people to see.
https://imgur.com/a/yGR69ib

The bath photo was taken a little over a week ago, so you can see how lanky Zuko has gotten.
I'm still not super concerned.... but I don't want to keep brushing the weight loss off until it is critical.

"Noodle soup"!? Poor little Zuko...horrible burn! I agree, you can't ignore her weight loss...she needs food to heal her body. Good luck!