Is this a vet visit?

[Dracoluna]

Alright, went into the snake room to feed Ceti tonight and I had the fan on. It must have blown the rat scent into her cage. She struck the side hard twice in a row before retreating back into her hide. She only strikes at feeding time but she's never hit the side of her tub like that. When I began feeding her, I thought that her jaw was just a little out of alignment (has happened with my corns if they strike the side of the cage) but on closer inspection while she was eating, I noticed she seemed to have broken the scales on her upper jaw where she hit. She took longer than normal to eat but while watching her, I didn't see any blood (other than the rats) and she took the second rat without hesitation. This is as close a pic as I could get from her. She doesn't like being handled right after eating so I didn't want to stress her out further. You can see where the damage is below the second and third holes on the right side. It wasn't pushed back far enough that she's biting her own lip but instead of resting over the lower jaw properly, it's lined up one right over the other. Has anyone had this issue and does anyone think it deserves a trip to the vet? Since she wasn't bleeding and kept eating, I'm not going to panic too quickly but I've been lucky and never had a snake that hurt itself until tonight. Please let me know what you think would be the best way to deal with this whether it's vet or let her shed and see how it goes. Thanks.

[The Serpent Merchant]

A vet visit is not necessary at this point, just keep an eye on it and it should clear up on its own.

Whatever you do, do not apply Neosporin or Hydrogen Peroxide. Both of these will do more harm than good. you can use Betadine to disinfect the wound if you feel that it is necessary to prevent infection. (From the looks of it I wouldn't be worried)

[kitedemon]

I would suggest a silver sulfadiazine but to be honest I would suggest a vet visit and an xray, just to be sure there is no damage to bones or under structure of the jaw.

[Dracoluna]

That's what I was thinking and I know better than to put anything on it (2 years of vet school) but it's nice to hear it from someone else. Thanks and we'll see how it looks in the morning. By the way, can ball's more easily damage themselves like this? I've had corns that strike repeatedly hitting the side and never had any issues. Granted, normally I don't have the fan on during feeding time to keep from stirring up the scent to prevent things like this but it bothers me that she was so easily hurt.

[rebelrachel13]

This looks like it will heal seamlessly within a few days. It looks like the only damage is to the scales. Snake faces are very flexible and withstand a lot of twisting and wounds from feeding. I can't tell from that picture whether there's any swelling or not. All I see is a slightly-lopsided (and adorable) snake face, with a single damaged scale. Especially since there was no blood and the snake ate right after, I don't think this is much cause for concern.

My snakes hit the tubs every once in a while, too. I'm never sure whether to be amused or to feel bad for them!

[kitedemon]

A while back we rescued a ball that had a broken jaw it had healed badly. Sadly that animal had healed poorly and was unable to eat properly she was put down. I don't think it likely that there is a broken bone but better safe than sorry.

[Dracoluna]

A while back we rescued a ball that had a broken jaw it had healed badly. Sadly that animal had healed poorly and was unable to eat properly she was put down. I don't think it likely that there is a broken bone but better safe than sorry.

I can fully understand that and if it's the least bit swollen in the morning, I'll call my vet and get her in. Just was very shocked that she managed to hurt herself so easily and wasn't sure about the underlying bone structure. I've been looking at xrays to see the possibility of it being fractured and the bone does look rather thin in that area so I'm going to keep a close eye on it. She gets checked multiple times a day so if anything changes, I'll catch it quickly.

[fatSNAKEs]

I've had similar incidents over the past several years, typically an over-eager animal during feeding getting "dazed" missing it's prey. As others indicate, he/she will bounce back in a matter of days, Pythons are incredibly resilient. Your call, but would strong suggest save your $$$, vet visit is a complete waste. Either way, best of luck and hope things work out ...

[kitedemon]

Dracoluna your experience is deeper than my own I am not an expert and relay on real experts to make a call. there is an injury and I nor would any vet I know make a call on photos alone. It is likely nothing, but I am not there and with out looking and touching I have no way of knowing. I agree that if there is not swelling tomorrow or the next day there is likely nothing serious.

[Dracoluna]

Well, good news on Ceti this morning. It's not swollen and the scales have actually gone mostly back into place. The only thing I can see is one line on the most damaged one where it looks like it 'cracked' the scale. I did get her to open her mouth for me a little to make sure it wasn't swelling at all and everything inside looks good. Still going to keep an eye on it but for now, it looks like she didn't do any major damage. Thanks for all the advice. I really do appreciate it.