Help with rescue

[Lferg]

Ok so more of a "bought out of bondage" than a rescue. Went to get this guy yesterday. Saw it on CL posted as a Burm in an 80gl tank. It was this guy in a 55 and I saw his/her back in the photo and knew what had to be done......

The conditions he was living in was a 55 w/screen top, Carefresh bedding and a large live rat just chilling in the corner. No heat what so ever. When I got there he was soaking in his water and it was room temp in an outdoor "office". His external body temp was a smoking hot 65!!!

He needs to shed something fierce. Skin is super wrinkly but he's also pretty under weight. I have two concerns.
1)What the hell do I do about this insane injury? I was told it was done by a rat about 3 weeks ago. The guy was treating it with vaseline!!!! I've put some topical mild steroid I had left over from a lizard rescue.
2) He's been standing up with his nose against the top of the cage for like 5 hrs straight just swaying back and forth. The light has been off (on for the pic), is it just stress?

[DellaF]

Poor guy. I have no idea how what to do about his injury. I would most likely take him to a vet. I'm sure someone with more experience will chime in. Glad you took him out of that situation.

[RobNJ]

Can you hear wheezing or check it's mouth for bubbling? As for the injury, it was probably caused by a rat that was in with it for a few days. Maybe betadine or a water based triple antibiotic cream would be the way to go. However, I think a vet visit in the very near future is in order.

[Lferg]

No wheezing or anything. I just moved to this area so I have to find an exotic vet. My wife is a vet tech, but the new clinic she is working at is only a furry Dr. I've been googling and called called her last clinic, they suggested the steriod I am using but I just don't know.

[The Serpent Merchant]

I would let him soak in a Betadine bath and make sure that his husbandry is as perfect as possible.

[RobNJ]

I've been googling and called called her last clinic, they suggested the steriod I am using but I just don't know.

Is a steroid going to clean the wound? Best bet is to get it clean and keep it clean. Use a newspaper or paper towel substrate, make sure it's enclosure and everything in it is immaculate. To be honest, other than the wound and maybe being a bit dehydrated or in sort of a perma-stuck shed, it doesn't look that bad. Probably could use a bump in humidity and/or a good soaking, but the tricky part is that moisture is counter productive when it comes to open wounds...do what you can, but I'd definitely get on finding that vet.

[Crazy4Herps]

For now keep the wound clean and dry and find a vet to have a look at it. I'm no vet, but it looks to me like it should heal well. It'll take some time for sure, but it doesn't look infected at all.

The standing / swaying concerns me. Since it doesn't sound like an RI (if he were having that much difficulty breathing you'd see other symptoms), stargazing may be a possibility. The biggest issue with taking in any boa from anyone (particularly rescue situations) is the threat of IBD. I know people who won't even consider bringing home a boa that hasn't been produced and raised by a specific breeder, and even then there are risks. It's tough to diagnose neurological issues, though the best way is blood work (ask a vet?). For now, try flipping him onto his back. Can he right himself? Hold him by the lower 1/3 of his body and let the rest dangle. Can he pull his upper body back up to your hand level? Any difficulty with muscle control, flopping, shaking, or swaying is a good indicator that you may be dealing with some kind of neuro problem. I don't mean to scare you or anything, but let's just say I hope you've quarantined him!

[Vypyrz]

I too recommend betadine baths and an antibiotic ointment such as Bacitracin or Neosporin. Just make sure that it does not have pain killer in it. I also recommend a trip to the vet for a blood test and antibiotics. For a bad wound that has been untreated for 3weeks, I would be more concerned about something like Septicemia setting in...

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[Foschi Exotic Serpents]

No wheezing or anything. I just moved to this area so I have to find an exotic vet. My wife is a vet tech, but the new clinic she is working at is only a furry Dr. I've been googling and called called her last clinic, they suggested the steriod I am using but I just don't know.

It's an open wound so I would NOT use any type of antibiotic ointment. These oil based ointments that you get over the counter will slow the healing process and aggravate it. Your wife is a vet tech so have her bring you home some silver sulfadiazine cream. Make a shallow warm bath in a storage tub with lid and add enough betadine to make a light tea color. Let it soak in this for 10-15 minutes to kill bacteria and dry it out. Keep it on paper towels. Don't give it a water bowl large enough to soak in. Put 2 smaller bowls in the enclosure if humidity is an issue. If its being kept in a screen top enclosure, cover the top to keep in humidity.

The only thing safe for such an open wound is the silver cream. It will kill the bacteria and speed the healing process. That snake also needs a mouth culture and most likely antibiotic injections.

At this point, any vet who has worked with snakes minimally and has done cultures will do. Take it in and get this done so you can start getting it back to health.

Once you have the silver cream you won't need to do the betadine soaks. Put the silver cream on the wound a little daily or every other day as needed.

After a couple weeks of treatment I'd offer a small meal. Start feeding small and offer weekly to give the body a chance to adjust since its obviously starving.

Keep us updated.

[Vypyrz]

It's an open wound so I would NOT use any type of antibiotic ointment. These oil based ointments that you get over the counter will slow the healing process and aggravate it. Your wife is a vet tech so have her bring you home some silver sulfadiazine cream. Make a shallow warm bath in a storage tub with lid and add enough betadine to make a light tea color. Let it soak in this for 10-15 minutes to kill bacteria and dry it out. Keep it on paper towels. Don't give it a water bowl large enough to soak in. Put 2 smaller bowls in the enclosure if humidity is an issue. If its being kept in a screen top enclosure, cover the top to keep in humidity.

The only thing safe for such an open wound is the silver cream. It will kill the bacteria and speed the healing process. That snake also needs a mouth culture and most likely antibiotic injections.

At this point, any vet who has worked with snakes minimally and has done cultures will do. Take it in and get this done so you can start getting it back to health.

Once you have the silver cream you won't need to do the betadine soaks. Put the silver cream on the wound a little daily or every other day as needed.

After a couple weeks of treatment I'd offer a small meal. Start feeding small and offer weekly to give the body a chance to adjust since its obviously starving.

Keep us updated.

That's great advice. I've never had to use the Silver Sulfadiazine cream, so I don't always remember it. I will favorite this post for future reference.

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