injured or birth defect?

[rlditmars]

First, grow up, man. Seriously.

I NEVER said it was or wasn't going to be easy, that is why I made it VERY clear that if you can't or have any doubts about your ability to do it yourself efficiently, then you owe it to the animal to have someone who can do it. Just because you don't feel comfortable doing it, doesn't make it alright to resort to cruelty. And yes, I have culled snakes by way of decapitation. It really isn't hard, you just have to use common sense. Restrain the snake, cut. Simple process.

Folks. You are getting way off from the original issue. This should not be the OP's problem nor should we as a community start going after one another. The issue here is the animal's welfare which isn't/hasn't been addressed by either the store nor the person who sent it to them, assuming this was not an injury sustained in shipping. To me the spine looks inverted in two places and kinked severally in a third as well as a swollen area. I have a hard time believing it would have been sent this way but be that as it may, the responsibility lies with the store now. To the OP, If you do not want to take on the responsibility of euthanizing the snake and don't think you can convince the store to do so, then you may want to contact an organization that will see the anima'ls needs are met. If you feel like you can perform euthanasia, then either decapitation or a blow with an instrument such a sa hammer, that would instantly crush the skull and brains would likely be the quickest and most humane options. I am sorry that for your compasion, you find yourself in the middle of this.