How do you know if a snake broke a bone?

[Argentra]

Like other animals, I believe it would be a case by case thing as far as reactions. Some critters handle injury better than others. But I can give you my experience...

My pastel, SunSpot (many threads on his story here on the forum), was suspected to have crushed ribs when I got him from the guy who just handed him to me. In addition to a number of other issues, he had a spot 3/4 down shaped like a Hersheys Kiss. Without xrays we couldn't be sure (and I couldn't afford them at the time), but even Kevin Fitzgerald figured that he had probably been squeezed too hard.

Anyway, it didn't really affect him personality wise except to make him VERY wary of handling. It's taken me years to get him to relax while being held and to stop balling up in fear every time I reach in my hand. Movement wise he seems fine, he just moves his tail as little as possible. When I hold him, I have to support the last 1/4 of his tail or it just hangs limp. The only real big thing that happened to him is the huge kink that developed at the 'Kiss' site and the zigzaging of the last few inches of his tail. If he'll cooperate, I'll try getting some closeup pictures of those to show you.

Hope that gave you some insight.