Need some help

[marchlevi]

I just fed my albino a large mouse and I checked on him to make sure it was going down okay. Then I noticed a rather large abscess looking knot on his neck. Im fairly certain that it was not there when I went to feed him ( he only eats live by the way). So my question is could this be a bite or scratch from the mouse or something entirely different? I'll post some pics as soon as I figure out how.

[marchlevi]

[IMG][/IMG]

[marchlevi]

[marchlevi]

[dr del]

I would keep an eye on it to see if the swelling goes down over a couple of days.

[PitOnTheProwl]

Yeah That doesn't really look like a scratch or bite to me.

[marchlevi]

I didn't think it did either but I don't know what else it could be. I tried to feel it last night but he wasn't wanting me to touch that close to his head.

[Crowfingers]

Looks like there might me some infection brewing under the skin...I'm not too familiar with snake injuries, but cats will form huge abscesses from a tiny claw puncture or even insect bites. The area all around swells up and fills with pus, once you shave away the fur, their is usually a tiny scab about the size a vaccine needle would make and the skin is very red around it. But i don't know if reptile abscesses form the same way, I've only ever seem already ruptured ones or shell abscess in hit-by-car turtles. If it continues to swell or starts to get redder, I'd call a vet. If it is an abscess then having it sterilely lanced will cause less damage in the long run than waiting for it to rupture.

[marchlevi]

I just checked on him again today and it seems to have went down dramatically. Still a slight knot but it's not nearly as big as it was.