help! scale rot? looks terrible!

[greghall]

something like that don't show up overnight?unless its a burn.but im not avet.

[Mindibun]

It's absolutely amazing how many people come on here asking questions and havent even looked at the caresheets yet. If you haven't then I definitely recommend looking it over. If you're keeping her in a glass tank with screen lid (which I'm going to assume) then you need to somehow insulate the glass. It won't keep heat on its own, which is why you're having so much trouble. Most people I know use cork board from a craft store. Put it around three sides of the tank. If you dont like the look of it, you can cover the glass with decorative paper or background, and then place the cork board behind the paper so that you don't even see it.

Also, you need to keep about 3/4ths of the lid covered. Most will do this by wrapping aluminum foil around it and duct taping it down. I have seen others use plastic bags and whatnot. It jsut has to be a material that will not allow heat or humidity to get through.

To get humidity up, you can add a second bowl, or get a wider one. The depth doesn't really matter, but the wider the bowl the more humidity you will have.

Get rid of that bark substrate. It's been known to house all kinds of creepy crawlies and its very difficult to tell when the snake has soiled it. (Take it from someone who has used it before) I use either newspaper or paper towels for my substrates. It makes it obvious when I need to clean. Don't use harsh chemicals when cleaning the enclosure, either. I recommend getting something that is safe for use around humans and animals. Something "green" is usually ok. I use a product called Pet Focus which is antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, anti everything really. See if you can get a hold of that.

I think that was everything. If you have more questions, keep asking.
Good luck with your snake. That looks absolutely horrendous...

[ChicaPiton519]

Vet says that it does appear to be a bacterial infection

How should I effectively clean her tank?
How can I better maintain the temperature (which does not seem to stay high enough without additional heat via lamp) and humidity?
What substrate should I be using? For now I'll just have her on newspaper after I clean the tank.

personally, here is what i did when my BP got hurt like a year and a half ago...
he got stuck and got his belly scales tore up.
the vet gave me shots to give him, and i cleaned him with watered down betadine.
i was told to put him in a rubbermaid, with clean paper towels, and a water dish.

i kept him warm with a human heat pad... but i had it regulated.
and i took temps constantly.
because his scales were damaged, i had to keep him super clean so he wouldnt get scale rot. he never did - so i'd suggest keeping her on paper toweling in a rubbermaid with clean water.
if she dumps the water, clean it out, put fresh paper in, and re-fill her dish.
keep the paper dry.

as for cleaning the tank... take everything out, and use a reptile safe cleaner. i would keep her in a tub for now, because it is easier to keep clean.
course thats my opinion.

[FatBoy]

It's absolutely amazing how many people come on here asking questions and havent even looked at the caresheets yet. If you haven't then I definitely recommend looking it over. If you're keeping her in a glass tank with screen lid (which I'm going to assume) then you need to somehow insulate the glass. It won't keep heat on its own, which is why you're having so much trouble. Most people I know use cork board from a craft store. Put it around three sides of the tank. If you dont like the look of it, you can cover the glass with decorative paper or background, and then place the cork board behind the paper so that you don't even see it.

Also, you need to keep about 3/4ths of the lid covered. Most will do this by wrapping aluminum foil around it and duct taping it down. I have seen others use plastic bags and whatnot. It jsut has to be a material that will not allow heat or humidity to get through.

To get humidity up, you can add a second bowl, or get a wider one. The depth doesn't really matter, but the wider the bowl the more humidity you will have.

Get rid of that bark substrate. It's been known to house all kinds of creepy crawlies and its very difficult to tell when the snake has soiled it. (Take it from someone who has used it before) I use either newspaper or paper towels for my substrates. It makes it obvious when I need to clean. Don't use harsh chemicals when cleaning the enclosure, either. I recommend getting something that is safe for use around humans and animals. Something "green" is usually ok. I use a product called Pet Focus which is antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, anti everything really. See if you can get a hold of that.

I think that was everything. If you have more questions, keep asking.
Good luck with your snake. That looks absolutely horrendous...

Agree 100%. I would add doing cleaning on a regular schedule, once a week. I keep all my balls on newspaper, makes cleaning day easier. I clean with a 10% bleach solution, just have to make sure I dry it good before putting the snake back in. Insulating the tank and covering the top will help with heat and humidity. Would also suggest a tstat. What treatment did the vet use?

[starmom]

Vet says that it does appear to be a bacterial infection

How should I effectively clean her tank?
How can I better maintain the temperature (which does not seem to stay high enough without additional heat via lamp) and humidity?
What substrate should I be using? For now I'll just have her on newspaper after I clean the tank.

Wow. That was a very fast vet appt with the vet very close by. Good job. What did the vet give you for the bacterial infection? Did the vet say that it was a burn? Scale rot?

As everyone else has said, you need a thermostat immediately.

I clean my cages with soap and water and then spray with chlorhexadine. I let the chlorhex sit for a couple of minutes and then wipe down and air dry.

I strongly recommend using a paper substrate for now and cleaning very thoroughly so that there is never any wetness from urine, urates, poo, or water dish spillage. Again, a thermostat is a must. Reptile Basics sells them and you can expedite shipping.

I would really love to know what the vet prescribed for your snake's infection

[kellysballs]

Good Job on finding a vet open late. You are very lucky our 2 emergency clinics do not see reptiles. Until your snake heals I would use papertowels as your substrate and throw the zoo med heat pad in the garbage or get a something to regulate it. (I know it's not a burn but those thing get ridiculus hot)

I use Shaklee Basic-G® Concentrated Germicide or 1.1 h20 & chlorahexi solution to disinfect and I use hot water and blue dawn to wash my tubs.

http://www.shaklee.net/cherylschell/product/BasicG

This a website you can use to buy the Basic-G.

Good Luck

[MDB]

[butters!]

wow,next time give a graphic warning.im nausiated

[MDB]

wow,next time give a graphic warning.im nausiated

I feel you on that one, that is beyond horrible.

[IRIEdub]

Well, i've got her home now, in a temporary tub (on newspaper with a hide in there) while I clean out her tank.
The doc said it did seem to be an infection, but wasn't very clear, and didn't seem totally certain.
Then again, I was pretty certain that it wasn't a burn because I keep a good monitor on the temperatures.

I came home with a tub of "Malaseb Pledgets" from the vet, which are Rayon/Polyester tabs with Miconazole (17.4mg) and Chlorhexidine Cluconate (20mg) and Alcohol.
The vet recommended that I clean her underbody with the tabs; as I was doing so, I noted that the skin did look more burned than infected at some points. The doc recommended I use Neosporin to treat the area, which my Dad (who doesn't like snakes) applied as I held her belly-up. She was surprisingly very calm, and kind of just watched as he did it, even though her body would squirm slightly at the touch and she was obviously uncomfortable. She didn't try to wrestle her way free though

I also cleaned out the tank, and as I was doing so, I realized that underneath the substrate, directly over the UTH, the temperature was definitely hot to the touch! I put my thermometer sensor directly on that spot, and wouldn't you know, the temp shortly rose above 120°F!
I'm thinking this is a burn now, and I will check back with the vet when I can. It was an expensive trip though, but I've definitely built a bond with Irie that I don't want to lose.