Growing mass in snake..abscess?

[Skits]

So not sure if anyone ever followed my previous posts about the two carpet pythons I rescued. Basically, some history in case it hints to what is wrong with Glitch, one of the pythons...

First day - Bathed to remove all the stuck shed. Most of it came off but some bits were still stuck. Boosted humidity and let him be. Most came off so I left the small bits to come off with the next shed.

Month later - Shed again, but lots of pieces were stuck. Bathed him again and helped him get the shed off carefully (loose pieces only). Discovered he had bites/burns underneath that that didn't heal properly before. Treated them with polysporin and they healed quite nicely.

2-3 weeks after that - Noticed some signs of scale rot in the other carpet python (Zombie) and noticed weird scales on Glitch so treated them both with iodine soaks and aloe vera. They both healed up nicely. Looking back at pictures, I don't know how I didn't notice the lump and I'm kicking myself now that I hadn't.

Last week - Noticed a slight lump in Glitch, decided to see if it'd pass.

Yesterday - Noticed the lump swell up quite a lot. He's still fine and doesn't seem affected in anyway.

--

More info - The lump is not too hard, not too soft..it basically feels like a muscle and flexes along with the snake.

I have a vet appointment Friday. Going to call them tomorrow.

The lump a few weeks back, I didn't notice it at all. It looks bigger in the picture than it was.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/t1.0-9/1959707_10152139397959471_772931194_n.jpg

Yesterday. It hasn't grown since.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc1/v/t1.0-9/10013212_10152230373104471_5593300112273079483_n.j pg?oh=0ff6320663b8fb95d670ac1b5d81d952&oe=53E2A62C&__gda__=1406423698_7c96ca16c0d7253d6d00502386d18fb c

Any ideas what it could be? It's more at the base of the snake so I'm ruling out parasites for now even though I know it's still possible. I thought an abscess formed from an infection from the bites? I'll keep updated once I get him to the vet.

[Terranaut]

Thats not good. Can you post a pic of the entire snake so we can see exactly where this is situated?

[Starbuck]

++1 to terra, we need to get a better idea of where this is on the snake.

Reptile abscesses can be tricky, because the abscess itself can form well after the apparent injury has healed up. It is good that you caught it early, because treatment can be much easier than in chronic abscesses, which like to recur, and then recur again, and then again :P

Someone else just posted about a brb??? that had an abscess and they caught it right away, it looks like it fixed itself with just antibiotics. I am taking my snake in today to have a chronic abscess surgically removed from a burn she got before i had her :P

The vet will likely do a needle aspirate to determine if it is indeed an abscess, possibly a culture (which can be expensive, but i would recommend it as they can have some strange bacteria in there) to determine which antibiotics will work best, radiographs to determine if any bone or internal organs are involved, and may recommend lancing and draining (depending on location of the abscess).

Other things it could be: cardiomegaly due to unknown causes, tumor, cystic ovary, go inflammation...?

GLAD TO SEE YOU ARE TAKING HER INTO A VET!! I hope they are able to get such a beautiful snake back into shape!

[Starbuck]

also bring these pictures in with you so you can show them the progression of the lesion.

[shaunyboy]

after an ultrasound or a few other tests,the vet should be able to tell you whats what

please let us know how it goes at the vets mate


cheers shaun

[Will0W783]

Poor Glitch, that does not look good. I noticed on your first picture there is a raw area behind the lump where the scales are rubbed off...perhaps it is an infection resulting from that wound?

Snakes unfortunately do not tend to "act sick" like mammals do...in most cases the snake is very ill before you'll notice any changes in behavior at all. Has he been taking meals? I would think he would not be able to eat with that large of a lump in his body.

I am concerned about the rapid growth of this lesion; it looks reminiscent of a large ETB I had several years ago that went off feed. Within a few weeks, I noticed a swelling mid-body. I thought perhaps she was ovulating, as she had been in with my male. However, the swelling remained and grew larger over the next week or two. Two weeks after I noticed the swelling I took her in to my vet for x-rays. He thought it was an abscess and we scheduled surgery to remove it. When she was opened up during the operation, it turned out to be cancer that had eaten away her stomach and most of the large intestine. The rapid sudden swellling came from the dead tissue by-products building up inside her along with the tumor growth. Euthanasia was our only option.

I am hoping that your snake might only have an abscess that can be drained, but reptile pus is not soft and liquid like ours. It is a hard, waxy substance so abscess are normally pretty solid-feeling. Good luck, and please keep us posted. Get your snake to a vet ASAP!

[Sharlynn93]

i will add that my colombian rainbow cleared up after antibiotics (i had to halt the 1st round due to shed and aggression, they were oral) but is still clear after round 2...this bulge does look bigger and could be something totally different...keeping you in my thoughts!

[Skits]

Thanks all for the informative replies. I'll have a culture done and some scans and definitely find out what this is. I'm really hoping it isn't a tumor. I called two vets now, one with who I made an appointment with for 11am tomorrow morning and another who is going to call me back and let me know if I can get in tonight. Hopefully I'll also get some antibiotics.

Here's a bit of an older picture but you can see where the lump was starting near my foot.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1.0-9/10013906_10152201609564471_1668412737_n.jpg

[pdomensis]

Really hope things work out for you tomorrow. Gorgeous snake.

[Starbuck]

based on location is based on location i would say it probably isn't a cardio issue which is good.

Do you have the snake definitively sexed? If it is a female it could still be a cystic ovary though it looks a little far down in the body, though with the history of the bite wounds i am leaning toward abscess... which are treatable! good luck tomorrow!

[Terranaut]

If it was bulging where the bite wounds are or what I mean is only on that side I would think an abscess from the wound but considering where it is and how even it is I would have to guess some sort of intestinal issue possibly impaction. This would be good. A edema would fix it. If the snake had poor husbandry before and very cool temps it would fit the situation. It could also be a kidney issue. That would be bad and I will leave it at that. I would go to the vet prepared to euthanize if you must and just hope it is a treatable issue.
I hope it works out well. There are a 1000 things that could be, this is just my guess from a picture so I could be way off.
Good luck.

[Skits]

Really hope things work out for you tomorrow. Gorgeous snake.

Thank you!

based on location is based on location i would say it probably isn't a cardio issue which is good.

Do you have the snake definitively sexed? If it is a female it could still be a cystic ovary though it looks a little far down in the body, though with the history of the bite wounds i am leaning toward abscess... which are treatable! good luck tomorrow!

Any idea why it would have happened if it was a cardio issue? No he isn't sexed, the reason I thought he was a he is because while we were bathing him one day, he flipped oddly and popped himself and I thought I seen a hemipenes but my boyfriend says it looked a lot more like a females parts. Thank you, though!

If it was bulging where the bite wounds are or what I mean is only on that side I would think an abscess from the wound but considering where it is and how even it is I would have to guess some sort of intestinal issue possibly impaction. This would be good. A edema would fix it. If the snake had poor husbandry before and very cool temps it would fit the situation. It could also be a kidney issue. That would be bad and I will leave it at that. I would go to the vet prepared to euthanize if you must and just hope it is a treatable issue.
I hope it works out well. There are a 1000 things that could be, this is just my guess from a picture so I could be way off.
Good luck.

I thought of impaction as my first thought so I was bathing him in warm water daily hoping it would pass but it hasn't. I remember he was in maybe a 55-70 gallon tank with what looked like aspen bedding and I don't even remember if he even had a water bowl..he had a heat lamp but I'm not sure the bulb or even temps. I'll definitely keep an open mind to whatever it could be, hopefully it in't a kidney issue.

[Starbuck]

Any idea why it would have happened if it was a cardio issue? No he isn't sexed, the reason I thought he was a he is because while we were bathing him one day, he flipped oddly and popped himself and I thought I seen a hemipenes but my boyfriend says it looked a lot more like a females parts. Thank you, though!


cardio i would expect labored breathing, fatigue, and for the swelling to be located about 1/3 down the body. he also could be reluctant to eat, or regurge shortly after swallowing. it also depends on the reason behind the cardiac swelling.

Its going to be hard to pin point the true cause without some diagnostics (x ray, ultrasound, etc). Hope the vet goes well.

[Skits]

So my appointment was supposed to be today but I had no way of getting there (half hour away by car) so I called to see if they're available tomorrow and they won't be until Monday. Called several other vets and they're not there on weekends..I called another last resort and their radiography machines are broken until Tuesday! :mad: There's only one vet who's available but they don't seem like they know exotics so I won't trust them. So until Monday it is.. :hmm: If it gets worse in any way, I'll go to an emergency vet..

[Theweinz]

Why even make the appointment if the ability to get there was in question? Hope all turns out well

[Skits]

I had a plan to get there but it backfired last minute and I wasn't able to borrow the car that I was supposed to.

[Derek Roddy]

That looks like some sort of kidney or liver tumor. If it's growing in size that rapidly...it's most likely a tumor.



Good luck with it. Sucks having issues with animals.....they can't talk...makes it tough to handle because of the guessing games.

D

[Skits]

If it is a tumor, does anyone know what the success rate of a surgery would be? Is it worth putting a snake through that?

[Starbuck]

It really depends on how involved the tumor is with the tissue, and whether you have a vet willing to preform the surgery (who os knowledgeable enough and confident enough to). I beleive quite a lot of the blood supply passes through the kidneys in snakes. They can however survive with a single kidney.
idk much about the liver.

Tbh im not thinking tumor, due to how bilateral the swelling is and how complete the margins seem. If it were a mass of the kidney or liver I might expect it to appear longer and more diffuse, however the only way to tell would be a needle aspirated and cytology. Im still suspecting an abscess, but we cant know until you can get to a vet.