Scale Rot? Something else? Ew! Help!

[SerpentLust]

Ok I went to handle my Mexican Black King and noticed a little brown mark on him. I didn't think much of it, so I sat down and took a closer look just to make sure. And at closer inspection it's nasty. With the picture I took it almost looks like an old shed, but I just need you guys to trust me on this, he has had nothing but perfect sheds in my care and I always inspect him afterwards to make sure nothing WAS retained.

This mark seemingly doesn't cause him pain as I did touch it and have that part of him soaked in warm water for a bit to see if I could easily remove any of it. I couldn't.

Here's a pictures. What the HELL is it???

Worried little snake mommy,
Jenn

http://img1.photobucket.com/albums/0903/SerpentLust/PIC00001.jpg

[SerpentLust]

By the way, the picture doesn't show it, but there's also brown scab-like material under and between those two affected scales. Please help.

[YummyCdnMale]

Jenn that can be a number of things. Can be a bad shed but i doubt it, You say she is sensitive to the touch, I think but i am not holding the snake so that's all i can do, looks like a little infection that could have been causes by a tic bite, or can also be a slight burn caused by a heating device... this may sound unusual but i would put i tiny bit of polysporin on the area see if it clears up. In any case if it don't work and starts to spread well then it is obvious there's an infection going on and should seek a vet. I found an emerald tree boa in the everglades once when i was there for 3 months had no way of treating her cut on the back of her neck caused by i don't know what it was 4 inch long and deep as well as wide 6 weeks of the polysporin cleared the cut up and prevented an infection unfortunatly i could'nt bring her home with me but to say the least the polysporin worked amazingly!!!

[Simon Sansom]

Hi Jenn,

First, a disclaimer: I'm not a vet, but I do have a little bit of experience with herps.

Just a possibility...
I've seen something similar years ago in a Jamaican Boa...
If the scale, or scales, are slightly raised and it looks as though there's a fluid-filled blister underneath, it could be "Necrotizing Dermatitis" or "Blister Disease". I was upset when I realized what this was, as it's traditionally associated with damp, dirty conditions, and my animals are kept neither damp nor dirty. But after a bit of research, it seems that it can attack animals kept in dry and sanitary conditions as well, si didn't feel quite so bad, lol!

Betadine ointment applied topically and daily baths in diluted betadine cleared it up in no time (about a week), for me. Assuming that's what it is, Blister Disease is contagious, so keep the affected animal away from any others, and wash your hands scrupulously after handling the snake.

I hope that this is of some help to you.

Simon R. Sansom

[gonesnakee]

Looks like a small wound of some sort, but doesn't look infected. Simon's post looks good & other then an infection setting in I don't think it looks too major. If you fed live I would say a possible bite (I assumming that you probably don't) or sometimes they get little wounds from falling off their climbs etc. but who knows for sure. Monitor it & keep things clean. Watch the next shed too as sometimes when the old skin comes off it will "open up" little wounds again making it possible for a secondary infedtion. Betadine & polysporin will work wonders & keep simple little wounds "simple". Good Luck Mark
P.S. Thought I'd mention that being a King & probably an aggressive feeder there is a good chance that it bit itself while feeding also. I've had a few CKs that would do this quite often. One female was so stupid I'd have to monitor her. I caught her with her jaw "unlocked" starting on her own tail once & she wounded herself repeatedly by biting herself by mistake while coiling prey. She was fine with male breeeders though, but would bite herself. Not too swift LOL

[Ace]

I've had this same thing on Mex. Black. I checked her shed REAL close and found a spot missing from it in the same area. It appears for some reason the scale didin't seperate right with the rest of the shed and was retained. Even though the rest looks like a full complete shed, on closer inspection, it was missing this scale. I raised her humidity for her next shed and it went away.

[SerpentLust]

Thanks guys. I did another warm water rub and it actually took two bad layers of shed off and there was still the brown scabby stuff, so I put on some Polysporin and I'm just going to wait for the next shed with the humidity raised, hopefully it'll go away. :)

Thanks for all the advice

[Simon Sansom]

Jenn,
I'd tend to keep the snake dry, actually, until the next shed. Infections can be made worse or prolonged by being kept too damp. Just keep applying your topical anti-biotic and keep a close eye on it.

Good luck and let us know how it goes...

Simon R. Sansom

[SerpentLust]

Simon: I didn't soak him. I just took warm water on a Q-Tip and rubbed the affected area lightly to make sure there wasn't any old shed on there.