Scale Rot?

[Cathelest]

Hello, today, i put my coastal carpet out into the sun for about 4 hrs, afterwoods noticed a red tinge on hes underbelly, the python has been farely mistreated by me,

i have him in a small plastic container, about 40cm wide, 30cm tall, 1mtr long, and i regularly have him out, and change the towl in the box, also as i havent put a heat lamp all in hes box, he ate on the 19th of june, and ever since been to cold to eat, i found the feaces on the 29th of july, i constantly offer him mice, rats and water, he drinks every few days, and only today, 26th of Aughast has taken a mouse, im in the process of having a custom enclosure made, which will be quite large, i have the heat lamp, and UV lamp, but as i stated, i cannot use them in a plastic box,

i do give him 2 warm waterbottles, wrapped in towls, which i place in the box, i have towls in the bottom aswell,

i do notice condensation in the box,

im more then happy to take photo's of the underbelly if u guys would like to look at theme, please help me get rid of this redness, (its just a red tinge, and doesnt look blistered at all)

im tryen to get a tank for it ASAP so i can setup the heat lamp, but i beleive this redness can turn bad quickly, and require help to get him better please,

[hooter]

waterbottles?

[mark129er]

don't bother taking any pictures, if you want to save that snake give it to someone who will look after it.

[Kimo]

woah now, dont jump to conclusions there Mark129er, i don't know if you noticed, but the individual said he owns a Coastal carpet...and after noticing where he's from wich is Sydney Australia, wich also happens to be where these snakes are native to (if i'm not mistaken) i don't think he needs much in the ways of temps, and humidity as australia should be providing this naturally, Pics would prolly most likely help others identify the problem, as i myself don't know to to much about these snakes!

Best Of Luck!

Josh

[marisa]

I do not own Coastal carpets, Jungles or any other type of carpet. But I believe your problem is one ANY species would have in this situation.

Warm water bottles will do nothing. And I also do not think Carpets get anything beneficial from UV lights so I am not sure why you would leave him in the sun for so long. If I am wrong about UV someone please correct me, but it just doesn't make sense to leave a snake outside for that long.

Set it up in a proper enclosure ASAP!!! Check your temps with a digital thermometer. Your snake must have the proper heating gradient and means to digest or else, yes, he won't eat.

Marisa

[Ryan and Katie]

It sounds like your jungle may just be going into shed.

[mark129er]

"the python has been farely mistreated by me"

jumping the gun?

[Kimo]

yeah jumping the gun, lets keep this individual as a herp keeper, and teach him, not tell him to get rid of it, because it's the only responce you seem capable of making. teach, don't punish! thats what these forums are for, not for you to pass judgment.

Josh

[ranmasatome]

Kudos to Kimo!!:):)

[JonD]

Josh,
Regardless of whether the snakes origin is from similar habitat, once a person keeps it as a pet, it is not kept in the ideal conditions to just be in a container. Proper care is something that should be given regardless of location. Either in North America or Australia, the snake still has specific needs.

[HeatherRose]

Exactly. Just because I live in Eastern Canada doesn't mean I can go out and grab a gartersnake and have it live in my room in a small container. It's like people not giving snakes a hotspot because it's 'hot enough where they live'.

If he's cold, he might have trouble digesting the mouse he took properly...(I don't know anything about carpets, unfortunately :p but I expect this holds true to all snakes) Giving it a hot spot using something other than waterbottles would probably be your first priority, even though it's in a temporary enclosure right now. Hopefully the permanent enclosure will be completed soon :)

Good luck :)
Heather

[Kimo]

thankyou for that information JonD, like i said i know nothing about these snakes, was juts sort of assuming that the ambient temps would be fairly similar, thankyou for the correction!

Josh

[Cathelest]

well, last night, i fully washed hes container, to ensure no urine or any acidy or salty form could be harming him, i did not put a towl, but instead newspaper on advice of others, thismorning it looks like its almost completly gone, and hes somewhat returned to the pale yellow he was prevously, it is very cool here currently, with temps shifting for around 25*c days, to 8*c nights,

Im trying to find a 3foot tank to keep him in temporarily until the cabnetmaker completes my Enclosure,

Aparently carpet pythons need to kept around 30*c, and i know now that waterbottles dont do anythen for him, except create condensation in hes box, coastals also should have a MAXIMUM of 4hrs of UV a day, set on a timer to operate from around 2pm - 6pm the only reason i had him in the sun, was so he could warm up, and digest the food that was in him for a month, aparenly in normal 30*c conditions, they eat a medium size rat about once a week,

the belly is still abit discoloured in places, but iv been told that it should return to its normal colour over a few days,

I also have a few dumb questions that need answering,

Do pythons urinate?

Can pythons get sun burnt?

Thanks heaps ppl,

Can pythons somewhat blend in to their habbitate, by changing their colours?

i realise these questions seem dumb, but my father has asked them of me, and i dont know for sure,

P.S

I dont wish to get rid of my python, especially after i only baught it 2 months ago, and its cost me soo much already, and iv become quite attached to it, but as i know, if it has problems, which i cannot treat, i will surrender the python to someone who can, i am afterall trying to have the pythons best interests at heart.

[Jeff_Favelle]

Carpet Pythons DO NOT need to be kept around 30*C. They need access to a spot of 30-32*C, but JUST AS IMPOTANTLY, they need access to a spot of 24-26*C. Snakes don't like constant temperatures. There's a MILLION care sheets on carpets out there. I think you should read a couple, and then come back and ask plenty of more questions.

[BOAS_N_PYTHONS]

JEFF:

Another google search recommended...............lol.

Joking.

Cya...

Tony

[Cathelest]

I did infact know that, but what i ment is that yes they need a area which is around 30*c, so they can regulate their heat, they will move closer or further away dependingly,

[jjnnbns]

READ THIS (http://www.acreptiles.com/carpet_python_care.htm)

It's one of the best caresheets out there on the care of carpets...

[Cathelest]

Thats a great guide, can someone explain to me about how to regulate the humidity however, like what i shal do when its too high, or low,

Also, im glad to say that the tinge has almost completely gone, its visible very faintly, and im sure it will dissapear completly by tommorow,

Also one thing, when i baught my python, i also on advice from the seller baught a 150watt heat lamp & thermostat, and a UV lamp, which should be on a timer, set to be on for 4hrs max a day, between 2pm - 6pm ruffly, i dont entirely trust these people, iv been told that UV lamps arnt neccessary, is this true?

thanks

Cathelest

[Cathelest]

hey guys, today, iv noticed my pythons eyes have gone from a dark color to a blue milky colour, wats that mean?? should i be concerned, do i need to treat this, or take him to a vet, i rang the vet and she said hes prolly shedding, and the red underbelly was prolly due to the hot sun i had him in, aswell as him being fed yesterday after quite awhile,

[dave68]

Yes, it is due to shedding and completely normal, the eyes will go back to the normal color, and your snake should shed soon afterwards, provided the humitity is good...Good Luck.....Allison

[Cathelest]

ok, how do i ensure the humidity is right, and does he need anything, like a sharp rock or back or anythen, as i once herd they do,

please explain what the humidity should be, and how to higher or lower it, thanks

[JonD]

To raise humidity just get a spray bottle, fill it with water and you're good to go. Usually a good spray once or twice a day is fine. To lower humidity, spray less often. There are digital gauges available in almost any "hardware type store" that measure temperature and humidity..They are usually pretty cheap and fairly accurate. I don't use rocks to aid in shedding but it doesn't hurt. Just make sure it isn't sharp though, might cause more harm than good.

Good Luck;)

[Jeff_Favelle]

Yeah, spraying once or twice a week is just fine. If you live in Aussie though, you should be ok. Unless you use lights for heat or your house is really really dry (air conditioning). Carpets aren't too finicky about humidity. I'd just spray moderately when your snakes are in a shed, and you'll be just fine.

[Cathelest]

imagine this, large plastic box, with newspaper in the bottom,

u guys say not to put anythen sharp in the tank, just make sure i spray every few days,

i have a temp/hydro monitor, what should i spray, him or the enclosure, and what should the humidity be??

[Jeff_Favelle]

40-60% seems to work. You don't really want condensation on the sides for very long. Maybe 2-3 hours after spraying it should be cleared up. I don't think it matters if you spray the left wall, the back wall, the snake, the branch, the entire cage, whatever. Just spray what you want. But Carpets don't really like being sprayed, so I don't do it. I like them, so I try not to do things they don't like.

[Cathelest]

Temperature Current = 23.6*c
Temperature Hight = 29.8*c
Temperature Low = 22.7*c

Humidity Current = 61%
Humidity High= 61%
Humidity Low= 49%

and thats without any heating, or spraying,

thats the readings from my thermo-hydro guage,

By the look of it it kinda covers it, but obviosly there needs stability which im worken on now,

[ssscales]

What would you normally do if the snake does have some scale rot? How would you know it is scale rot in the first place?

I've read on other threads rubbing certain lotions are good for this. Also, if the snake shed a few days ago and it was a poor shed (broken up) would the snake go into shed again a few weeks latter to heal itself from the damage?

[Cathelest]

well i never did get a strait answer, but aparently it will become very red on their underbelly, and smell really strange, you should get bedadine and smother their underbelly, you must hold the python until it dries, should take around 10 mins, check the enclosure humidity is around 40 - 60%, any more you must vent the enclosre, and less you need to spray around in there, but dont spray the python, (spray the back, sides ect,) preferrable not where the python will slyther,

also try and replace the flooring, or clean it, for example, if u got newspapper, replace it, if its plastic, wash and dry it,

if it further continus, blisters will appear, in which case you should immediatly take the python/snake to a vet.


Please note that scale and dry rot are apparently very rare, and are apparently caused by filphy enclosures, and water sources,

Even with filphy enclosures and water sources, its still rare for them to get rot,

in my python, hes underbelly went a vibrant pink/red colour for a few days, which had me very concerned, but has since changed back to its normal tan colour, my python has just entered its shed cycle, and was also just fed prior to me noticing the strange colour tones,

these factors could have led to the colourations,

DO-NOT quote me on this, and DO seek further opinions, i am NOT a expert, these are just my findings so far, relevant to my conditions, if i am wrong, please correct me.

Thanks
Cathelest

[ssscales]

The underbelly is normal, all the snakes are kept in super clean enclosures. Temps and humidity are correct, I have 4 - JCP's and only this one has this trouble. I've had her for over a year now, and has always shed whole. She shed 2-3 weeks ago and it was all broken up, her skin is very dull and some of her scales seem to have blisters underneath causing them to lift up.

It may be dry rot, she spent a lot of time in her water tub. I instantly thought mites may be the cause, but I use reptile relief periodically and have never really had a problem with mites.