scale rot (new member)

[jimbousmc]

ok i have had my ball python jade for about six months, she has developed what i fear is skin rot i originally thought was a pad burn. but i now believe i am wrong i contacted her vet about a week ago and they told me to put some neosporin on it and watch her well by the end of the week i got her an appt as early as possible. which is wed. i have also takin the substrate out and put down a reptile carpet. i need help i hold all the time and she is so uncomfortable that she is hissing at me which she has never done. so my questions are along with what the vet will reccomend tomorrow what is the best way to get her better.

[Aaron_S]

First snakes shouldn't develop scale rot. It's due to you not keeping the cage clean enough or too humid for the ball python. Don't use reptile carpeting. It's fairly course and it make irritate the belly. I'd go with paper towel. Keep it DRY. Do not handle the snake and some basic neosporin applied daily should help. After the next shed it should hopefully start clearing up.

[Chu'Wuti]

ave also takin the substrate out and put down a reptile carpet. oww oww oww . . . even I am cringing. Glad you explained, Aaron.

Jim, what substrate were you using? What humidity have you been maintaining?

Humidity should be about 60% overall; you can keep some damp (wrung out) sphagnum moss in one hide for a little more humidity when the snake is going into shed, but there should definitely be a "dry" hide, too, so the snake can find the spot that feels right at the moment.

Poor BP. Hope she gets better soon!

[Kmef07]

hey good luck i don't really have any extra advice but good luck let us know what happens

[mykee]

Do EXACTLY what Aaron said and you won't need a vet (or his bill) at the end of it. Great advice Aaron.

[jimbousmc]

well the neosporin was not working i took her to the vet and got her put on antibiotics, i was using aspen the problem was i think i was overmisting and the enviorment was kept at 65% humidity which is a good level and no the cage was not dirty it is cleaned regularly. i was just over misting was the problem and the substrate was to damp. and it is not a rough carpet it is soft it is from zoo med and money is never an option when you have a sick pet on your hands it was a little further along than should have been because i originally thought that it was a pad burn which is when i started the neosporin but it just kept spreading. thank you for all of your input guys i will definitely keep it in mind and if the carpet tends to irritate i will definately try the paper towls out. but this seems to be working well for her and it doesnt stick to her like a paper towl would. they gave her to injections of antibiotics and gets 2 more saturday and tuesday and they gave me a cream for her im hoping it all works out ok. again thank you for your input and it will deffinately be kept in mind

[Aaron_S]

Hey I bet the cream they gave you is another version of neosporin.

I don't understand you though. You think it's a burn, so you apply neosporin(which is fine if it was burn) but since the problem was too much humidity of course the problem will get worse. If you just corrected the husbandry, kept applying the neosporin, then when the snake sheds next the problem will really start clearing up. Snakes aren't like other creatures, you won't see healing until a shed cycle.

Vet antibiotics are a waste. It's too much stress for something that can be fixed with some neosporin. Snakes are pretty resiliant and don't need added chemicals in their bodies. They are highly efficient.

[jimbousmc]

no i didnt just correct the husbandtry i have the water out of there right now and the humidity was good it was that i was using the aspen unintentionally by misting the aqaurium and it held the the moisture which created bacteria and a place for it it live and thrive. but i took her bathing tub out and i have stopped misting of course and i have a fogger on the way here my humidity though now is at about 45 because i can have the water in there and wont mist her right now. but no it isnt neosporin it is silver sulfadiazine its a cream actually meant for burns it has antibiotics in it but like i said it is a burn cream its more to give her some relief which seems to be working great. but she had already shed with the neosporin i was using and it actually seemed a little worse and i know they are resiliant animals but she means alot to me and she is deffinately worth it. and antibiotic is not a chemical it which was the shots they gave her it is a natural healing agent that comes from nature. and i thought it was a burn to start with and the vet said it could have been and got infected but i used it to help heal. so yes i have corrected the issues that caused this and she is on a road to revovery. and thank you all so very much for all of your inputs and the help.

chu wuti i will also try the spagnum moss in the hide i never thought of it.

anyone have any suggestions for humidity u can use that she cant bath in right now

[mykee]

IF your snake does in fact have scale rot, it is one of two things that caused it:
1. Too much humidity.
2. Dirty enclosure.
Period.
Your visit to the vet was most likely unnecessary as MOST vets do more harm than good. I hope that this is not the case, and you found the 1 in 100 vets that has a clue. Polysporin daily and a clean, less damp environement with newspaper (would have) fixed the issue.

[jimbousmc]

mykee i understand what you are saying and yes you are right i am not denying that these are the two causes

as i have already stated i was over misting and the humidity was good but it caused bacteria to retain and grow in the substrate which was regularly changed and kept clean. so yes in a sense a dirty tank because it the misting was helping the bacteria to grow.

and yes she is a great vet for reptiles she has her own as well. and she didnt do the normal walk in look at it walk out she took scrapes from the site and checked it in the microscope.

i just realized what you were thinking myke lol no i was saying that she may or may not of had a burn that could cause an infection however i wasnt saying the infection was due to the burn. after it started getting worse i did some research and found that it was quite possibly scale rot. and found that dirty and overly humid causes this i also found that if you mist the substrate it causes bacteria to form. which is the most likely cause because as i have said the humidity was at 65% and the substrate is changed weekly. though i am now cleaning her aqarium once a day to ensure that the bacteria does not have a chance to reform while she is getting better.

and where can i get polysporic as i would like to have some in my cabinet instead of neosporin for any instance i may need it with her.

[citysnakes]

if you were changing the substrate weekly then im not sure how enough bacteria could grow to cause scale rot unless you constantly soaked down the substrate everytime.

if you are using an undertank heater for heat and you have no thermostat to control it then it very well can be a burn caused by the uncontrolled UTH getting too hot.

[jimbousmc]

i was i got one now though but i am still not sure if it was like i said that is exactly what it looked like at first but i dunno. it infected now and it is being taken care of i am just glad it wasnt something worse that happened i know she isnt capable of loving me but i sure do love her

[mykee]

PolysporiN is found right next to Neosporin on the shelf.
Note: There is NO WAY that you can build up enough bacteria in a 65% humidity enclosure cleaned every week to cause scale rot. Me thinks you're holding something back....

[jimbousmc]

hey boss you can think whatever you want i know what i do and do not do. so you can take or leave it think what you want. i only care that she gets better.

[jimbousmc]

what is the difference between polysporin and neosporin. why is poly better for a snake

[mykee]

Not to pick on you but saying that you keep a clean enclosure that is cleaned out every week, yet your ball python got scale rot is akin to being pregnant but denying you've ever had sex.

[smurfsta99]

i have a boa that is losing all her skin it is not scale rot but vet have no answer so please if you find out anything about your,s can you let me know

[jimbousmc]

well did your vet atleast start him on antibiotics it could be an infection of some kind but i cant say and your humidity could also be to high i dont know though thats all i can tell you sorry

[Chu'Wuti]

i have a boa that is losing all her skin it is not scale rot but vet have no answer so please if you find out anything about your,s can you let me know

Smurfsta99, would you please describe all of your husbandry--temps, humidity, feeding, cleaning, everything in detail? That will help us figure out what's wrong. Skin problems can be caused by a number of different factors.

Jim, glad your snake is doing better and you know what to do to prevent a re-occurrence of the problem.

[Chu'Wuti]

Actually, Smurfsta99, don't post the info here--post it on your own thread. I'll pop back over there for further details.