Weird red dot

[rastamac]

So yoshi is amazing and eating like a champ. i picked up a hygrothern thermostat and everything is perfect, EXCEPT she now has a red dot in the center of the forehead and i am wondering what to make of this. It is a small oval dot. any info is appreciated.

[snake man12]

Could you post a pic that would really help us figure it out

[marvelfreak]

If you could post a picture or two it might help us help you.

I got beat be two seconds.

[stephanbakir]

Can't do much without a pic :)

[Kayla90]

Can't do much without a pic :)

I agree.. Much easier to see for ourselves exactly what you mean..

[alessia55]

Is it a raised dot? or just a spot?

[lady_bug87]

Kim not even sure which species we're talking about.... but good luck?

[rastamac]

the first two are from today. and the rest are from yesterday so it has come on quite quick.I have tried to attach 5 photos with this post so please let me know if it works. I apologize for the delay.

[Gungirl]

In the first picture it looks raw. Could be head rub ....

[rastamac]

heres one more. sorry. im still trying to come across a worthy camera.

[stephanbakir]

Looks like head rub, or a bruise

[citysnakes]

Whats the size of the enclosure that you are keeping that little guy in??

[rastamac]

12x12x18 its an exoterra

[alessia55]

looks like he just might've rubbed it against something. poor little guy :(

[rastamac]

Quite possible. thank you for your opinions on the matter. much appreciated.

[rastamac]

So The red dot has turned into an indent, yoshi is still eating and seems fine but i am extremely worried. any help at all?

[Gungirl]

What are your temps and humidity? how are you heating the enclosure? Are you misting him?

If you can give us more details on his enclosure maybe someone can offer advice. I really don't have an Idea as to what would cause a dent in the head. Maybe it's how it is healing due to low humidity? Idk It might be vet time.

[Teckdragon]

It's nose rub because the animal is stressed. This means there is some aspect of its captivity not being met that is causing the animal to feel anxious or agitated. It could be size, temp, humidity, perch size... anything. Go see a vet or contact the breeder who hatched it.

[SnakeyJay]

How are you heating his viv? I may be wrong but looks like rub or a burn to me. Goodluck with whatever it is.

[rastamac]

I am using a blue nightglow bulb that gives off slight heat. my room is relatively warm so keeping a temp of 80 is no prob. at night, i drop to 74 and day i raise to 84. i have a reptifogger hooked up atm. She is in a 12x12x18 exoterra with screen top. And i have noticed quite a lot of head rub. I appreciate the info and i will be in contact with the vet. could a jagged prong of the screen mesh potentially be the problem? or a stiff twig? as well, if she is eating and exercising properly should i be overly concerned? born march 29 and i just took a weight of 21.5g. before thursday night feeding.

[jdavy]

It doesn't have to be some sort of twig or defect in the screen to cause head rub. If the snake's stressed, it can find a way to give itself head rub on just about anything, it seems.

Your lightbulb heat source may easily be your problem. They are too drying. You may need to consider switching to a radiant heat panel.

All the best.

[millertime89]

I'm thinking the humidity is gonna be the problem too. You can't just hook up the reptifogger and call it good, you need to know what it is. Also I've read that GTPs, unlike other snakes, will drink water off their own cowls rather than from a water bowl. So maybe try misting him directly with a spray bottle (can be purchased from target for like 2 bucks). Also try an elevated water bowl.

[rastamac]

I have a hygrotherm temp n humid gauge. plus i mist frequently. every day atleast once. as soon as the humidity reading hits 40, the fogger kicks in. there is a dish and a waterfall in the enclosure.

[rastamac]

I have watched yoshi drink from the waterfall on occassion. I had let my misting slip for a day, but the fogger was still running.

[rastamac]

ok. Radiant heat panel it is, i have been considering for quite some time but thought that the temps and humidity were good.

[Gungirl]

If you are having to use a fogger and mist that often its evaporating far to fast IMO.

Switching to the radiant heat panel will be a big help to you.

[rastamac]

thank you so much for the opinions.

[millertime89]

I wouldn't let it drop to 40, I know some care sheets say to let it drop that low, but I wouldn't let it drop much below 60 personally.

[Lankyrob]

We mist ours up to 75%-80% and let it "dry" to no lower than 55% before we respray, i wouldnt want my GTP enclosure to get anywhere near 40%.

[rastamac]

ok. thank you. so it is far too dry here for her. I will look into my alternatives and i will definately be picking up a radiant heat panel.

[rastamac]

If I am to upsize the cage to a 24x24x24, will the stress be to larger for a juvenile?

[millertime89]

I would give it some more time before upsizing unless you see pushing.

[Lankyrob]

We kept ours in a 12 inch high x 6inch deep x 6inch wide until it was mature (past colour change).

[Gungirl]

My baby went right into a 24 deep x 30 wide x 18 high right off. You need to make sure you have spot on husbandry and plenty of hiding spots for them to feel secure and be able to regulate there temp through. If you have any issues with husbandry I wouldn't be going up to a larger size viv.

[shaunyboy]

thank you so much for the opinions.

you may already have it,but if you don't.....

The More Complete Chondro,by Greg Maxwell,is the book to buy.

it's the bible for green tree pythons

cheers shaun

[Lankyrob]

^^^^ Couldnt agree more!!! :)

[lady_bug87]

^^^ I should buy it

my juvenile who was a May hatch went right into her 24x24x36 screen top and s/he is thriving. Then again I have natural plants in there so she can has cover and a misting system she drinks water everyday off her leaves or off of her coils

when I brought her home and had the viv set up I put her tote in the viv and left the top open and we left it alone the next morning she was up on her high perches hunting for food

[Web Wheeler]

I am using a blue nightglow bulb that gives off slight heat. my room is relatively warm so keeping a temp of 80 is no prob. at night, i drop to 74 and day i raise to 84. i have a reptifogger hooked up atm. She is in a 12x12x18 exoterra with screen top. And i have noticed quite a lot of head rub. I appreciate the info and i will be in contact with the vet. could a jagged prong of the screen mesh potentially be the problem? or a stiff twig? as well, if she is eating and exercising properly should i be overly concerned? born march 29 and i just took a weight of 21.5g. before thursday night feeding.

Here's my advice:

For a GTP born March 29, 2011, currently weighing 21.5g, your snake is very under weight! A new born GTP should weigh around 10g, and one that's 8 months old should weigh around 75g.

You need to change your feeding schedule. First, the proper sized meal should be the same diameter (hair of prey not included) as the largest part of your snake. Second, every time your snake defecates, you should feed it again. Third, if you want to handle your snake, do so between its defecation / feeding cycle. Fourth, if your snake doesn't defecate within two weeks of a meal, then something (temperature/humidity/lack of exercise) is wrong.

Lastly, take your snake to a vet and have a fecal done. This will cost you around $40 to $80, but if parasites are causing your snakes weight to be low, this could save its life.

[Lankyrob]

GTP's have a slow metabolism - if i fed mine each time it poops it would only eat about 4 times a year!! The prey I feed is 2-3times the size of the snake. (i have never weighed any of my snakes so cant judge wheter weight is ok)

Looking at the pics you posted the snake looks a healthy size tho! :)

[shaunyboy]

GTP's have a slow metabolism - if i fed mine each time it poops it would only eat about 4 times a year!! The prey I feed is 2-3times the size of the snake. (i have never weighed any of my snakes so cant judge wheter weight is ok)

Looking at the pics you posted the snake looks a healthy size tho! :)


have to agree with rob on the pooping thing

its only morelia i keep and in my personal experience they poop randomly not on a weekly or fortnightly basis

imo the only time you should worry about a snake pooping,is if there is swelling due to constipation (which i have never encountered with my morelia)

cheers shaun

[lady_bug87]

^^ thats funny mine poops fairly often maybe once every couple meals tonight she is going to have her first hopper meal, I was feeding her a fuzzie every 5-7 days so now that I will be feeding her a hopper I will guage to see how long it takes her to actively hunt (usually it takes 3 nights) once she actively hunts for 1-2 nights I feed her the next night

it may not be the perfect system but she's been growing

[shaunyboy]

^^ thats funny mine poops fairly often maybe once every couple meals tonight she is going to have her first hopper meal, I was feeding her a fuzzie every 5-7 days so now that I will be feeding her a hopper I will guage to see how long it takes her to actively hunt (usually it takes 3 nights) once she actively hunts for 1-2 nights I feed her the next night

it may not be the perfect system but she's been growing

imo your system is fine mate

i feed all my hatchlings up to sub adulthood every 7 days

i've found hatchling carpets will poop a lot more than older carpets

especially on rat pups (its usually runny poo as well)

cheers shaun

[lady_bug87]

shes on mice (obviously) and she exercises mid morning so I attribute the poop to the fact that she is active especially just after her lights go out

[shaunyboy]

shes on mice (obviously) and she exercises mid morning so I attribute the poop to the fact that she is active especially just after her lights go out

you are talking about your gtp ?

the mice " obviously " threw me ?

i only offer rats to my morelia hatchlings,the older they get the harder it can be to cross them over from mice to rats

it takes a lot of mice to feed an adult,where as 1 medium or 1 large rat does the job in one go

any older carpets i buy,i get onto rats straight away as well

cheers shaun

[lady_bug87]

Its true, I know but I always thought she was too small for rat pinkies after her go with hoppers I will be switching her over. besides its easier for me to feed her rats since everything else (snake wise) eats rats

[rastamac]

the snake is eating well, pooping almost every week or 2, i keep track. But the prey is on the small side, Just moved from pinkies to fuzzies. exponential jumps in her size tho, i got her at 6 mnts from a pet shop, and she was tiny. and 21.5 weight was just before her last feeding and after defacation. I feed her one adequate sized prey every week. I only say her in hopes, not sexed yet. And web wheeler- I actually follow your methods to a tee, aside from the feeding right after defacation. I feed my gtp every thursday night, Im almost positive that my husbandry is spot on finally, the snake seems happy and the head rub has stopped. plus the last shed was solid. I am a bit worried, I have the feeding records since birth and never missed one feeding, so why such a flucuation in weight? I am going to try to get a weight this week to compare. as for a vet visit, since winter is now here and ac must be cranked, I am hoping she can hold out until spring.

[shaunyboy]

the snake is eating well, pooping almost every week or 2, i keep track. But the prey is on the small side, Just moved from pinkies to fuzzies. exponential jumps in her size tho, i got her at 6 mnts from a pet shop, and she was tiny. and 21.5 weight was just before her last feeding and after defacation. I feed her one adequate sized prey every week. I only say her in hopes, not sexed yet. And web wheeler- I actually follow your methods to a tee, aside from the feeding right after defacation. I feed my gtp every thursday night, Im almost positive that my husbandry is spot on finally, the snake seems happy and the head rub has stopped. plus the last shed was solid. I am a bit worried, I have the feeding records since birth and never missed one feeding, so why such a flucuation in weight? I am going to try to get a weight this week to compare. as for a vet visit, since winter is now here and ac must be cranked, I am hoping she can hold out until spring.

green tree python populations likely have varying temperature requirements depending on where they occur.an animal found on the lowlands of biak island,the northeren limit of the species,is probaly adapted to constant high temperatures all the year round.

while animals found on the cape york peninsula,the southern limit of the species,would be able to tolerate lower temperatures.mean july temperatures (mid winter ) for iron range are 72f dropping to 62f on cold nights

the above information was taken from keeping and breeding australian pythons,edited by mike swan

cheers shaun

[Web Wheeler]

Typically an active neonate GTP, that's being fed pinkies or fuzzies, which are easily digested, will defecate 3 to 4 days after a meal. A larger snake that's eating hoppers will defecate within a week of its last meal. An even larger snake that's eating mice or weaned rats will defecate within 2 weeks of its last meal. A snake that's eating medium rats may take 3 to 4 weeks to defecate.

When I wrote that your snake should defecate within 2 weeks of its meal, I was, of course, addressing the feeding habits of a GTP that's eating pinkies or fuzzies, such as your snake. I also based my advice on proper temperatures, which would affect its metabolism.

In any case, an 8 month old GTP that weighs around 21 grams is very under weight, and this should be a worry. The abscess on your snakes head looks fairly mild from the photos and can be treated with a little Polysporin.

[rastamac]

Thank you my friend. I appreciate your valueable input. I dont want to point fingers but I think it may be attributed to staying on pinky mice for much longer than it should have, i have a few fuzzy mice left, then i will hopefully start to coax it into rats. and polysporin is exactly the remedy needed.

[Lankyrob]

We got our GTP as a baby, 4 feeding into its life. It never had rat pups - went straight onto fuzzy rats, we were told to feed one item 3-4 times its girth every 14 days (tho some say that GTP's shouldnt eat prey that large due to rectal prolapse issues).

Once it had gone through his colour change we stayed at 14 day feeding but because i had then found out about the prolapse issues we switched to prey items that are 2-3 times its girth.

[rastamac]

so my issue lies within the size of prey. i will do my best to use this info and hopefully i can get the weight up.

[rastamac]

Feeding tn, i took the weight today. 24.4 g. she is gaining weight, just not at an extreme rate. i have come to the conclusion that it is the portions that she has been on, so how do i go about combatting this, and what kind of potential hazards could i face with such a low weight? as well, what is appropriate weight for a 1 yr old gtp?

[Lankyrob]

Can you post an up to date picture? My personal opinion is that weights of snakes is like weights for people - it needs to be right for the individual.

In my opinion you should feed prey around twice the girth of the snake every 10-14 days and it will then find the right weight. You will learn how YOUR GTP is over time and notice if it starts to get too fat or too thin and then you can increase or decrease teh scheduled feedings

[rastamac]

this is today

[Wolfus_305]

wow, he's so teeny tiny! I thought he was much bigger based on his other pictures :P I can't really comment about the weight though as I am not very knowledgeable with these types of snakes

[Lankyrob]

He does look in proportion, not skinny imo. Although he does seem small for a year old gtp. (you know to be super careful handling gtp's right?)

[rastamac]

of course. I handle as little as possilbe. but sometimes it is necessary. I let her leave the perch and control movement. i am mearly another surface to support her.

[rastamac]

and it will be a year at the end of march 2012. i still have a few months to fatten it up.

[rastamac]

Another one bites the dust. I can never get enough of feeding day(Y) there was a long span where the pet store only fed it pinkies which could potentially stunt growth but the eating habits are bang on, has not missed a feeding yet, including tonights feeding which went off without a problem. plus she has ceased the excessive head rub, she seems much more content to my hand as well. although my gtp has never been aggressive, I guess certain localities are more highly sought after for the docile features. My aru has never even given me a warning strike aside from the very first day.

[Lankyrob]

and it will be a year at the end of march 2012. i still have a few months to fatten it up.

So really he is only about 8 months which would also explain his smaller size. My guy fattened up a fair bit after he had finished his colour change.

[Gungirl]

I wouldn't fatten him up per say. I would feed him the right size food on a weekly basis and let him grow at his own rate. Once you get him eating normal size prey on a normal schedule he will grow at his own rate. I am not a fan of power feeding to "help" them grow faster.

[rastamac]

In my opinion, my feeding schedule is correct, the prey is the same size or a bit bigger than the snakes girth. I did not mean fatten to obescity, i simply meant to increase prey size to bring the weight up slightly. I do not power feed, as my gtp is quite picky and only eats once a week for me, same time, same night every week. and i can not see the eating schedule changing at all except for the size, so my goal is to transfer to rats if possible in the next few weeks. And i will keep an eye on weight, behaviour, hopefully get some good pics on here.

[Gungirl]

That sounds good Rastamac... He will grow nicely feeding that way. I meant no offence but I know some people do try to power feed.I am glad you are not one of them. Keep us posted and pics coming!

[rastamac]

No offence taken. I welcome the input and even the criticism as it all gives me more knowledge, in the end. I appreciate you sharing your opinions and I look forward to sharing more with you fellow reptile lovers.

[rastamac]

I would like to know what type of gtp should weigh in at 75g as an 8 month old juvi? mine is an aru which tend to be slightly smaller than the other locals. I know biaks come in relatively large. So could this be a factor to pay attention to? as well, i purchased my gtp from a toronto breeder as a aru x jade. any info on the breeder or jade line would be amazing.

[Gungirl]

I got my Biak as a rescue and he was 1.5yrs old and weighed in at 160grams. He was small but looked healthy. I haven't taken him out to weigh him but from the looks of it He has doubled in size for me so far.

[lady_bug87]

I dont weigh my snakes but my GTP is a Sarong x Aru and she is eating a mouse hopper every week im moving her to pinky rats soon

[rastamac]

Lady bug, if you dont mind me asking, how old is your gtp atm? At 8 months old, what should a normal gtp be feeding on?

[lady_bug87]

My GTP is a May hatch so that would make her.... 6 months I got her at the end of June after 4 feedings when I got her she was on pinkies for a while, then once she started taking double pinks I moved her to fuzzies she was only on fuzzies for about a month and they stopped leaving a lump so now shes on hoppers she has one more hopper meal and then i'm going to switch her to rat pinks