Rescue Questions

[Kavyrie]

I recently got a job at a store called Jabberwock Reptiles, and every week or so we usually end up with someone bringing in a reptile they no longer want/can care for. Well we got a more unusual one a little over a week ago, and I call him Walter. Walter is a 12 year old male ball python that lived his entire life in a 15 gallon tank with no hides or anything. Just a tank that was too small, bedding and water. His owner was an elderly woman who was about to go to a nursing home, and couldn't take Walter with her. Walter's face is short and his nose is pushed up, we believe because he was always rubbing against the glass from being in a too small of a tank. He has a deep scar across his nose, from what I guess was an unlucky feeding, and he has these odd bands of misshaped scales down his back, almost like scales melded together. He also has a respiratory infection at the moment, although its not too bad. Steve is keeping him at the store until the infection is gone, so it doesn't spread to my other snakes.

When we got Walter we put him into a 40g breeder tank with a hide and everything, and it freaked him out. Walter refuses to even go near any hides. He even stopped eating, so we put him in a twenty gallon with no hide, and he ate no problem and looks a lot more comfortable. Is there a way I will be able to get Walter accustomed to being in a proper sized enclosure? Or get him to use a hide? I just don't want to get him a larger tank just to have him be upset and uncomfortable in. Any basic "rescue" advice would be greatly appreciated. I know this woman loved her snake, she just didn't know how to care for him properly I think. I'll take pictures of him at the store on Saturday, so you can get a better idea of his condition.

[rmfsnakes32]

Imo I would work gradually to a larger enclosure it maybe a little spendy at 1st but I think with patience it can be over come. Maybe put him in a larger tank but feed in a feeding tote that is smaller jyst a thought! I am not an expert by any means just a possible idea

[alessia55]

I would put him in that 40gal and give him TIME to adjust. He may need 2 weeks, he may need more. Put TWO hides in there- one on each side of the enclosure. Cover 3 sides of the enclosure, and put lots of fake leaves/etc to help him feel more hidden and more secure. He is in a new place. He needs time to acclimate, adjust, etc. I wouldn't worry about him missing a feeding for a few weeks (unless he's underweight). If he's at a health weight, at 12 yrs old he does not need to be eating every week anyway.

A photo would help us gage his health a little better. Good luck with this guy. Keep us posted.

[Kavyrie]

I would put him in that 40gal and give him TIME to adjust. He may need 2 weeks, he may need more. Put TWO hides in there- one on each side of the enclosure. Cover 3 sides of the enclosure, and put lots of fake leaves/etc to help him feel more hidden and more secure. He is in a new place. He needs time to acclimate, adjust, etc. I wouldn't worry about him missing a feeding for a few weeks (unless he's underweight). If he's at a health weight, at 12 yrs old he does not need to be eating every week anyway.

A photo would help us gage his health a little better. Good luck with this guy. Keep us posted.

He is underweight, when I pick him up I can clearly feel his ribs, but you can't see them, and honestly I'm not completely sure how serious it is, since I can't feel the ribs on any of my snakes. That's why we put him into a smaller tank for now. I've never dealt with this kind of thing before, and I just want to make it easy for him to adjust when he comes home with me. I'm going to take pictures of him on Saturday, hopefully he will have shed by then so you can see his condition better. We put him in the back so there wouldn't be people going around him all day. It will probably be over a week before I tank him home, since I need to wait for his ri to finish running its course.

[Aaron_S]

How big is he? If he's a smaller male then the 20 is fine. Ball pythons don't need some 40 gallon tank. A 20 can do for the right sized snake.

[rmfsnakes32]

How big is he? If he's a smaller male then the 20 is fine. Ball pythons don't need some 40 gallon tank. A 20 can do for the right sized snake.

I actually agree with this many people use snake racks and the tubs are no where near the size of a 40ga tank tubs are about the length of a 20 maybe 30 ga!

[Kavyrie]

How big is he? If he's a smaller male then the 20 is fine. Ball pythons don't need some 40 gallon tank. A 20 can do for the right sized snake.

He's definitely a good size, what he is in is definitely too small for him, he takes up most of the tank! I know that they don't need huge enclosures, but I have a 40 available, and I don't plan on buying another tank since I plan on building a rack soon (hopefully). I haven't measured him, but as I said I'm working on Saturday so I plan on weighing him, measuring him and taking pictures.

[rmfsnakes32]

Well keep us posted and since he is an old guy may take him awhile to acclimate to his new surroundings plan on leaving him alone for a few weeks other than spot cleans and water changes good luck cant wait to see pics :)

[Kavyrie]

I was finally able to take some pictures of Walter, I'm hoping I will be able to take him home next week. Sorry about the glare in the pics, it was hard to block it out but you can see his scarring pretty clearly. Full-view one of them to get a good look at his nose. I'll be taking better pictures when he comes home with me.

http://i50.tinypic.com/f59bgo.jpg

http://i50.tinypic.com/2a7v6l1.jpg

http://i48.tinypic.com/23uod1y.jpg

http://i46.tinypic.com/2nv8a5x.jpg

[Aaron_S]

A snake that's recovering from possible RI and mouth rot doesn't need any large enclosure. I'd personally keep it in a tub until it's better. This way you have the snake in the most ideal temperatures and humidity.

[Nobodyspecial]

Oh that poor guy! >< I'm afraid I can't help much advice wise, just give him time to adjust really. I wish you the best of luck with him!

[rmfsnakes32]

To bad he is sick keep us posted on how his health goes!

[jaleely]

Looks to me like he may have smashed his nose in, broken it, from hitting the glass or something. Also looks like he'd had a band of stuck shed around his body, and that could have caused some scarring. The other scar could be from a burn.

Either way i'm glad you're taking care of him. I have an adult bp that took 9 months to settle in and finally act "normal" after we adopted him.
They used to force feed him, and he was overweight...he is covered in scars too. Burns, rat bites, etc.
Took him a long time to settle in and he still doesn't usually approve of being handled. I have him in a big 60 gallon tank. I'm one of those that likes to give them space, and utilize it all. He has a huge soaking water dish, branches that run the length of the tank, and three hides.
I've seen him use all of it.

What kind of hides did you try to put in there for him? If you take a black plant pot and cut a hole in the side, it will seem like a dark cave and may be more comfortable for him than cork, or pipe, or something else.
He'll feel more enclosed and hidden.
He is just not used to the smells and things. I'd give him another go in the bigger tank, but fill it with things he can hide in : )

As for feeling ribs, it's true, you shouldn't be able to. Two different other bps i've gotten from the pound were like this. One, we weren't sure was going to make it, so we named him "Ribs" lol the name stuck, but he's finally gotten some weight on him. Took a long time. He was extremely weak, and dehydrated. Had multiple sheds stuck on him.

Anyway, keep us updated and add a few more details if you can! : )

[Kavyrie]

I wasn't there when they put him in the big tank, apparently we have actually had him at the store for a while. His nose is flat and pushed up slightly, but there is a deep diagonal scar across the middle, which I assume is from a rat bite. The only thing is that he eats f/t, so I don't know how he could have gotten bit, unless she fed him live on occasion. He shed last week and it was a perfect shed, so I'm not too worried about that. These pictures are actually a couple hours after he shed, so you can see his color really nice.

He's currently in our backroom, where its a bit warmer and away from the other snakes until his ri is gone. He no longer has excess mucous and saliva, but he holds his mouth open to breathe once in a while. He did this before he was sick though, so I'm not quite sure if he is really still sick or not. I didn't feel any "bubbles" while I was holding him, and when he breathed it felt nice and clear. I think he has trouble breathing because of the way his face is smushed in, which is why he breathes through his mouth sometimes. He only does it for a few seconds though, then he doesn't do it again for an hour or more.

I plan on loading his tank with hides and fake plants/branches when he comes home. Or I might add things little by little, with only the basic things like hides first. We have those fake hollow rocks with a hole on one side for hides, and all of our snakes seem to like them. I plan on getting two of those for either side of the tank, a deep water dish, and some fake plants and branches that he can't destroy.