Last night when I was out walking the dogs, I felt something brush against my shoes. I looked down and saw a 2-foot garter snake making its way across the parking lot. I could instantly tell it had a crush injury, and I thought someone had just run it over. I scooped up the little guy and brought him inside to check him out. He was calm and curious, didn't try to musk or bite or anything...just squirmed.
I put him in the kitchen sink and called my fiance over. In the better lighting I saw that he had what appeared to be an old injury...scar tissue had healed it over, and scales were regrowing there. The spine looked to be almost severed, as that area dimpled in almost flat! He also had a number of lumps and kinks in his tail. I gave him a thorough exam, and he appeared to have muscle control of his back end and tail, and decent range of motion. He did not flinch or twitch when the wound area was gently palpated, and the spinal column felt intact upon palpation.
My fiance and I decided that, as much as we would have liked to keep the little fellow, since he was plump and active, he could probably survive well on his own, so I took him back into the woods behind our house and set him free.
I can't believe that any animal could survive, let alone heal and function, after an injury like that! Wayne, do you have any insight into garter snake injuries and healing? Did I do the right thing setting the little guy free?
Amazing what they can survive....
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