Please Help

Rikki · 07-05-05, 05:52 PM

Hello Again,

One week ago we went to the local pet store to purchase a Ball Python for my cousin. I purchased one from the store a few days earlier (which is doing great). Many of the snakes in the cage were in a sickly state, there were a few dead snakes in the cage. I picked the best one available which was active and had clear eyes and skin, though was obviously shedding in different places. This was a hatchling and I was told it has never fed before, as the store has no time to feed all of their snakes. I purchased this snake and brought him to my cousin.

The snake is a hatchling and in a 10 gallon aquarium with a screen top. Tissue paper (smell free), with a small water bowl, barried heat rock, small heat lamp (heat on left side of the cage), a medium size piece of drift wood (cleaned). We have recently placed a warm wet towel on %75 of the cage top to keep the humidity up inside of the enclosure. The snake has been very inactive.

Today, we purchased mice for our snakes, my hatchling is eating hoppers as of now. I thought I would try fuzzies on this snake, he would not eat the live fuzzies after many attempts. He has not been seek drinking much water and is spending most of his time in his hide box. Today I noticed a sore on his lower back, which has a 'rotting' smell. The pics below are very hard to take the snake is active when being held. He appears dehydrated (sp*) so we soaked him in water for 10 minutes today. Do you have any suggestions for this Ball Python?

The Sore:

Thank you for your time

steelnink · 07-05-05, 06:01 PM

Get him to a vet, ASAP....

Rikki · 07-05-05, 06:02 PM

Do you know what the problem is?

steelnink · 07-05-05, 06:27 PM

Im not a big fan of giving people diagnosis of reptiles i have not seen first hand, and i am not a qualified vet, GET HIM TO ONE...
If you can not get to a qualified HERP vet, [ PLEASE DO], here are my suggestions,
#1- Strip everything out of the tank
#2- Get a heat pad underneth the tank
#3- Make sure your temps are slightler higher[ 80 in the cool side- 90 in the warm side]
#4- If dehydration is suspected, mist python and tank with warm water every couple hours
#5- Clean sore on spine with a q-tip and a polysporin type antibacterial ointment inbetween mistings.
#6- Go back to the pet shop you purchased them from and beat the living piss out of the REPTILE EXPERT that kept these creatures in those conditions.[ give them a kick in the teeth for me]...
#7- Hope for the best, and keep up the routine.

thunder · 07-05-05, 07:34 PM

in the future NEVER purchase animals, as healthy as they may seem, when other animals they are with are sickly, and especially not if they are dead. there many people who can supply you with high quality CBs for a reasonable price. as heartless as this may sound, return it if you can, because you could easily sink a thousand dollars into a sick animal. i know, im going through it right now. i should have sent the snake right back instead of feeling sorry for it. also, if you pay for an animal that is obviously neglected, you are supporting an institution which is abusive towards animals.

wiseman001 · 07-05-05, 08:02 PM

CALL YOUR LOCAL HUMANE SOCIETY, GO TO THE ASPCA,( i think thats correct )
call up the local animal cruelity....but if all fails kick the piss out of the person who's incharge there.....contact Animal rights activist.. they are the best... !!!

Edmond Y · 07-05-05, 08:30 PM

Rikki, Sorry to see this little guy. I hate to say that may be it is too late. I can see he is in critical condition. He has over dry and hanging skin that show he seems to be seriously dehydrated and seems to be over lacking of food source.
There are few things for your reference.
If there are sick animal in one cage, don't buy any snakes from that pet shop.
Do not use heat rock. use undertank heat source with a dimmer.
Never buy babies less than 150 grams. hanging and dry skin show problems already occured.
I think you should bring him to vet ASAP.
The pet store that sell you snake has to pay big part of responsibilty. You should go get your money back!
Edmond

smeagel · 07-05-05, 09:14 PM

That pet store should reported to the Humane Society. A heat rock is a very bad idea, it will burn your snake very badly. 90 is not hot enough for the hot side of the tank, should be around 94. And I don't recomend buying reptiles from the average pet store. I am very sorry to hear about your snake, but you can learn from this mistake. If you ever decide to get another BP, research, research, research, and buy from a reputable breeder. Good luck with him.

Rikki · 07-05-05, 10:17 PM

Thanks guys, im going to do my best. Sadly there is not a vet in my area able to handle snakes, I will do my best and keep you all updated

Rikki · 07-05-05, 10:35 PM

Could you put alchol on the sore?

steelnink · 07-06-05, 12:00 AM

No alcohol.

Rikki · 07-06-05, 12:05 AM

Thanks, ill see what we can do. We just soaked him for about 15 minutes.

sharno · 07-06-05, 12:44 AM

i dont mean to be harsh (seems like im saying that a lot lately lol) but if you were out looking to buy a new puppy would you buy a puppy from a breeder or store that had dead puppys or dogs laying around? probably no right.... well why is it any different for a snake ??? just wondering

BoidsUnlimited · 07-06-05, 02:17 AM

I agree with sharno.

If you did your research correctly, you would know not to purchase a snake that is living with sickly looking snakes//dead ones. Your snake may look fine, but what if one of those snakes has IBD, or an RI. Your snake has a pretty high chance of contracting it now as well. Also a heat rock? Another sign lack of research was done.

Sorry if I sound harsh, but it sorta ticks me off when people don't read about the animal they wish to get, then this happens, and the petstore just got away with another sale which should NOT have been made at all.

Unfortunately the damage has been done, and all that is left to do is treat the snake with the best of intentions. Like some said, bump the temps up to around 80-90, get a heat rock, mist twice a day, and give it a week before attempting any food source. If nothing happens, you may have to drive aways to get to a vet. If you do, try and get a stole sample for when you take him, internal parasites may be an issue here as well.

Thanks,

Don Meyer

Serpens · 07-06-05, 02:39 AM

I'm sorry to hear about your new BP, but I'm going to have to agree with everyone here. I won't spell it out, as others have, but mistakes are alright, as long as you learn from them.

One thing I WILL repeat is REPORT THE STORE TO ANYONE!!! Especially if you get your python to the vet, tell the vet about what the conditions were like. Any pet store that openly admits to you that they can't take care of all the animals they have should be reported, as they should not be allowed to exist. I don't even consider getting animals from my local petstore anymore, as my first and second corns both came with mites, which I had to treat for. Go with a breeder. And yeah, if you get the chance, kick the teeth of the reptile specialist down his irresponsible throat for me.

Good luck with your bp. I hope he pulls through. Remember: knowledge is power!

Serpens