carbonhunter Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Ur the only vet I know of on here so I have a quick question, but it may not really be your field, I have a 6 foot red tailed boa he has been in real good healthy shape but the other day i noticed that he has a round pale spot about halfway down his body. He has great color everywhere else but this one spot is getting more and more off colored by the day. The spot is grey and first showed about two days after his last feeding ( a medium sized live rat) He likes to climb up around the heat lamp alot and was wondering if this could just be a burn? I also had him sex probed a few weeks ago (male) the guy said he looked healthy to him but was wondering if the probe could have been the problem? I hope its nothing big he is a great snake and has never had an aggresive bone in his body, has no problem being handled by anyone i have over here and pretty much has free roam of the house during partys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggs Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Re: Dog Doc [ QUOTE ] I also had him sex probed a few weeks ago (male) [/ QUOTE ] you are one of a kind my friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M00N Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Re: Dog Doc I'm not a veterinarian, but I have owned reptiles before when growing up. It could be a burn, but normally with burns on snakes the scales eventually peel off in the area causing a raw open wound. Before the scales peel off they appear just discolored and very hard and stiff. Another possibility would be scale rot. Most the time though this is on the belly scales, but not always. It can cause a discoloration of the scales, but normally they are a more rust or reddish-brown color. The scales even appear to swell and become fluid filled sometimes. Scale rot is a bacterial infection caused by a snake being too damp or in inadequate temperatures. Those are the two common things I heard about discolored scales on a snake. There probably are more possibilities, though. If it's scale rot it'd definitely be something to take the snake to the vet about as it could be deadly if left untreated. Burns my vet always had us treat them with Neosporin rubbed on the wound twice a day until it is fully healed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdoc Posted March 9, 2006 Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Re: Dog Doc I'm not a snake expert but we do see a few in the clinic. Is it just a discoloration or is there any swelling at the site or flat like the rest of the skin. If it's raised at all it could be a little abscess starting to form. Is it possible the rat might have bitten the snake? If not then it very well may have burned that spot from the heat light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbonhunter Posted March 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2006 Re: Dog Doc [ QUOTE ] It could be a burn, but normally with burns on snakes the scales eventually peel off in the area causing a raw open wound. Before the scales peel off they appear just discolored and very hard and stiff. [/ QUOTE ] That may be it then the scales look dry and stiff almost like they are just about to peel off, the spot isnt more than an inch across. I dont think the rat had any time to get a bite in, but once he does his death curl its tough to really see whats going on in there until he goes to swallow him. Ill try and post a picture of it when i get home. Eric...Im just going to ignore that comment, been sticking it to any steel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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