Corn Snake... Broken Tail..???

[Bdubedub]

My wife took the snake out today, his tank has sliding glass doors and she got his tail stuck in it and shut the door. There is blood under his scales. In no way can afford a vet to have him checked.

[OkeeteeMom]

What have you done to treat it? Anything?

[Evol_girl]

I just want to say it really bugs me when people say "IN NO WAY" can I afford to treat my animal...

I get financial hard times. I have a ton of pets and if one or more got super sick and needed some serious vet care it might be hard for me. But IN NO WAY? So - what are you going to do if she actually needs help that you can't give her? What if she's suffering?

ANYWAY - not to preach or rant because I do get it... but I just think there should be SOME sense of responsibility for pet owners. If you have them, you SHOULD have a plan IN CASE something happens.

Moving on... What have you done? Is the blood pooling or spreading? is there an "open" wound? I would typically say at least some antibiotic ointment to start but I'm not a vet...

[Bdubedub]

NM... I jumped to conclusions... the snake has barely any noticble marks and is acting fine. I hadnt looked at it yet but assumed the worst.

[OkeeteeMom]

Well that's good news.

[CentricMalteser]

or is it actually hurt and possibly broken and "NO WAY can you afford it" to have it properly looked at by a vet,

a broken tail doesnt neccesarily mean broken and split through the skin and scales

you also said there is barely any noticebale marks

but in earlier post "there is blood under the scales"

so can't help but think you fobbing us off because another member criticised for putting you statement of "IN NO WAY I CAN AFFORD IT"

I will say this, you should NOT have a pet if you cannot afford, the running/upkeep, vets bills, plan of action if you are away on holiday or something, etc!

It's this very reason why animals are neglected especially when they ill, because they are fun to have , but if they get sick, that's it, no interest, and rather not spend on money on it

Quite pathetic actually!


NM... I jumped to conclusions... the snake has barely any noticble marks and is acting fine. I hadnt looked at it yet but assumed the worst.

[Dorgrim]

Regardless of resources, take some pics they always help! As far as the tail goes, is the break before or after the cloaca? broken bones arnt that bad and snakes usually have a lot by the end of their life. your muscles somewhat naturally pull broken bones backinto place so dont panic yet! I would also remove any items from the cage that could fall and stress the break any more, just in case. A break with no vet visit thebest you can do is keep an eye on it and treat it like any other break and try not ti stress it any more

Keep us updated!

[Susan]

Accidents happen, We all understand that. If it's "just" the very end of the tail, your snake should heal okay without any veterinary assistance. You will have to be careful and diligent to make sure that no shed skin gets left on the tail as it may heal crooked. I've had hatchlings get their tails caught when I put the lid back on their deli cups. They move so fast that it can't be avoided. We had an ex-moderator close the lid on the neck of one of his hatchlings (http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28740&highlight=accident). The snake did well (http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36619&highlight=accident), making a full recovery (http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41197&highlight=accident), but it had a head tilt for awhile.

[Dreamsnake]

My snow got the tip of its tail snapped in a lid before I got it. I felt really bad since the incident happened right in front of me. I bought the snake anyway. Its only had shed skin stuck in the kink once. I always check the snakes' eyes, vent, and tail tip for stuck shed. Zar's tail has straightened out in the last year.

Now that you've experienced this event, I'd suggest doing some research with your local vets to find out the cost of reptile treatments. Keep a close watch on the tail in case of infection and make a snake journal for records.