What's Wrong with this Eye?

[backafter30]

A recently acquired corn snake has an issue with one eye. At first I thought it might be an un-shed eye cap, but then I noticed that the eye actually protrudes less than the normal eye, rather than more. Could this be a permanent injury? It does not prevent him from eating or breeding. Pics of bad eye, good eye, and top-down. Thanks!

[Nanci]

A vet needs to see that. He looks like for one thing he has some kind of bacterial infection in the eye.

[Nanci]

Also his nostril on that side looks crusty and inflamed.

[backafter30]

I didn't even catch the nostril. You don't notice it with the naked eye, but I zoomed in on the photos. Thanks Nanci!

[beautifullywild77]

He does look like he has something going on with that eye. The area around it looks swollen and that is why it looks sunken in.

Doesn't look like the nose and mouth area have something going on as well!

[beautifullywild77]

Opps... I meant IT DOES look like the nose and mouth area have something going on!

[Firefur]

looks like it could be an abscess or a cyst under his eye scale. I've only ever seen it once in a large python that was kept on sand that came into the vet i volunteered at back in high-school. don't have much experience with reptiles but I agree with Nancy that snake should see a vet.
good luck with him i hope he's okay.

[backafter30]

Vet says it's an unshed eyecap. Nothing to do but wait till next shed. At least we can rule out any infections or serious health issues. He suggested vegetable oil on the cap to loosen it. Worth at try.

[Alicia P]

I've heard vegetable oil or a very mild unscented hand lotion on the retained cap along with adding a humid hide should help it come off with the next shed. Glad to hear it wasn't infected or something!

[LMS68]

What about the nostril?

Fingers crossed it is as simple as an unshed eye cap.

Nice corn BTW :)

[Chip]

Camera could be playing tricks but it looks to me like the snake has experienced trauma to the left side of the head. The whole eye appears concave and the nostril has something going on. If it's nothing but a retained eyecap, that should be easy enough. Overnight in a pillowcase with a lightly damp towel will usually do it, if not, it will be so loose that scotch tape will pull it off in the morning. You *can* wait until the next shed, but I don't do waiting well, and it always seemed uncomfortable to me. How long until he's due to shed?

[backafter30]

The vet said that there was no indication of any other issues, including a respiratory infection. I think the nostril thing may have been because of the tweaking I was doing with the photo contrast. He's a Whiteout, and any picture you take is also just completely whited out, so I played with it a bit so detail could be seen. I've never seen the nostril issue with my own eyes, only on the edited pic. I've already tried soaking him and providing a damp sphagnum hide, so I just don't think it's time for him to shed yet. Since I just got him on 9May, I'm not sure when he last shed, or when he is due. He acts fine, eats well, and breeds with much enthusiasm, so I guess I can't complain.

[beautifullywild77]

You are breeding him, already? No quarantine period? That is a huge risk, considering you know very little about him!

His nostril and mouth still look a bit worrisome to me!

Good Luck!

[Nanci]

Did the vet examine his mouth and sinuses? Ophthalmic eye ointment will help it shed off. You basically keep the eye covered at all times.

[backafter30]

Well, I'm new to breeding, so I have only a few snakes right now, and I'm breeding him to the mate that came with him, purchased as a pair. They were breeding before they were mailed to me, so they already "knew" each other anyway. I mentioned the idea of a respiratory condition to the vet, and he did use a lighted, magnifying device with the snake underneath it, but his back was turned to me, and I really didn't exactly see what he was examining. I did ask specifically, however, if there was any sign of infection or any other issues that I should be concerned about. He said the only thing he could see was an extra eye cap. I asked about the shape of the eye, and he said that the cap was doing that. He was familiar with eye infections, and explained how he has performed surgery on snake eyes to relieve pressure from infections, so I assumed he knew what he was talking about.

[Janome]

I'd get a second opinion.

[Weda737]

Yeah... eye caps don't do all that. I agree with Janome. It's just not adding up.

[backafter30]

Ok, now you're scaring me.. If there were something really seriously wrong, wouldn't you expect other symptoms? Like at least going off feed? He eats just fine, and has a lot of breeding enthusiasm. I wish I could get my Honduran male to act like that. I'm probably going to need some other symptoms to justify forking out for another vet visit. Now if he sheds and has no improvement, then I would seek another opinion.

[Weda737]

I don't like the look of swelling in and around that eye, I don't like that you can see veins over the eye either, I'm no vet by any means but I'd personally be worried about that eye rupturing, especially if he rubs it while shedding. I've never seen this myself in snakes and I could be wrong, but if it were me I would "fork it out" in this case.