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Squashed Tail

R

rweighell

New member
As I was getting Rusty out today, the lid of his viv shut on his tail

He flinched slightly, but it didn't seem to faze him - I fed him straight after, and he ate normally and is now back in his viv

I couldn't see any signs of damage, but it's a wooden lid so I'm a bit concerned

I think it was about 3 inches from the tip of his tail, so I'm not sure if I might have caused some serious damage

Any suggestions?
 
There's not too much you can do at this point but keep an eye on him. If there was any damage it may heal itself. You can feel the area, but even if the area was damaged slightly there is nothing you can do. I have shut a rack container on a head or tail over the years with no damage except to my ego. Now, if you see any skin/scale damage you can put some antibiotic cream on it to prevent infection. Hope Rusty doesn't hold it against you.
 
Snakes are pretty tough. I've found lots of snakes in the wild over the years with parts of their tail damaged or missing, and they seemed perfectly OK.

Heck when I was a youngster and my parents took me down to Florida for a vacation, I plucked a rather large yellow rat snake out of a palm tree behind the motel we were staying at. The snake had large scars all over his body, so he apparently had a rather rough and tumble life. Snake did just fine in captivity, and not surprising at all, seemed fine with the captive life. I even accidentally left the top of his cage off a couple of times, and he had no desire whatsoever to return to a life in the wild. He crawled out of the cage, but just coiled up on top of it and stayed there till I found him. He was a real puppy dog to be handled, so I really think he appreciated the upgrade to his living situation.
 
I've been monitoring him for the past two weeks and there's no skin damage or ruptures, etc. Just a hard lump, which I suspect is probably his bones?
He, again, doesn't flinch when you touch it - I've had him out multiple times since, and fed him again - and can hold his tail up normally and is acting no different

It looks like I might have broken something, but I suppose you're right in that there's nothing I can do

I'll conti he to keep an eye on him anyway

Thank you both for your reply!
 
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