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Tail tip injury, help!

T

toisaan

New member
Okay, so what happened was, that when my son was handling the snake, it sled off his hands and onto the floor as he tried to turn around on my sons hand. I acted on reflex and wanted to pick him up fast, and his tip ended up under the wheel of my computer chair.

I tried calling the vet, but as it's sunday it's for emergency only, and the lady who talked to me said she didn't know much about reptiles, other than that they are sturdy and heal in nature, and that it should be fine. I'm going to the vet tomorrow to see if anyboy else there has knowledge about reptiles, as I'm scared he could get an infection.

Here is a picture of it. You can see the skin has peeled from where it got hurt. There is also excessive skin from his last shed. I live in Norway, and reptiles has not been allowed here before august 2017




We just got him two days ago, and today was the first time handling him since we brought him home. We have waited for a month after we bought him to get him home, as we've been waiting to move into a new appartment, and we didn't want him to have to move twice.

I live in Norway, and reptiles has not been allowed here before august 2017. I got no one around here to ask for help except the vet which didn't help much. I'm just hoping that the vet I spoke to is right, and that the wound will heal by itself. I'm also hoping there is something I can do for him to help.
 
There's no way to reattach the skin now. If it was my corn I would cut off the damaged skin as close to the snake's body as possible. Then I would use antibiotic cream on the wound. I always keep a tube of triple antibiotic on hand just in case of emergencies. The snake should heal rapidly, but preventing infection is important.
 
So I took him to a vet today who has lived in the UK and has some experience with snakes, and he said the snake will be fine, but that he’ll lose the tip. I got some antibiotic cream to use once every day for seven days. Thank god.

Now, at the pet store he has been fed every five days, and it’s been five days now - but the little guy has been through a lot since friday. Should I wait with the food, in case it comes back up again? And how about during the antibiotic treatment, as he shouldnt be handled for a while after feeding?

He has been handled every day in the pet store, but they’ve waited 24 hours after feeding him before handling again. Such a calm snake, even after the accident he’s calm and easy.
 
You can handle him gently, since you need to apply the antibiotic cream anyway. I'd probably wait a few days to attempt to feed him, but if he is calm it won't hurt to offer him his meal. I don't handle my snakes after they eat until they defecate, or at least 3 days so the mouse is digested. Glad you have a good vet.
 
Okies - so I've treated my snake with antibiotics for 7 days (wednesday-wednesday). He's been eating and pooping normally, so thats good.

He is now entering a shedding phase, and is "blue" as we speak. I'm not sure what to expect as his tail is still injured. I have no clue how this will affect his shedding, or if it will hurt the poor guy. Any ideas?

He has had problems with getting it all off on the tip at the pet store a few times before, so I think I'm going to add a moist hide for him. I've also changed from aspen to forest floor to keep the humidity higher and more stable in my Exo Terra.
 
Nanci said:
Has the injured part fallen off yet? It might, with the shed.
Click to expand...

It did! He shed last night, and it all came off perfectly in one piece with a tiny part like this ‘—‘ of his tail at the end of it. You can’t even tell that he had the injury now :D
 
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