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large bulge

It's about the level of the heart, it looks like to me.

I was thinking about that, too. But surely even a non herp vet would see that on an x ray? I just don't know enough about it to comment. But it SEEMS like a heart related problem would look way different than a partially digested mouse. Maybe Susan has seen enough x rays to comment on the reading of them by non herp vets.
 
Wow, I can not offer any help but I can offer my prayers for you snake. It certainly looks very alarming and I would be very concerned. If I were you I would get a second opinion like from the vet that was already mentioned earlier in this thread, Dr. Nakamura was it?
 
What doesn't fit is the size of the lump, the time frame and no mouse bones seen on the x-ray. If that large of a lump is the mouse, it hasn't been digested and bones would show in the x-ray. Also, as PJ said, it would be very rotten by now and the snake would be very sick and should have regurged it if possible. If I'm wrong and it really is the mouse and it has been digested but hasn't moved out of the stomach to be absorbed, then there has to be a blockage preventing it from moving along the digestive tract. Your vet should know this and "more lube" is not going to help. If he's going to give the snake anything, it should be barium to actually verify there is a blockage.

Barium is a harmless material that is given orally and shows up like a lit Christmas tree at midnight on an x-ray. X-rays are taken throughout the day and maybe even into the next day to track the movement of the barium along the digestive tract. If it hits a point and stops, or outlines a foreign object, then you know exactly what you are dealing with.

I am more concerned that the lump is soft and squishy. That does not suggest to me that it's a mass or a mouse. It might be an abscess, a fluid-filled cyst or just swollen/inflamed tissue. If it really is the stomach (hard to tell exactly where along the snake it is by your photos), there is something else that needs to be ruled out. You haven't mentioned any history of regurges, but there doesn't have to be any for it to be crypto. My recommendation...take your snake and the x-ray to another herp vet.
 
Thanks, Susan...

Those were things I was thinking, but haven't had enough experiences with x rays to say for sure.

I wasn't thinking of crypto because from everything I read, it sounds like it is a stomach wall thickening that is usually observed, and this seems too high. But I suspected a vet SHOULD be able to tell more from that x ray than the vets have told her. I think your recommendation for another vet (a good herp vet) evaluation is what I would do if it was my snake.
 
I have a caramel stipre with close to the same problem. The lump is not as big as yours tho. Its way far up to be poop or food. But it just come on over night. I don't now what to do. I hope everything works out, for mine and yours.
 
Had a female get a large lump this year, but it was because her eggs pushed everything back. She had some very large eggs. But this looks very nasty. Hope evrything turns out okay...
 
Update #2

Thanks to all for the concern and suggestions.
There hasn't been much change. He shed a couple of days ago. He's acting normal and healthy. I wanted to try to get some food in him and see if this would get things moving, so I fed him two fuzzies. He ate them right up and didn't seem to have any problem. This makes me even more skeptical that the bulge is an undigested mouse. I did notice there's another smaller bulge down where his stomach is. I assume this is, in fact, a mouse, but I obviously have no way of knowing. I did see him drinking from his bowl the other day so I know he's at least getting water when he needs it.

One thing did occur to me...
I don't think he's pooped since his last major feeding about 2 weeks ago. So, we gave him a soak for about 15 minutes to see if that would help. So far, nothing. I don't know if the bulge is related to the possible constipation but I thought it was worth a try. Is there a better treatment for constipation than soaking?
 
I would hold off on any more food and get him to a herp vet. That first bulge is not a mouse for sure and if he has a blockage of some sort food will only complicate things. Most cysts would have hardened by now, but I have no clue what else would cause such a mass. Good luck with him:)
 
I have no idea what that bulge could be, dcrocker, and I don't have anything more helpful than prayers. I hope all turns out well for you and your snake. I'd definitely take him and his x-rays to see an experienced herp vet ASAP.
 
That looks alot like what happened to my 11 year old girl Keeper. After numerous vet visits, and barium tests the vet still could not figure out what was wrong. She stopped eating and I had to have her euthanized....

It sounds like you are doing everything right though. Please keep us updated.
 
Final update

Well, we took him to see Dr. Nakamura (great guy, by the way...very knowledgeable and helpful). The diagnosis is that it's likely a tumor. He looked at the x-rays I had from the other dr. and also looked at the bulge with ultrasound. He offered to do a biopsy and said that surgery and chemo would be options if it turned out to be cancerous. But, given that the snake is 8 years old, we decided further tests and/or treatment weren't justified.
The Dr. said he wasn't in pain and as long as he could eat, he'd still have a good quality of life. We'll feed him fuzzies on a more frequent schedule and see how things go. The Dr. did say that given how quickly the tumor appeared, he probably won't last long.
I wanted to thank everyone for their support.
 
I am sorry to hear that it was not very good news! I wish you and your snake the best for his remaining days. (((HUGS)))
 
I'm sorry to hear that prognosis. When it's one of mine, I'd rather know what's going on than continue wondering. It sounds like you're doing exactly the right thing for his remaining time.
 
dcrocker said:
Well, we took him to see Dr. Nakamura (great guy, by the way...very knowledgeable and helpful). The diagnosis is that it's likely a tumor. He looked at the x-rays I had from the other dr. and also looked at the bulge with ultrasound. He offered to do a biopsy and said that surgery and chemo would be options if it turned out to be cancerous. But, given that the snake is 8 years old, we decided further tests and/or treatment weren't justified.
The Dr. said he wasn't in pain and as long as he could eat, he'd still have a good quality of life. We'll feed him fuzzies on a more frequent schedule and see how things go. The Dr. did say that given how quickly the tumor appeared, he probably won't last long.
I wanted to thank everyone for their support.
Click to expand...

I just caught this thread and as I was reading along I was thinking something along these lines or what Susan was talking about earlier.

I had a very old blizzard that developed something similar to what you are seeing. I had it a couple more years beyond that with no ill effects...ate fine, defecated fine, shed fine. All fecal tests were clean and it did not appear to be in pain when the region was touch or manipulated. I eventually gave it away as a pet and to my knowledge the lump is still there and it is still alive.
 
ceduke said:
I'm glad you like Dr. Nakamura, and sorry that the news was not good. :(
Click to expand...

Yes, thanks for the reference. It was a good one. Even though the news wasn't good, it's nice not to have to wonder what's going on and whether or not there's anything we can do.
 
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