bitsy
Owned by Corns since 1991
I've been asked for advice and I just wanted to see if I've covered all bases.
A friend's daughter has a five year old Corn. His last shed left a scrap of old skin round one nostril. They bathed it with a cotton wool bud (this is a very patient snake!) and managed to soften it and remove the shed skin that was around the outside. However, they think they can see more inside the nostril that appears to be blocking it and they can't reach it.
There are no signs of other trouble so far - no wheezing or hissy breathing sounds, mucous or behaviour that might indicate that it's irritating. However, they're naturally keen to deal with it quickly so that it doesn't get infected or start to interefere badly with his breathing.
I've advised them on how to create a humid hide and suggested that they leave the Corn in there for a couple of hours with a damp towel in the bottom. My reasoning is that if the shed is softened, the snake might dislodge it while he's burrowing around looking for a way out.
Other than that, I think it's going to need a vet with a pair of very thin-nosed tweezers, to pick the shed scrap out once it's been soaked and softened. I can't think of any safe technique that I could advise on, that they could do at home.
Can anyone think of anything else they could try?
I should add that all of this was described over the phone - they live quite a way from me and I can't get there to check it in person.
A friend's daughter has a five year old Corn. His last shed left a scrap of old skin round one nostril. They bathed it with a cotton wool bud (this is a very patient snake!) and managed to soften it and remove the shed skin that was around the outside. However, they think they can see more inside the nostril that appears to be blocking it and they can't reach it.
There are no signs of other trouble so far - no wheezing or hissy breathing sounds, mucous or behaviour that might indicate that it's irritating. However, they're naturally keen to deal with it quickly so that it doesn't get infected or start to interefere badly with his breathing.
I've advised them on how to create a humid hide and suggested that they leave the Corn in there for a couple of hours with a damp towel in the bottom. My reasoning is that if the shed is softened, the snake might dislodge it while he's burrowing around looking for a way out.
Other than that, I think it's going to need a vet with a pair of very thin-nosed tweezers, to pick the shed scrap out once it's been soaked and softened. I can't think of any safe technique that I could advise on, that they could do at home.
Can anyone think of anything else they could try?
I should add that all of this was described over the phone - they live quite a way from me and I can't get there to check it in person.
