• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

Burn or something else?

S

Snekkoingrass

New member
Hello!
I am new to this forum and to the world of herps. Bought my first corn about a week ago and he was in shed so I've just now been able to exam him and I've noticed an odd patch on his back. It seems the scales in this spot are a little rough and almost wrinkled (if I had to choose a word for it) they also are a little darker and discolored. The spot doesn't seem to bother him at all and I'm wondering if it's a burn mark from the past or maybe scratches? I've tried looking into it and I can't find any answers. Sorry if the photo isn't great but it's pretty small and hard to capture in a photo!
 

Attachments

  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    153.6 KB · Views: 63
I am sure someone smarter than me will chime in soon! The only advice I have to give is maybe get it checked by a vet.
It would probably be helpful to the smart people to have a little info to give better advice. Like where and when you got him, and how he was being kept there.
Also, how is he being kept now? Thpe of enclosure, temps, heating method, if you have it regulated, if there is tape or anything else he could have injured himself on, a full body photo maybe, how often he is fed and it it is live or f/t....
More info is always better in this type of question.

Sent from my SM-G903W using Tapatalk
 
I've seen snakes bitten by mice and rats that had some marks similar to that which take a long time to fully heal (several sheds). Perhaps the owner(s) before you fed "Live Prey?" It's not a good idea to do that for that reason. It doesn't look like a burn to me. And how would a snake get burned on its back anyway? It just looks to me like tiny individual punctures that are now in the healing process.
 
We had a student bring a corn snake into the biology department at the university. It had severe burns along a third of its back from a heat rock. It was a strange place to see the burns, but some of the scales did resemble the scales on your new guy. It healed up fine, though it took a while, and the snake is doing well, despite serious scarring from the burns.

Karl also has a good point. For such a tiny area to be affected, it may well have been scratched by live prey. It's hard to tell just by looking, but it seems to be healed up for the most part. The scales may smooth out over time with each shed, or they may not. Just keep an eye on him when he sheds to make sure it doesn't want to get hung up over that area, and enjoy your new sweetheart!
 
Keep on eye on it, but it looks to me like something long past and fully healed if it ever was a injury. Do you know how old the snake is? My 13 year old has some wrinkled scales. Since we don't know the history it could be anything.

Honestly, when I see similar on my older girl I just think old age. It's more appearant on your amel than on my normal, but basically looks the same. The extra pigment can be age as well.
 
Thank you for the replies. He's never been fed live prey so I don't think it could be from that! His old owner had mounted a heat lamp through the top of the viv, so I'm wondering if he burned himself on the bulb long ago, for this reason I keep both his lights out on top of the cage.
 
Oh yeah, at three I wouldn't expect it from old age. I'm guessing it was that light. May have been a minor burn. That would be my bet. In any case it does not look like anything requiring anything on your part at this time.

You can alway go to the reptile vet for a general check up just for your peace of mind. It doesn't hurt and establishes you as a client which is a good thing. I did one of those peace of mind visits for my rescue recently and I have no regrets. It gave me exactly what I went there for.
 
Looks like a scratch or minor burn - but on its way for healing. I would expect it to look a little more healed within 2-3 shed cycles. I definitely agree about the merits of a wellness check with a good reptile vet. Now is a good time because you don't have to worry about taking your snake outside when it is snowing. Call around to different reptile vets and find someone who can guide you on the phone is ideal.

Best of luck!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top