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"Conehead" Adult Corn?

Talesse

Talesse

New member
Hello everybody, this is my new 3 year old anery corn snake, named Gibbs, that I purchased off Kijiji back in January when the owners were moving to another province and couldn't take him with them. He's in pretty good condition with no mites or stuck shed and is very friendly and curious. Even though the previous owners obviously cared about him, he only had a single hide in his tank that was above an unregulated UTH. :nope:

The interesting thing about him is that Gibbs has an obvious lump right on top of his head, which you can see in the photos below. I looked it up, and it seems that the "conehead" shape is caused by temperature spikes during incubation. I also read that the babies with it tend not to survive and that adults will usually grow out of it, but there was otherwise not much information that I could find about adults with the condition.

Has anyone else encountered this in a full-grown corn snake before? It doesn't seem to affect him at all since he feeds just fine and the only difference is his visual appearance.

I guess I'm just curious if anyone else has a snake like him or any experience with it. :) Thanks for reading!

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Awww, I want to make a little paper top hat and put it over his bump. Seriously though, I have never seen this personally so I can't offer much, he sure seems healthy and happy though.
 
He's a character! I hatched one that did not live, unfortunately. Very interesting to see an adult. I can say it's the first adult "conehead" I have seen. What a survivor!
 
aweee, yeah he looks like he got bumped on the head! :(:O
what a cutie!

He's a handsome looking boy though!

wish I could offer more insight but you already seem to know the same things that I know about "cone headed corns".. If it dose not effect him, and he's healthy. I would just consider him special for making it as a hatchling and still having his little "cap" as an adult..

He's also very lucky to have found you!
I'm sure he's loving his new home. :eek:
 
Thanks so much for posting, everyone!

I think he's pretty adorable too. :p He's the first adult corn I've closely interacted with, so seeing a normal corn up close in person will seem weird after having him, haha!

I wonder if there was anything unusual or special about him that allowed him to survive, or if it was just luck. :)
 
He's so adorable! Cone heads were a First Nations status symbol in the early 19th century ( other cultures too of course) but because your Canadian... I would name him Chief! ;)

I also have no advise, but I'll totally follow this thread hoping someone more experienced chips in....I would like to know if there's any health concern for him or if anyone else has a snake with a cone head! You definitely have a special corn! :)
 
WestCoast_Redneck said:
He's so adorable! Cone heads were a First Nations status symbol in the early 19th century ( other cultures too of course) but because your Canadian... I would name him Chief! ;)

I also have no advise, but I'll totally follow this thread hoping someone more experienced chips in....I would like to know if there's any health concern for him or if anyone else has a snake with a cone head! You definitely have a special corn! :)
Click to expand...

Hey that's interesting, thanks! "Gibbs" is the name the previous owners had for him, though I may use Chief as a nickname.

I forgot to mention that his bump is not soft at all, but is very firm, so it's probably a misshapen skull.

I will come back and check for posts again tomorrow!
 
I think he's beautiful and you're lucky to have him!
First one I've ever seen or heard of for that matter.
His uniqueness makes him special

Enjoy!
 
Has he been checked by a vet?

Not to rain on the parade, but that looks more like a growth or tumor (they can be firm and hard), or possibly a spinal kink.

Babies that survive with cone heads have nearly flat heads has adults, once the bones of the skull flatten and fuse.

This guy really needs to be seen by a vet.
 
I was thinking it could be a kink right behind the skull... I dunno. Seems too symmetrical to be a tumor.
 
BloodyBaroness said:
Has he been checked by a vet?

Not to rain on the parade, but that looks more like a growth or tumor, or possibly a spinal kink.

This guy really needs to be seen by a vet.
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You can have a vet look at him for sure, but if it is in fact a growth or tumor, that's not only a very expensive operation, but also very risky for a cornsnake.
My father in law is a vet, and to be quite frank...It's unlikely that this is a curable deformity. You can ask a vet's advise but my guess is they wont have much to offer besides having xrays to show you the cause of this lump. You may not expect a 'normal' life expectancy typical of a corn with this guy, but what can ya do? Tumor, growth, birth defect or old injury....If the snake is eating and acting normal, I would continue enjoying his uniqueness. Otherwise, I really don't see the need for a veterinarian intervention unless his health is noticeably compromised. Strictly my personal opinion as others will disagree which is what this forum is all about! Wouldn't be any good if everyone gave the same advise ;)
 
Treasure him and even more so fore being so rare and lucky. I'm a big fan of things that make an animal unique andGibbs has got it in spades.
 
WestCoast_Redneck said:
You can have a vet look at him for sure, but if it is in fact a growth or tumor, that's not only a very expensive operation, but also very risky for a cornsnake.
My father in law is a vet, and to be quite frank...It's unlikely that this is a curable deformity. You can ask a vet's advise but my guess is they wont have much to offer besides having xrays to show you the cause of this lump. You may not expect a 'normal' life expectancy typical of a corn with this guy, but what can ya do? Tumor, growth, birth defect or old injury....If the snake is eating and acting normal, I would continue enjoying his uniqueness. Otherwise, I really don't see the need for a veterinarian intervention unless his health is noticeably compromised. Strictly my personal opinion as others will disagree which is what this forum is all about! Wouldn't be any good if everyone gave the same advise ;)
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With a bump like that, it would be well worth the peace of mind to have a vet look at it. At least to make sure it is not impacting the quality of life at all. It's not normal. Odds are it's a pronounced spinal kink, but it would be nice to know Gibbs/Chief is comfortable.
 
BloodyBaroness said:
Has he been checked by a vet?

Not to rain on the parade, but that looks more like a growth or tumor (they can be firm and hard), or possibly a spinal kink.

Babies that survive with cone heads have nearly flat heads has adults, once the bones of the skull flatten and fuse.

This guy really needs to be seen by a vet.
Click to expand...

Parade raining is good here, that's the info I'm looking for. I haven't had him checked by a vet yet, since I figured that if he's been okay with it so far, that he'll survive (this is in my extreme inexperience though). I have read that surviving babies with it will grow out of it because it's a developmental issue, so that's why I want everybody's opinion on it. :) I feel like I may have given the impression that he's some sort of special snake, when really, he may just be very sick.

Not to be a bad snake owner, but I just feel reluctant to bring him to the vet just yet. If you have any more info about growths or spinal kinks for corns at all, could you send me a message please? It would help me a lot to know what course of action to take.

WestCoast_Redneck said:
You can have a vet look at him for sure, but if it is in fact a growth or tumor, that's not only a very expensive operation, but also very risky for a cornsnake.
My father in law is a vet, and to be quite frank...It's unlikely that this is a curable deformity. You can ask a vet's advise but my guess is they wont have much to offer besides having xrays to show you the cause of this lump. You may not expect a 'normal' life expectancy typical of a corn with this guy, but what can ya do? Tumor, growth, birth defect or old injury....If the snake is eating and acting normal, I would continue enjoying his uniqueness. Otherwise, I really don't see the need for a veterinarian intervention unless his health is noticeably compromised. Strictly my personal opinion as others will disagree which is what this forum is all about! Wouldn't be any good if everyone gave the same advise ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info as well! This, and any other opinions, are what I'm looking for (although I feel silly asking for advice only to say no to the option of a vet).
 
Could a kinked spine be caused by an injury, or are snakes born with it? Here are some more photos from various angles. (By the way, does he look a bit overweight? He was being fed a small rat every two weeks before, but since I got him, he's been getting an adult mouse every two weeks instead.)

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