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Ruptured Abscess on Male corn snake.

SnakeLuv

SnakeLuv

New member
So Frost, my male Blizzard corn, is having recurring issues with Abscesses along his back. He's been to the vet, and has had dual heavy rounds of anti biotic shots which I had to administer for three weeks (1 type one day, 1 type the next day, one day off for three weeks). Although the infection itself seems to be under control, I cannot seem to get the horrible wound to close, nor can I seem to get the material left behind from the infection to completely drain out. Since its so thick it takes some work to clean the wound. He just finished shed today, and needless ot say I had to assist him around the wound to make sure all bad skin was out of the way..

I was informed to keep the wound as clean as possible, flushing it with Betadine /H2O solution and dressing it with Furisan antibiotic ointment. I was told not to cover it, and treat it as an open wound.


It's been an additional 2 weeks since the abscess ruptured the first time... It had healed to a scab, only to have teh cavity created by the old puss refill and re-reupture again the other day.

I don't have much money... and wondered if anyone had experience treating such wounds. Should I ask for another round of antibiotics??

The snake is roughly 4 feet long. Before his shed and during the antibiotic treatment, he DID accept food. I have not tried to feed him yet since the shed, so I'm not sure he'll eat or not. I will update this when I know. He's still relatively active, and is not limp-bodied when handled for cleaning (in fact he took a nice bite of my finger this morning! LOL)

Here's the wounds below.. warning it's graphic-looking. :(

25760_1413722826192_1326188275_1163531_4201716_n.jpg


25760_1413722786191_1326188275_1163530_1137413_n.jpg
 
More antibiotics, I'd say, perhaps with a swab cultured to try to find out if there's resistance to the ones already used. As you were advised, keep cleaning it and don't let the scab form, as the pus will build up again.
 
Ew... poor thing. I would definitely ask for as much anti-biotics as possible. I would also clean that out AT LEAST once a day. Also, if you haven't yet, put him on paper towels instead of aspen/bark.

Just my 2 cents. If you still cannot get it to heal or this keeps recurring, and you cannot afford it, maybe you should consider either giving/selling him to someone who can (or even putting him down if it gets real bad). An open sore like that looks.. well, really bad. I would definitely say it would probably be easy to get it infected...


And I agree with the above post. See if he's getting resistant to what anti-biotics your using.

Oh, and I remember when my leopard gecko had a hole eaten into her tail by a mealworm, the vet put some sort of glue in the wound and after it healed, there was hardly a scar. Maybe something like that could be done to this to help it along? I'm not really sure, just trying to help...
 
I'd ask the vet, but I wonder if weak Betadine soaks, followed by silver sulfadine cream, would help. Does it smell bad? It's good that it's open- that allows it to remain cleaner, and to heal from the inside out.
 
It smelled bad after it rutptured but once cleaned out the smell went away. I clean it once a day sometimes two with a betadine flush, and applying Furisan cream to it. This would only be his second round of antibiotics.

As I've said I've had him for 6 years now (Least I think I said that, lol) and he's very sentimental to me, so giving him up is a last resort. I will do what I can to get the funds to take care of him, as I'm not an irresponsible owner. :D

Oh oh, and he's on newspaper / papertowel bedding right now that I change daily.

And as far as the glue I was told to treat this as an open wound. Closing it with glue will only cause the pus problem to reoccur. Since the second rupture I have not had a lot of pus material like I did the first time. It's stayed relatively fresh looking like that picture. also, the only portion that seems to cause him any pain is at the bump closer to the head.
 
Update: He refused food for the first time since I got him today. :(

Then again it could be me being panicky about the wound / stress I have to put him under to clean him.

Last night he shed.

Last time he ate was about 2.5 weeks ago. I gav him one mouse, pre-killed. This was JUSt before the first abscess ruptured and after the vet visit. So he took the food even while gettings shots.

Now should I worry yet... As I have a routine where I feed every other week on these corns and I feed them pre-killed / stunned mice. He has refused... I think ONCE before but I don't remember the circumstances of his refusal.

I know corns have a higher metabolism than other bigger snakes... so I'm nto sure on how long they can go between meals before it starts getting bad.

Calling the vet on Monday (They are closed today and tomorrow) to see about refills on shots.
 
SnakeLuv said:
Update: He refused food for the first time since I got him today. :(

Then again it could be me being panicky about the wound / stress I have to put him under to clean him.

Last night he shed.

Last time he ate was about 2.5 weeks ago. I gav him one mouse, pre-killed. This was JUSt before the first abscess ruptured and after the vet visit. So he took the food even while gettings shots.

Now should I worry yet... As I have a routine where I feed every other week on these corns and I feed them pre-killed / stunned mice. He has refused... I think ONCE before but I don't remember the circumstances of his refusal.

I know corns have a higher metabolism than other bigger snakes... so I'm nto sure on how long they can go between meals before it starts getting bad.

Calling the vet on Monday (They are closed today and tomorrow) to see about refills on shots.
Click to expand...

He has been under a lot of stress it is natural he should refuse food. Don't worry he looks to be healthy weight I would give him another week or two before offering him food again. Let him heal some and the antibiotics to do there job before offering it to him again.
 
I'm so sorry to hear about your snake. I hope that he makes a full recovery. You sound like a good snake mom! Keep us updated. He should be ok for a while without food. Apparently some males take themselves off food during the spring mating season for a couple months sometimes. So I wouldn't be too worried about a couple weeks :)
 
Yeah I recently switched him to a Infra-red bulb too, instead of the white light. That way I can just leave him alone accept for the cleanings and the shots. Hopefully if the vet OKs the second round of antibiotics he will heal up.
 
I have a question... Sorry but it is about this topic. What is it that causes Snakes to get these abscess'? Is there any way to prevent them?
 
One of my macaws was attacked and badly injured by a larger macaw a few months ago. He never got an abscess, but it took MONTHS for him to heal. It looked terrible, like your snake's wound does, but in the end, all was well. He's healed, now, and he's allowing his feathers to grow back, which is a good thing, as feather plucking can become a habit. He got antibiotics in his water, and lots of gentle showers, but he's not a snake, and I don't know how meds and treatment would differ.

Still 'n' all, Kenobi looked at LEAST that bad for a long time, and he's ok, now. Hopefully your snake will be, too, over time :).
 
Good luck with your little guy. If snake wound care is anything like human wound care, I think patience and persistence will be important in getting him healthy again. I am sure it's really tough for you to go through this and I'm thinking about both of you.
 
To answer the Abscess question, Frost got his from me being irresponsible and feeding live mice thinking he could kill it before it bit him. The bite got infected, the infection caused swelling, which lead to the abscess. :( I also neglected to take him to a vet when it was small. Two mistakes I could have not made if I were being a little more responsible with my husbandry.

Update: Frost is going on a second round of anti-biotics. Dr. Funk here in Arizona is worried that he may become Septic if he doesn't get it under control. Another portion of the abscess came open, which I'm actually glad it did (saved the doctor from lancing it) and I was able to get the pus material out and flush it with Betadine / H2O. The snake is not resistant to anti-biotics, the infection is just so bad that the first round didn't get it all.

Cross your fingers. :( I hope he pulls through this.



Update 2: Ghost, his female counter part has laid me a clutch of 10 eggs! (she was gravid prior to the first abscess rupturing. :))
 
I have dealt with reoccurring abscesses in Guinea Pigs. You have to keep it open so that it heals inside out. Lance it if needed, keep it drained and clean it out at least 3 times a day. This keeps infection out completely. When giving food I would offer food half the size of normal meals so his skin doesn't have to stretch very much and doesn't cause discomphort making him refuse or even regurge. I would up how often you clean it and if you have not already, up the temp in the viv a degree or two to help his immune system. Other than cleaning try to keep it dry and don't use anything similar to triple antibiotic ointment as it will encourage the wound to close and be counter productive. Good luck and I will watch for updates!
 
Have your vet order you a tube of HomeoPet Pro HP Healing Cream. I know that MWI Veterinary Supply carries it and probably other distributors as well. I have seen this product in action and it is amazing at helping open wounds heal rapidly. And the best thing...it's homeopathic!
 
Just make sure it doesn't close the abcess before it cheals inside or it will puss up and re-rupture. Anything that allows the wound to heal outward will be good :)
 
Yeah he told me Furisan will work wonders for it. It's an anti-biotic ointment used in open wounds on horses, but both him AND my mom who was a vet Technician for a number of years have used it on open wounds on reptiles with awesome results. The body portions around the wound are extremely tender... manipulating it even a little to get the puss out of the wounds REALLY stresses him out. Thinking about asking the doctor for some sort of pain med.

I start his second round of anti biotics on Thursday. And good idea on the smaller food, I'll try rat pinkies or fuzzy mice for a while and see if he takes those.
 
Oh goodness I have nothing to add about the actual care of your snake but I just wanted to post up a big hug and warm thoughts that your guy will heal up quickly and completely. You are a great mom, stinks learning hard lessons along the way, but sometimes that is what happens. You are doing such a great job now through this recovery, and I send compliments.
 
Thank you> :) Tonight he actually showed signs of being hungry. Before he wouldn't react to me kneeling down before his tank, now he popped his head out, slithering his tongue and looking for food. :D Will try to feed in a couple days.
 
Update: Frost still hasn't eaten, but the pus seems to be subsiding. I haven't been getting as much in cleanings as before and the swelling is way down. He still looks like crap... BUt he reacts now to when I walk up to the tank, and pokes his head out, where he wouldn't before. Going to try and offer another pinky rat tomorrow and see if he accepts it.

He desperately needs to shed again, as his last one must have been too soon... his scales are rough feeling. I can't really soak him due to the wound so I wrapped up the not wounded portions of him in a damp towel for a while. Seems better today. Will update again when / if he eats.
 
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