Suboc birth defect..need advice please

[johnbort2]

Another baby came out today. At first I was overjoyed at she appears silver..didn't know they were het for anything. After a closer look my heart sank..just past the vent, there is a gnarly curling kink in the tail. It is past the vent, so I dont think it would hinder defacation, but I don't ever think it could breed. Do you think this one will make it? Should it be culled? The next one I looked at appears to be silver and it has no kinks at all. The previous one I posted looks more normal..what you think? I had a hard time keeping it in focus..sorry

sibling

 

[DaemoNox]

If her vent isnt affected and seems willing to live I'd definatly give her a chance. She would make a really nice pet, I'd even use her in hands-on shows if her personality was good. No sense destroying such a pretty snake with a will to live whose not affected by the deformity.

 

[johnbort2]

Thats what I am thinking. If I can feed her and she can make it, I will keep her.

 

[Hurley]

If the tail is fixed in that position, I'd worry about shedding problems and stangulation of the tail by non-shed skin constricting it if you aren't careful. If that snake were in my hands, I'd seriously consider amputating the tail as far back as I could, right where it starts to curve, to give it a nub tail that should shed normally. It could make a fine pet.

 

[DaemoNox]

That would be a good idea; if you dont then a buildup of dead skin surely will for you, it looks like it would be impossible to remove it all.

 

[ickle_moose]

Possibly a weird way to look at it, but think of all those snakes that lose a good portion of their tales due to bad sheds; perfectly healthy snakes who do just fine without a tail. (Not being a breeder) I'd consider waiting until the next shed then seeing exactly at what point problems occur. If she would lose a certain part of the tail without help shedding anyway, and still be fully functional (and lovely!) then you can make a more informed choice whether to amputate or not. The portion of the body that this deformity occurs I wouldn't see culling as the only option, though again all of this advice come from a semi-lurking non-breeder

 

[nehpets1]

Someone really should work a project on kinks, but it seem cruel, don't you think>

If it's genetic, and you breed kinky snakes together, you'd have a tubfull of kinky babies that could only be culled.

If it's a temp problem, then you futz with the temps during incubation, and have health problems almost guaranteed, and the young must be culled.

If its humidity, same problem

Can you justify doing the project for the sake of knowing the sourve o kinks?

And I would amputate the tail if you can. I had a kinked that I tried to keep as a pet, but the area past the king died, and grew gangrenous.

That snake lost it's life, but not before much pain from a BAD idea on my part.

 

[johnbort2]

How do you amputate that part of the tail? Is this something a vet has to do? Thanks

John

 

[old-speckled-hen]

i dont think i would do that myself..
if i did id use an elastic band and lots of ointment ..

but yea id ask the vet..lol

 

[Raiden The Almighty]

I don't know to much about spinal kinks but if i were you I wouldn't breed any of the hatchling of that clutch. If it is genetic there probably all het for it and i couldn't take that risk but thats just my opinion.

 

[dionythicus]

It looks more like an accident in the egg, not a genetic trait. I had a hatchling last year that had completely tied its entire lower half into a true knot and didn't make survive. Knots like that happen while the baby is floating and turning inside the egg.