Sooty Updates

[Snake lover 3-25]

Yay Sooty ate his first pinky!!!! 6 to be exact!!!! he also had some tilapia!!!! he ate it all like he had nerer eaten before!!!! :D:D he struck at them unlike any garter i have ever seen!!!!:p He ate alot!!! Do snakes know when to stop eating???? or will they just eat and eat until who knows what happens??? also how can i ease his fear of sudden vibrations and movements???? Do any of your snakes act very calm one second and then be off the wall crazy the next???? is that a bad sign???:rolleyes::)

[anji1971]

Good for Sooty!!! He's obviously very hungry! They usually do know when to stop eating though, so I wouldn't worry too much. If he does get a little too much he will most likely regurgitate it, but chances are he just didn't eat a whole lot while he was outside, being that it was mating season and all. He probably had 'other things' on his mind!;)
Just watch that he doesn't eat gi-normous meals too often, or you could end up with an obese snake!

[Snake lover 3-25]

okay thank's anji!!!!:D


also how can i ease his fear of sudden vibrations and movements???? Do any of your snakes act very calm one second and then be off the wall crazy the next???? is that a bad sign???:rolleyes::)
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[adamanteus]

Way to go, Sooty!:D

[Snake lover 3-25]

you like that name don't you LOL:D

[adamanteus]

Yeah, that's a great name! Where did you get it from?:D:rolleyes:

[drache]

way to go Sooty

he'll probably calm down when he becomes more used to his surroundings

[Zephyr]

Sooty?
How odd. My first garter snake's name was Scooty. :P

[Snake lover 3-25]

LOL did james make up that one too???????????!!!:D

[Snake lover 3-25]

so sooty is getting fatter and more pregnant by the day and i've just increased her feedings to 2 x a week......... :D i've moved her to the 20 gal baby proof cage and the others to the kritter keeper........ which my big female, Meadow, hates by the way........ i've begun to get prepared for the babies which will come soon i hope and she's doing great......... but i was wondering............ could she possibly be one of Meadows babies???????? there anen't very many snakes in my yard and she seems to be about the same age as my 2yr old male...... and Meadow had 18 babies 2 without stripes just like her........ and i've never found one without a stripe...... and when i found her she never even struck at me or pooped on me.......... and we did hold the babies alot........... and.......... well......... :confused::rolleyes::rolleyes::confused::D

[Zephyr]

so sooty is getting fatter and more pregnant by the day and i've just increased her feedings to 2 x a week......... :D i've moved her to the 20 gal baby proof cage and the others to the kritter keeper........ which my big female, Meadow, hates by the way........ i've begun to get prepared for the babies which will come soon i hope and she's doing great......... but i was wondering............ could she possibly be one of Meadows babies???????? there anen't very many snakes in my yard and she seems to be about the same age as my 2yr old male...... and Meadow had 18 babies 2 without stripes just like her........ and i've never found one without a stripe...... and when i found her she never even struck at me or pooped on me.......... and we did hold the babies alot........... and.......... well......... :confused::rolleyes::rolleyes::confused::DAnything 's possible. What was the population like in your yard when you found Meadow? Many or few?

[Snake lover 3-25]

few...... and it seems to keep going down....... so i really don't want to release her young in fear that they will all die b4 adulthood........... idk if something is wrong w/ my neighborhood or what....... but i think that this winter may have hurt their pop even more..... both of the two i found were abnormally thin..... sooty was almost to the point of death when found......... so thin..... the other i fed 2 x b4 release and they both ate ferociously when fed minuites after i found them........... :(

[drache]

few...... and it seems to keep going down....... so i really don't want to release her young in fear that they will all die b4 adulthood........... idk if something is wrong w/ my neighborhood or what....... but i think that this winter may have hurt their pop even more..... both of the two i found were abnormally thin..... sooty was almost to the point of death when found......... so thin..... the other i fed 2 x b4 release and they both ate ferociously when fed minuites after i found them........... :(
that's so sad
what kind of area do you live in?
is it one where the remaining green patches have been shrinking?
I think small prey used to be more common around human habitation

[Snake lover 3-25]

no we have lots and lots of land all around us....... i think that it was just the long, hard winter from november till april....:(:(:( but i didn't take the time to take any pics...... i fed her literally the second i found her....:(:(:(

[Snake lover 3-25]

Oh no!!!!!! so she wouldn't eat for on friday.... and the week b4 she only had 1 pinky.... now she seems to have scales peeling off????? and i don't think she's sheding... she never had a blue phase like b4..... she seems extra aggressive.... and she has some kind of brown stuff under her chin....

OMG if she has mouth rot i will DIE!!!!! i couldn't go through that EVER again..... i've already lost one to that.... not again... i can't see one suffer...... waste away.... uuuuu it makes me shake just thinking about it uuuuu

i've put her in the tub... with 1 in of water at the deep end...... 1/2 cm on the shallow.... i don't want to stress her out she's so fat.... what do i do!!!! HELP!!!!!!!!

[adamanteus]

Mouth rot doesn't show externally, Shanley. It's probably poo on her chin! Don't panic. The bath is maybe a good idea though.

[drache]

oh Shanley
I have no idea what to tell you
it sounds nasty

oh good - James answered
I hope it's poo on her chin

[Snake lover 3-25]

it won't cone off and some of the scales on her face are broken..... you can see a layer underneath that wasn't ready to come out...... :(:(:( what's wrong with her did she rub her face too hard against the mesh and hurt herself when she tried to escape the last few days????? HELP!!!!!

[adamanteus]

Can you post a photo of her chin Shanley?

[drache]

it's starting to sound a bit like blisters or scale rot

[Snake lover 3-25]

:(:(:( hold on... she's still in the tub:(:(:(

[adamanteus]

Shanley, don't panic so. Nothings going to happen overnight!

[Snake lover 3-25]

but sometimes it DOES happen overnight....:(:(:(:(

[jeanette]

hi there, calm down for a while and can you describe what the area looks like, is it red and weeping? is it dry and red, does it look swollen?, how many scales do you estimate that she has lost in that area, doesnt have to be an exact amount.

[Snake lover 3-25]

hold on... my camera died but i had time for 1 good pic i'll look for battries while you look at them....

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

darn you shanley and your camera batteries :D

[Zephyr]

Ya know, she probably rubbed some of the scales from the shed off before they were supposed to and the area might have a little bit of scarring. Nothing to worry about it.

[Snake lover 3-25]

GRRRRRR they won't upload!!!!!!!!!:(:(:(

[Snake lover 3-25]

she has a few broken scales and 5-10 scales that are pealing thhat weren't there after she shed last time.... i checked her and her shed which i keep in my shed box.......

[adamanteus]

Try the upload again. Chill, take your time.;)

[Snake lover 3-25]

LOL it just makes me SOOOOO mad...LOL stupid computers

[Snake lover 3-25]

i tried 4 times........??????

[Snake lover 3-25]

7 times.........:confused:

[SpyrotheGartersnake]

way to go sooty!:D:D:D:D:D:D

[Snake lover 3-25]

???????what????????


yey for my secret stash of batteries!!!!!! i took more pics... but i need to sort & upload....:(:(

[Snake lover 3-25]

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//602/medium/IMG_5634.JPG

the broken scale is on the upper left of her nose....

[Snake lover 3-25]

more.... sorry they're not very good.........

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//602/medium/IMG_5644.JPG

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//602/medium/IMG_5669.JPG

the missing scales are on her neck.....

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//602/medium/IMG_5670.JPG

[adamanteus]

We need to see the chin really, Shanley.

[jeanette]

looking at those photos she doesnt look to be in any distress, i would wash the area and possibly put some antibiotic on it (depending how close to her mouth the scales are missing) you dont want to get any in her mouth if you can help it. put her back in her viv with just paper towel substrate and see how she gets on.

[Snake lover 3-25]

hold on......

[Snake lover 3-25]

o it is kind of coming off..... i was holding her for chin pics but it's really crused...... could it be blood??? not enough light for good pics..... can't even tell the snake from my hand..... my camera sucks..... but it seems to be crusted in between the scales under her skin but when she flattens her head to get away wile i'm holding her it's rubbing off..... :confused:

[jeanette]

the easiest way to tell if its blood is with a wet paper towel if the towel turns reddish brown with the flakes that are rubbing off then its probably blood

[Snake lover 3-25]

nope.... their black.......... o..... wait..... think it's dirt???? i forgot i tried to feed her a worm the other day...... could it be caked on worm poop?????


i give up on taking pics of her chin...... she won't cooperate and i don't to risk hurting her or her unborn young....

[Zephyr]

I don't see anything to worry about from the pics... Perhaps you're just a little hyped from the upcoming motherhood. :P

[Snake lover 3-25]

:(:( maybe..... but i'll be even more worried if she doesn't have them soon!!!!!!!:eek:

[Zephyr]

:(:( maybe..... but i'll be even more worried if she doesn't have them soon!!!!!!!:eek:2 weeks off feed doesn't seem like much to me...
And if she's getting ready to shed or something, then it makes even more sense. My ribbon's been off feed for about 2 weeks and she just turned blue today, so I'm not concerned.

[infernalis]

OK I'm going to go out on a limb here, Trust me 100 percent please
I wanted to PM this, and you have PM messages blocked. I don't advocate nor encourage ANYONE to play doctor by reading this.

You may have to ask a vet, or even a human doctor to give the prescription to you, or get some from a friend, or maybe you have some already.

1 percent Silver sulfadiazine cream works miracles. It is an antibiotic cream used primarily for burn victims, and is completely safe for reptiles, it is not a controlled substance nor really a drug, its just a very effective antibiotic cream tested and proven on snakes.

The creams they sell over the counter at human pharmacies or ANY untested treatment intended for anything but reptiles can be fatal, so please do not go buy any creams from "human stores" unless it is known and proven to be effective treating a snake.

do not allow the snake to ingest any, it is poison if taken internally rub some very lightly over any missing scales, and if it is an injury it will prevent infection, if it is an infection, this will kill it. just a tiny dab on a q-tip, and apply to the skin where the scales used to be. do this each evening before you go to bed, the snake will bed down and not "wipe it off" crawling about.

Keep the enclosure as clean as possible, keep the water fresh, and keep the feedings down to a dull roar. Garters will gorge themselves if allowed to.

Zoo med also makes a snake spray called "repti wound healing aid" it's only about $5 a bottle and sold at petco or any bigger pet store.

Missing scales will take more than one shed cycle to return, and there may be some scars afterward, but I have caught snakes that looked like they were in a war, with a little TLC, they came back just fine.

Each and every time I go to see the vet, I keep all the paperwork, diagnosis, symptoms and treatment. That way (in todays economy anyways) when I encounter similar conditions, I know what to do.

The best thing to do is just go see a vet, I understand that unfortunately not everyone can afford to take a garter caught in the yard for a $100 vet visit.

Healthy appetite, and activity are good signs, restlessness is not, and may be an indication of pain.

My little male Puget had 2 blisters that looked like pimples, he suddenly went from Mr quiet, fun to hold to biting me every time I put my hand in his tank, once the pain meds started working, he stopped and returned to normal behavior. (vet prescribed for him, I bit the bullet and took him in)

Without knowing the weight of the snake, and the fact that forcing oral antibiotics is not an easy job, and if unnecessary would only add additional stress, and finally advice from a total stranger on an open forum is never a substitute for seeing a vet, I will not be discussing any oral antibiotics, treatments or pain meds on open forum.

Best of luck with sooty!

Kind regards,
Wayne A. Harvey

[Snake lover 3-25]

i think she's restless bc she wants to get out and have her babies... my other famale did the same 2 wks ago and she was wc as well....:D:D but i'll try bacitracin..... i've used it to bring a snake bach from being so badly injured that you could literally see it's organs and it healed her perfect with only a scar to show:D:D but i think that i'll refrain from doing anything unless it gets worse.... it may just be my eyes playing tricks on me...... haven't gotten a full nights sleep in about 3 wks........