Help with Kingsnake!!!

[GarterGeek]

My Appalachicola Kingsnake, Dorian, is preparing to shed again, this time I noticed deformities on some of his scales. I did a lot of internet browsing but still don't know what this is! Does anybody have any ideas about what this is and how I should treat it?

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//681/medium/100_4151.jpg

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//681/medium/100_4152.jpg

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//681/medium/100_4153.jpg

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//681/medium/100_4154.jpg

Here is some background information that may help:

Dorian sheds nearly every two weeks, I have attributed this to his rapid growth as he has grown from 1.5ft to 3ft in a single year. Dorian generally has trouble shedding on his own and I place him in a bucket with a moist rag daily when he is preparing to shed. (I don't know whether I should put him in the bucket this time, because I'm worried that it may hurt him if he has an infection; however, I do not think he'll have a succesful shed without it. What should I do?)

When summer started I switched his heat-lamp off. I also cleaned and rearranged his aquarium. - Both were probably bad ideas. When I noticed the strange scales, I immediately turned his heat-lamp back on. - He curled up under it right away.

Dorian's behavior has been normal. He does not seem sensitive in the areas with the deformities, and has been active as usual. Of course since he's preparing to shed, he's been less active and has done a lot of soaking.

I'm very upset about this and I would appreciate any ideas and advice. Thank you!

[drache]

it looks like some kind of surface injury
since he's grown this much, is it possible that he's scraping against something in the enclosure?

[guidofatherof5]

It does look like a possible injury. It doesn't look swollen and doesn't appear to have any discharge.
I don't think using a shed box would cause any problems.
After the shed I'd be interested in seeing a photo.
Do you have any Silver Sulfadiazine(Silver sulfadiazine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_sulfadiazine)) or Neosporin(Neosporin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neosporin)) that you could apply after the shed?
Please keep us informed about this situation.
Best of luck.

[mustang]

O wow neosporan works on snakes too?????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[GarterGeek]

Thank you so much! I'm so relieved. I had been imagining all sorts of fatal infections. :rolleyes:

I have a good supply of Neosporin. :) I actually used it on one of my garters years ago when he had blisters because I was novice enough to try and grow mint in his aquarium.

[MasSalvaje]

O wow neosporan works on snakes too?????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is always an antibiotic, you could lather some on an apple and it would "work".

-Thomas

[mustang]

It is always an antibiotic, you could lather some on an apple and it would "work".

-Thomas
ha itll look waxy....so ill have a fake fake apple hahaha thats awesome

[mustang]

Thank you so much! I'm so relieved. I had been imagining all sorts of fatal infections. :rolleyes:

I have a good supply of Neosporin. :) I actually used it on one of my garters years ago when he had blisters because I was novice enough to try and grow mint in his aquarium.
while you grew it did the snake poop smell "minty fresh"?

[GarterGeek]

Actually no, the moisture from watering the plant made it worse because it didn't get the chance to dry-out. It was a terrible, terrible idea. I'm still embarrassed when I think about it. :o

[Snakeknot]

Live and learn. At least you didn't lose him from it! And from reading your post, I now know not to do that.

Devon

[Spankenstyne]

Garter Geek, It's a minor case of scale rot. They (kingsnakes in particular) seem to be pretty succeptible to it & it should be gone in a shed or two max. It can be something as easy to miss as a spilled water dish or a poop that escaped detection for a few days that it layed in proximity of, well you get the idea. Basically excess moisture that it can't (or won't) escape or some soiled damp areas it happens to be resting in.

It used to drive me nuts on my Kings as I'm pretty anal about cleanliness but it still happened once in a while. As long as you keep it clean & dry and as mentioned some neosporin or polysporin should also help it heal up quicker. Not to worry about unless it gets noticeably worse/larger.

Here's a link to some info and pics of a Cal King with a worse case than you're looking at that still wasn't bad either. It looks a bit different in this case because it's a wider area that's affected but you can see the discolouration and deformity of the scales:
T and J's Cornsnakes - Scale Rot (http://www.tandjscorns.com/scale_rot.htm)

[GarterGeek]

Garter Geek, It's a minor case of scale rot. They (kingsnakes in particular) seem to be pretty succeptible to it & it should be gone in a shed or two max. It can be something as easy to miss as a spilled water dish or a poop that escaped detection for a few days that it layed in proximity of, well you get the idea. Basically excess moisture that it can't (or won't) escape or some soiled damp areas it happens to be resting in.

It used to drive me nuts on my Kings as I'm pretty anal about cleanliness but it still happened once in a while. As long as you keep it clean & dry and as mentioned some neosporin or polysporin should also help it heal up quicker. Not to worry about unless it gets noticeably worse/larger.

Here's a link to some info and pics of a Cal King with a worse case than you're looking at that still wasn't bad either. It looks a bit different in this case because it's a wider area that's affected but you can see the discolouration and deformity of the scales:
T and J's Cornsnakes - Scale Rot (http://www.tandjscorns.com/scale_rot.htm)

Comparing the photos, it does look like scale-rot to me. If it is, should I still be soaking him in his shed-bucket? Since the problem may be caused by moisture, I wouldn't want to exacerbate it.
I appreciate the help. :)


@Devon, thank you for the reassurance. :D

[ConcinusMan]

I know that when keeping cali kings or desert inhabiting kings, much of the time I didn't bother having a water dish but instead dripped small amounts into a very shallow dish once or twice a day so they get a chance to drink without all the humidity and spilling. It is absolutely essential that the substrate be kept dry and humidity reasonably low.

Unless your snake is in poor health, it really shouldn't have much trouble shedding even with very dry conditions. Is there some reason you don't expect a good shed without the "shed-bucket"? Anyway, a couple of times a day during the few days between going clear again, and the shed day, shouldn't hurt anything. It's constant dampness and/or dirty substrate that causes scale rot. The extra moisture you're giving to help with the shed really only does any good in the few days after the blue eyes have cleared. The rest of the time keep your snake dry and clean.

You might want to inspect and consider all the possible causes of this and make adjustments to the housing and/or environment if necessary.

[Spankenstyne]

Humidity is fine, many species of Kings are from humid places it's the excessive pockets and sitting stagnant stuff where it can't dry out that causes problems (as Richard also said). You can still soak him in his shed bucket if you're making sure he gets dry afterwards, but if it was me I'd stop soaking for a while.

[ConcinusMan]

It appears that this very minor (nip it in the bud) occurrence of scale rot started at or near the top row of scales. So, what, if anything is near the snake's back normally? A hide, a crack, anything like that? Just giving you somewhere to consider when inspecting the enclosure.

[GarterGeek]

Update:

Dorian had a beautiful, unassisted, complete shed (this is a first). All signs of the scale rot are now completely gone. I did apply neosporin after the shed, and I think it may have helped. I searched the aquarium but didn't find any uncleaned poos or wet-spots. Perhaps I need to change the water bowl more often.

Thank you all for the help!

[ConcinusMan]

Good to hear Dorian is doing well. I a warm environment such as a snake enclosure, it's a good idea to change the water every couple of days, even if it looks clean. The bowl can get slimy with bacteria so make sure you wipe all that out and perhaps a light bleaching too, to get rid of the slime.

[Spankenstyne]

Yeah glad to hear it. If you don't see any more signs of it you won't need to keep applying neosporin. Not sure how often you were changing it before but it's a good idea to change the water frequently.

I find that my garters and my kings are my most consistantly active snakes and need their bowls changed more often than my other colubrids, they tend to visit the water bowl more. I change the water a couple of times a week and usually a good scrubbing of the bowl weekly with soap and hot water works wonders (I use betadine, but just soap works great). Then every few months I'll give them a good bleaching too (with a really good rinsing afterwards).