Tail irregularities in Eastern Ribbon Snake

[hclivess]

Greetings, here are pictures of bums that my East Ribbon Snake has on tail, is it normal or sign of some ilness?

There are three bumps and near the very tip the bottom part of the tail appears to be missing. There are the photographs in the attachment, thank you in advance for any help provided. I never had a snake before in my life and have this one only for a week, so I have no idea whether to take him/her to the vet.

[Selkielass]

Bump

Could be scar tissue from previous injuries or breaks- watch for irritation or shed problems, but probably not a.trying but a cosmetic issue.
I love my battle scarred snakes- they're survivors.

[chris-uk]

The photos aren't clear enough to say much. Can you post some other pics with clearer focus and something to give a sense of scale of the snake as a whole and the position of the bumps?
If I was to guess I'd suggest a previous injury. How far from the end of the tail are these the bumps? One of the photos seems to show an injury that cuts halfway through the tail. If that's the case then it may loose the tip of its tail.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

are these bumps relatively soft? Like if you press on them, do they feel hard inside, or soft and malleable?

If they are soft, they are likely subcutaneous worms which are very common in ribbons.

If they are hard, the could be a number of things. They could be healed old wounds from predator attacks, abcesses with pus inside (snake pus is solid, not liquid like ours) or some sort of calcification.

[guidofatherof5]

Shannon,
I've never seen subcutaneous worms in a tail. Is that a relatively a strange place for them?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Shannon,
I've never seen subcutaneous worms in a tail. Is that a relatively a strange place for them?

I have. only in ribbon snakes though. They can pretty much appear almost anywhere on the body. I am leaning away from those as the cause of these bumps though. Those look scar related.

[hclivess]

OK, I also thought these might be worms, but worms are usually on one side, these bumps appear to be synergic all around the center of the tail (spine). Battle scars appear like the most probable reason though. Thank you for your inputs. I will try to make clearer photos or check the consistency.