Lawn mower injury

[Jedi]

Hi, I used to be active on another reptile forum, but it has pretty well died, so I thought I'd try here.

I accidently ran over a garter snake with my mower a few days ago (7/30/16). I wasn't able to get any Betadine until Monday, so the first 2 days I just rinsed him off and used some Dawn dish soap. Since Monday, I've given him a diluted Betadine soak for about 15-20 minutes, and then covered the wounds with antibacterial ointment.

He is active and doesn't appear to have any trouble getting around. He has two injuries, but bleeding was minimal and as of yesterday they started to dry a bit. They look like scrapes rather than deep cuts, and I don't see any bones or organs. He just started going blue yesterday, so I'm a little worried about how his shed will go. He has some attached skin that was scraped off, and I'm not sure if I should remove it or leave it alone. I have pictures, but I imagine it's not letting me add them because I've not met whatever the post limit is.

He pooped twice on Sunday, and is in good body condition. He's a little over a foot long. My thought is to hold off on any feeding until he's begun to heal a bit?

I've got him in a 10 gallon tank on paper towels, with paper towel rolls and paper towels to hide in. He's got a medium sized, shallow water dish, and he's in the warmest room in my house, which stays about 80-82F. I have an extra UTH, but it gets too hot and I don't have an extra rheostat at the moment. I'll definitely rig him a warm spot before I attempt feeding. Is there anything else I should be doing? Thanks!

[Boots]

That is a lot of detailed information. From my thinking if if he has lived so far, is not bleeding and having no problems moving around things should be good as long as infection does not set in. I seem to remember using Polysporin on a wounded boa to stop an infection, but can not say more. As to feeding, if he is willing to eat, then I see no issues. The snake knows best. Any pictures of the wound?

Jason

[guidofatherof5]

Thank you for being concerned and helping this snake out. Sounds like you've been doing well. The shed will be what it's going to be. It may open the wounds as it sheds but that is normal. The snake may also do another shed in a week or two to aid in the healing process. I would leave the shed alone in the injury spots but assist in the none injury areas if needed. I'm with Boots on the feeding question, if the snake wants to eat feed it. If you hadn't caught the snake it would be out eating anyway if it wanted to. Betadine solution should do well. Silver sufadiazine is another produce that might help.
Where are the injuries located?

[Albert Clark]

Kudos to you for taking him in and doing what needed to be done. Keeping the wounds clean and washing the animal off was the correct steps to take. Along with illness and injury, nutrition is very important so yes try and offer food regularly. Nice job!

[Jedi]

Thanks, everyone! I used to keep corn snakes, but I've never had to deal with an injury like this before.

Pictures from left to right are days 1, 3, 4, and 5. I'm sorry to say I didn't clean him that well on the first day, because he was pretty stressed already, so there's still a lot of grass there. The second picture is after putting on antibiotic ointment.

Thanks for the input about feeding! I've been concerned that it might be too much on his body to digest food while healing. What do you suppose the odds are of him taking f/t or live pinkies? I don't have any, but I could get some on Sunday. I should be able to find some worms in my yard, too.

*Edit: Wow, those pictures show up really tiny! It won't let me link to photobucket pictures, though. It denies my post.

[guidofatherof5]

Looks like skin and muscular damage. As long as the spine wasn't injured they should heal in time. If you can get some worms start with those. How is the snakes mobility? Any spasms or odd movements? Keep a bowl of clean water in there, enough for the snake to soak in if it chooses. This snake will probably do multiple sheds in response to the injury, that is all part of the healing process. Be sure the snake has access to a warm/hot spot. The elevated temp will help in the healing also.
Please keep us posted on this situation.

[Jedi]

Ok, I'll see if I can find some nice worms for him! No odd movements that I've seen. He climbs around and coils up just fine. I figured he'd go through a few quick sheds, but the loose flap of skin worries me. I don't want it getting caught and ripping his skin worse.

I'm still working on getting a UTH for him. Maybe I'm overly worried, but I don't want to bring him in next to my tarantula to use her rheostat because I worry about possible parasites transferring to her. Maybe I can run an extension cord to the next room.

[guidofatherof5]

As long as you keep the cage sparse that bite of skin shouldn't be an issue. It should dry and come off in a shed. I think getting a warm spot is important and should be done soon. Do you have a hide in for the snake?

[Majorica]

Good of you to save this snake. When I was a child, my parents killed a garter accidently lawn moving. I decided I hate lawn mowing at the time.

[Jedi]

He was able to shed, though he does have a little that didn't come off the end of his tail. Since I'm going to continue soaking him, I'm not concerned. The shed re-opened the larger injury, but it looks good. Everything looks pink and healthy, and there's no swelling or sign of infection. I'm adding some pictures from today.

I'm frustrated because I couldn't find a rheostat anywhere today, so I'm going to raise the tank up and slide the UTH under there until I get one ordered online. I'll monitor it until I'm sure it's at a safe temperature. Yes, he has hides. I'll attach a picture of his tank. It looks incredibly boring compared to the way my corns were set up, but it works.