[Health-General] Infected Tail?

[megsa21]

So, I had a problem with this a while ago but I thought I had it under control. I got my boa from a owner that could no longer take care of her and the husbandry was not so well. At the beginning, her sheds were patchy and the skin on the end of her tail wouldn't come off. I soaked it daily and put neosporin on it and eventually the dead shed came off. Sooo, I was cleaning her cage tonight and was looking her over and her tail seems to be infected again. I didn't pull on the skin because I don't want to open the wound but it is loose and seems to have fluid built up underneath it. I assume this fluid is what is infecting the tail? It has a red/purple color to it and the skin is a white/green color. Idk if you can see from the pics but it worries me. If needed, I can take her to the vet but want some kind of input now seeing as the vet is closed . Should I put some neosporin on it until I can get her to the vet? As of her regular sheds, they come off all in one piece except for the tip of her tail. As soon as I see she has shed, I always look at the tail and soak it under water until it comes off easily. I apparently don't get it all off or something is just wrong.

All the help would be great.
Thanks all,
Meg

[megsa21]

Re: Infected Tail?

grrr..sorry. The pics failed. I am getting them posted here quick.

[dangles]

Re: Infected Tail?

hey meg,

i didn't mean to chase you out of chat... i just didn't wanna see the convo get cut off when you hit the chat limit

as for medical issues, i don't really have any experience with them. there are others on here with LOTS of good advice about that kind of thing, but i've been fortunate enough to have not run into anything like that. they'll chime in over the next couple days, i'm sure.

as for pictures, they didn't show up (it sounds like you meant for there to be pics in the thread...). check this thread out to see the best way to post pics... http://www.redtailboas.com/forum/pic...otobucket.html

[megsa21]

Re: Infected Tail?



I had soaked the tail before this picture was taken and the skin was squeezed resulting in the risen skin i dont think she cared though

[Linda]

Re: Infected Tail?

So, I had a problem with this a while ago but I thought I had it under control. I got my boa from a owner that could no longer take care of her and the husbandry was not so well. At the beginning, her sheds were patchy and the skin on the end of her tail wouldn't come off. I soaked it daily and put neosporin on it and eventually the dead shed came off. Sooo, I was cleaning her cage tonight and was looking her over and her tail seems to be infected again. I didn't pull on the skin because I don't want to open the wound but it is loose and seems to have fluid built up underneath it. I assume this fluid is what is infecting the tail? It has a red/purple color to it and the skin is a white/green color. Idk if you can see from the pics but it worries me. If needed, I can take her to the vet but want some kind of input now seeing as the vet is closed . Should I put some neosporin on it until I can get her to the vet? As of her regular sheds, they come off all in one piece except for the tip of her tail. As soon as I see she has shed, I always look at the tail and soak it under water until it comes off easily. I apparently don't get it all off or something is just wrong.

All the help would be great.
Thanks all,
Meg

I don't see any pictures.
Anyway,
Sometimes when a boa has a stuck shed on the tip of their tail for "too long".. The tip of the tail can "die". The shed that was left on the tip of the tail can cut off the blood flow to that area and it's not going to get any better. You can't bring dead tissue back to life.

What you need to do is take her to the vet. See what the vet says. It could just be an infection or the tip of the tail may have to be amputated.

So, get her to the vet ASAP. Let us know how things go.

[jvarner]

Re: Infected Tail?

Sorry, I can't really help either, hopefully Joley will chime in. She is an amazing book of knowledge LOL. I am sure she will help. Just give her some time to read this thread.

[jvarner]

Re: Infected Tail?

I don't mean to scare you, but I just saw the pic, and I totally agree with Linda, get her to the vet as soon as you can.

[megsa21]

Re: Infected Tail?

Well, unfortunately, boa are illegal in Iowa after 6 ft and the only vet (that I go to) that obviously deals with boas is right outside the Iowa border and I cant get to him until tomorrow. Is there something I can do now like put neo on it?

[dangles]

Re: Infected Tail?

if you can get it to a vet tomorrow you should be fine. it probably won't hurt to put some antibiotic ointment on it until then.

let us know how it turns out!

[jvarner]

Re: Infected Tail?

Well, unfortunately, boa are illegal in Iowa after 6 ft and the only vet (that I go to) that obviously deals with boas is right outside the Iowa border and I cant get to him until tomorrow. Is there something I can do now like put neo on it?

I don't know, at least you are getting her there tomorrow. If she has had this condition for a while I don't think another day will hurt. Neosporin is great stuff, but I know if I get cut or hurt, I like to let mine dry out, it seems to heal faster.

To be honest, I have no clue on what to do with her.

Keep us posted please!

[Linda]

Re: Infected Tail?

Well, unfortunately, boa are illegal in Iowa after 6 ft and the only vet (that I go to) that obviously deals with boas is right outside the Iowa border and I cant get to him until tomorrow. Is there something I can do now like put neo on it?

I don't know if I'd put anything on it. As long as you're going to take her to the vet tomorrow, she should be fine until then.

If it's an infection, 12 hours or so won't make a difference. So, you really don't want to have neosporin on there, in case the vet perscribes something different. It might be a little painful making sure all the neosporin is properly scrubbed off to put on something different.

If it's a matter of dead tissue, 12 hours or so really won't make any difference and neosporin won't help at all.

However, if you wait too long, she's definately going to have issues. So, make sure you get her to the vet as soon as you can.

[megsa21]

Re: Infected Tail?

Thanks guys. Appreciate it. I will keep ya posted...might have a gimp girl in a couple of days lol

[bterrill]

Re: Infected Tail?

Thanks guys. Appreciate it. I will keep ya posted...might have a gimp girl in a couple of days lol

That might be the case but if you do nothing you'll have a limp girl in a few weeks/down the road. I'd rather have a stubby tail than a dead snake.

Keep us updated and good luck!

[Linda]

Re: Infected Tail?

I was curious if you have any updates yet?

You probably don't, but I thought I'd ask.

[megsa21]

Re: Infected Tail?

Yes, update.
I took her to the vet this afternoon and the prognosis is good.
The vet said she had a yeast/bacterial infection under the skin of her tail that had just progressed down the tip a little bit. Since she had the skin at the tip of her tail come off, the yeast was just progressing up her tail at the broken off spot. He said with a few sheds and some antibiotics the tail would heal 100% and the skin would eventually grow back to the tip of her tail.
He told me to soak the bottom of the tail, daily, in some salt/vinegar water to dry out the skin and kill the bacteria/yeast - wash it with antibacterial soap/water - pat dry - put some iodine/antibacterial topical on and some (monostat) topical to kill the yeast - and oral Baytril medication daily.
In a couple of weeks, the new skin should totally shed the dead scales and her tail should be spared!...
Other than that he said she was in great health.

Thanks all for your concerns and suggestions!
Meg