Jay, I agree with Kelly on this one, of course the final decision is yours to make.



I'm just not a fan of the practice some people partake in where they give away animals with some sort of congenital deformity. There is simply no way of guaranteeing that the animal will never be involved in some sort of breeding program and since we can't be completely sure whether the deformity was caused by genetics or some unknown environmental factor - such a breeding could prove disastrous.



In this case, I think it would be highly unlikely that the hatchling would survive one way or another. Even if it does, the quality and longevity of it's life would be highly questionable. Plus, like you noted, even if the deformity could be surgically corrected the costs involved would most likely be fairly prohibitive.



To me, it doesn't matter if the deformity is as extensive as the animal you have on your hands or if it is something as "simple" as a missing eye, heat pits, or tongue (yes, I've seen all of these - not in my collection, though, thankfully). No matter the severity of the deformity, the animal should be humanely culled (or euthanized/put to sleep, if you prefer those terms).



Of course, this is all just my opinion and the final decision is ultimately yours to make, but since you asked what should be done... these are my feelings on the matter.



Either way, I'm sorry to hear about the little guy. If he is feisty and lively as you say, it's really a shame that an animal that could have potentially such positive behavioral traits is in such a situation.
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Stay United!





I'm still not sure if it's weird that my best friend is a two year old boa named Ronin. He's quiet, non-judgemental and listens... what more could you want?

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