Hello,
I've got a clutch of black milksnake eggs hatching, and as occasionally happens, a couple of them came out of the egg still attached to their yolk by what I tend to think of as an umbilical cord, although the more accurate term appears to be yolk stem. I did what I always do, which is to tie them off with a bit of thread, then move the hatchlings to individual enclosures, where the cord/stem eventually dries up and falls off. Something different happened with one of the hatchlings, though... the cord/stem seems to have retracted back into its body, leaving a tiny bit of thread hanging out of its "belly button". I guess it must have had a bit of a prolapse? Has anyone had this happen to them before? I'm not sure if the thread is natural or synthetic fiber, if that makes a difference. Is there anything I can do but trim the thread, apply antibiotic ointment, and hope for the best?

Thanks,
Nate

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