Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Anya, my 1-year-old red tailed boa, struck the glass last night and injured her mouth. She has tried to correct it herself by yawning and stretching but as of this morning, it doesn't look 100% back to normal. Is there anything I can do for her? Can I try to massage it or something? Should I wait a few days and then take her to the vet if it doesn't correct itself?

The Jaw bones of snakes are very small and brittle bones, that are not made for striking into glass. The reason that they can stretch so large is not because the bone is elastic, but the ligaments that hold them together. The bones are actually four separate bones (two upper and two lower) and can be (and sounds like they are) broken. Because the bones are so small they will start to mend together quickly and if you wait too long, the vet will have to re-break them in order to set them right. If a snake has a broken jaw bone close to the connecting place of it’s adjoining bone, the two bones can become fussed as the broken bone attempts to heal. This will prevent the snake from being able to “dislocate” the two join bones and prevent him from feeding, eventually killing the snake through a long and painful starvation.
The vet should be able to x-ray the skull, locate and re-place into position the broken jaw bone. Once the Jaw bone is set into place (the vet can not place a cast on it, and trying to wire it shut can be difficult) the snake may have to be placed back into it’s cage with the bone just set into place to heal. For this you will need to cove the entire cage with newspaper, so the animal is not inclined to strike at the glass again. And just let the snake be for several weeks. In a month start feeding it very small meals (water should always be available and misting to increase humidity may be needed) once per 5-7 days. After several months with no ill effects, you should be able to start feeding the snake as normal.
But it is very important to get him to the vet ASAP to get him treated, print this out if you can not remember all the info, to show your vet. If your vet is not a strong Reptile/herp vet, he will need the info. Also ask what reference book he is using for herps (see post above with Nicole on that issue).
Good Luck
Jim Hopkins

Everything Hoppy said about boas and how important their hardware is up front is true.. but the injury does not appear to be severe at all.

That looks like the lip is hooked on one or more of the teeth. I see that every once in a while.. You and a friend should firmly but gently retsrain the snake and take a close look, get right in there.

Now, if I'm right but you are unable to see a way to resolve it you might have to see a vet anyway. I just don't see from the photo that there is any real need to call EMS..

And oh!... fix or move your set-up so the boa isn't banging its' face!
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Gus
A. Rentfro
RioBravoReptiles.com

"Quality is not an accident. Perfectly healthy animals are a minimum requirement.. everything else is just salesmanship" gus

Gus, you are right, that is a possiblity that I did not think of, when he posted the question. If it is imply a hooked tooth then it can be pulled off the tooth with no problems, but that should be evident be a close up look.
Thanks for pointing it out.
Jim

You need to fix it yourself, I a snake do the EXACT same thing not to long ago and she could not unhook herself. I had to do it for her and she is totally fine and has fed three times since then. I used a credit card and pryed her mouth open and gently folded the lip back over.

Good luck

Sayyed

I once had a sand boa who, somehow, broke his jaw.
My vet used super-glue & glued the jaws together so that it couldnt move them. The glue wore off after a while & the snake was fine. It was a lot easier & less traumatic than wiring.

Good luck with your snake - looks like it'll be fine.

Thanks for responding so quickly. My husband just called me at work and said that her mouth has gotten back in line although there is still a small wrinkle on the left side. He will definitely keep an eye on her today and if the wrinkle doesn't straighten out, we will schedule a vet appointment.

Gus, what do you mean by setting up her cage so she doesn't strike the glass? She is currently in a 50 gallon reptile aquarium with her water bowl on the cool side and tree/hide box on the warm side. The sides and back are covered with a background so the only side that is exposed is the front. The top is even partially covered to keep the humidity up.

Do you mean I should cover up the front until she is healed?

This is the first time she has ever struck the glass and I'm still unsure why she did it. She is usually so docile. My husband had just gotten through feeding her two adult mice. He walked by her cage and that's when she struck out. I guess he stressed her out.

Thanks again for the advice. We'll keep an eye on it.

What they are saying is to cover the outside of the glass with newspaper so the snake can't see outside of his/her cage. I'm sure she was still in feeding mode and saw movement and struck thinking it was a third mouse. I agree with what everyone has said. I've had the same thing happen with their lip getting stuck on a tooth. Hopefully this is the problem. If the situation doesn't clear up soon, definately bring your snake to the vet. Good luck, Scott Sullivan.
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