Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi, i,ve had my ball python for nearly three years now and recently noticed some dry rot on her tail, after taking her to the vets he gave me some antibiotics to administer orally and a cream. Now i have been nervous gripping her head in my 3 fingers but the first couple of days she opened her mouth and i was able to give her her medicine but today she just would'nt open her mouth and my nerves got the better of me, i did'nt want to force it open, has any one got some advice on getting her to open up without causing her to much stress? she is a good natured snake and has not tried to strike at all, i just want her to get better!

many thanks

Kenny.

You could use something soft like q-tips for instance. Make sure you put the medicine in the back of the throat and not the hole on the base/front of the mount where their tongue is located.

I have to medicate an animal myself today but it's via injection

Good luck.

hi thanks for the help, do you slide that in from the very front of the mouth or from the side? the vet seemed to pull the forehead back with his index finger so to open the mouth but i'm not confident that i wont do more damage by gripping or pulling to hard, though i'm lucky i dont have to give a proper injection like you!

many thanks

kenny.

I generally secure the head and open from the side. It doesn't matter if it's from the front or side, whatever you're most comfortable with. It's a piece of cake and you'll agree once you've done it yourself

Hope this helps

Don't use Q-tips. They have too many little, sharp teeth for the cotton to catch on. I use a rubber spatula to gently ease the mouth open. It would be much easier if you had someone to help you, but, believe me, it can be done safely and gently by yourself.

Good luck with that!
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GratefulFred

thanks for the help, my girlfriend supports her body which worked really well its mainly the problem with getting the mouth open i'm having trouble with, but ill let you know how it goes this evening, fingers crossed it all goes smoothly!

...prescribed? I'm not aware of any really EFFECTIVE oral antibiotics...your vet should have educated you on the proper administration of the med he prescribed...

...the topical ointment is very important...triple antibiotic (Neosporin) or povidone-iodine (Betadine)...applied liberally...this is enough if caught early...

...AGAIN: what's the oral med?

Scott J. Michaels DVM
Serpent City

hi, the antibotic the vet gave me was BAYTRIL to be given onve a day orally, do you know much about it?

...it's really quite a bit easier to inject a proper dose than to orally dose medications for most people...

...bottom-line here is the importance of the topical treatment...THAT will nip this in the bud if you apply it well and frequently...the oral Baytril can't hurt...

sjm

hi, i'm also using a cream as well as the oral antibiotics to give a better chance of recovery, will the cream work on its own?

hi, you gave me some advice last week about some treatment for dry rot on my royals tail. the oral administration has been going really well and it looked to be clearing up (the redness has mostly gone) my concern is that last night when applying the cream to the tip of the tail, where the infection is worst, it looked a bit different so i gave it a light squeeze and a clear fluid (only a few drops) came out, is this a normal part of the healing process or do you think the infection is becoming worse? i'm still only half way through the course of treatment.

many thanks

kenny.