Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My 9 year old female dum just shed revealing these mysterious white spots. They are lacking pigment (or it's white pigment). I have never seen anything like this before in my limitted experience. I have had this snake since she was born. She is in apparent good health, and gravid. These are NOT scars. She eats frozen/thawed rats, and I believe all husbandry to be optimal. Any clues???? Please see the next post for close-up.

Thanks.

-----
Zoodude

"Just because I'm paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't after me."

Close-up of new white spots

-----
Zoodude

"Just because I'm paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't after me."

This could be a sign of calico-ism(I don't know). Not like in balls, but like in retics and tokays where the spots don't show until later as the animal(s) matures, but its only a guess. To learn about these animals check NERD's site.

Good luck with your dum.
-----
Murphy's Laws:
"Nothing is as easy as it looks."
"Anything that can go wrong will go wrong."

Since the snake has not had these spots before, be sure that it has not aquired a fungus and maybe you should clean and disenfect its enclosure with an antifungal agent.

Do you know of any fungal infections that will cause a snake to stop producing melanin?

>>Since the snake has not had these spots before, be sure that it has not aquired a fungus and maybe you should clean and disenfect its enclosure with an antifungal agent.

-----
Zoodude

"Just because I'm paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't after me."

Considering the age of the snake, it may be nothing more than age spots. Humans get brown spots as they age, perhaps snakes get white spots.

That's actually the best hypothesis that I have come up with as well. However, I would draw the analogy to gray hair instead of liver spots. As cells replicate the strands of DNA get worn down at the ends. The codons at the ends are sometimes those for pigment. In humans this causes gray hair, in snakes... I don't know. Thanks.

>>Considering the age of the snake, it may be nothing more than age spots. Humans get brown spots as they age, perhaps snakes get white spots.
-----
Zoodude

"Just because I'm paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't after me."

I have a 7 year old female that had a very similar problem. When she was about 4 I noticed a strange blister on her back. It was about the size of a quarter, raised and fluid filled. Within a week it had gone away and a smaller one had apeared near her tail. As they healed they left white spots. I brought her to a vet who took blood samples as well as fluid samples from the blisters to culture. everything came back negative, the blisters were filled with sterile fluid! Keep in mind that all husbandry is impecable and that the snake has been rock solid for 4 years. Eventually the blisters went away leaving several whitish scars.

Now here comes the even weirder part. Two years go by with perfect health, rock solid eating and breeding. One day she shed and I came in, horrified to see almost a dozen new white spots exacty like the ones that your boa has. In adition there were a few places where the scales were deformed, I'll try to post a pic.

No one I have seen or talked to has had any ideas, and the boa is healthy in all other respects. Very Very strange. Has anyone else seen anything like this???