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Ulcerative Dermatitis (Scale Rot)
Symptoms: Discolored (pink, red, or brown) ventral
scales, Chipped Ventral scales. Usually only 1 to 3 scales are infected but often
breaks out in multiple areas. Sometimes it effects only part of the infected scales.
Causes: The most common cause of Scale rot is one that
can not be easily forseen therefore not easily avoided. Infections often start from within the animal and work their way
out to the skin. This is what is known as a secondary infection. The primary other infection that has your animals immuno system broken down needs to be quickly identified and treated. Chances are, when it's cleared up and the immuno system kicks back in, between the natural immunities working again and whatever antiboitics you were treating the other infection with, it will go away too. The most common husbandry cause that CAN be avoided however is
bacteria grown in dried urates left in the cage, especially in the basking area.
When a snake lays in this to bask, the combination of heat and the bacteria found
in feces and urates can become very dangerous. Another cause is overexposure to damp
substrate or oversoaking in dirty water. Snakes with mites will soak for extended periods to drown
them. This will sometimes cause scale rot. Ball and blood pythons seem to be
the most susceptible of the boids but any reptile can have this condition.
What to do: Neosporin, Polysporin, or any Triple
antibiotic ointment that does not incorporate Lidocaine or any pain medicine is very
effective in clearing this up. Remove all substrate and clean or keep the infected
snake in a secure plastic storage container with air holes and a water bowl large enough
to drink from but too small to soak in while treating. It is normal for no apparent
improvement to be noticed until the next shed. But, any skin irritation such as this
will cause a snake to go into a shed cycle, sometimes even back to back sheds until it all
clears up. Keep rubbing Neosporin on the bad scales twice a day and make sure the
snake is clean and dry. Or...if you can get it, SILVER SULFADIAZINE aka Silvadene cream is the best broad spectrum anibiotic ointment on the market but it required a prescription. Being allowed to burrow or crawl through any substrate at
this time is a bad idea. There is no way any Neosporin or whatever will remain on the snake's
belly and there is no way to keep it clean. This is why it is important to place the
animal in a substrate free enclosure during treatment. If at any time redness
spreads out over a larger area than where the infected scales are or if any puss oozes
from the wounds, or it continues to get worse, a trip to the vet will be necessary.
At this point the infection could very well become septic. Septicemia (blood
poisoning) will quickly spread to multiple vital organs and kill the animal in as little
as six weeks so a series of antibiotic injections will be needed.
