| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 31/12/2009 : 09:38:40
Stella finally shed yesterday morning after she had been in hiding for over a week.
She seemed fine and was out and about.
I checked her over for any retained shed and there was about 1cm on the end of her tail (same as last time she shed.)
So my missus held some damp kitchen roll for her to crawl through and after a few goes it came off.
The tail underneath was bright red! It looked sore but the shed had all come off.
This morning it looks really bad, about 0.5cm at the end has gone black.
Does anyone know why this has happened? And will the black bit drop off or grow back?
Thanks
Gaz |
| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 05/01/2010 : 22:57:50
yeah the plastic holds the humidity well so the moss doesn't dry out and need dampening down (and potentially disturbing a snake that's in blue while you're adding some more water!)  |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 05/01/2010 : 15:51:57
Thanks, Whats the advantage of the plastic tub? Keeps heat in more? Hence stays damp?
Ta
Gaz |
| HannahB |
Posted - 05/01/2010 : 15:46:23
you can do - i tend to put one plastic tub in and put some in an already used hide so its not too much of a change for them |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 05/01/2010 : 13:44:51
I think this is my last question for now, lol...
Regards Damp Hides...
Is there any reason why i cant just put the damp moss into her exo-terra hides? Or do they need to be the plastic tubs with holes in?
Would obviously be easier and maybe less stressful if i just put moss into her existing hides?
Thanks
Gaz |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 05/01/2010 : 09:12:24
Thanks very much,
Thanks for the offer GP - i missed that post though, only just seen it and i purchased some last night, lol. Ended up paying £12 with postage on 888 reptiles, but never mind, ive got it now.
I will also do what you reccomend with the moss.
Thanks again
Gaz |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 22:31:05
quote:
Originally posted by Gaz_1989
GP - Is this the stuff you meant when you said Tamodine?
http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Tamodine-Veterinary-Wound-Skin-Cleanser-100ml/productinfo/TAMODINE/
And is this the right moss - http://www.888reptiles.co.uk/productdetails.php?ProductID=2739&ProductGroupID=1348
Does the moss need cleaning? Could it contain any bacteria?
yes that's Tamodine although you've got to be REALLY unlucky to need that amount lol i could sell you a much smaller amount at the same cost per ml if you're interested (cos i'll never use up the bottle i've got either........i hope!)
and sphagnum moss is generally cheaper from a garden centre. i put it in handfuls into sandwich bags and freeze the individual 'portions' till i'm ready to use them (or need iceblocks for something!)
as and when i need some sphag moss i'll take a portion out of the freezer, put it in a plastic tub and pour boiling water over it to defrost it and kill any nasties that have survived the freezing. when it's cooled again i wring it out them put it in the 'damp hide' |
| Lilpunk |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 18:07:30
Most of the time moss that has been specially collected for reptiles is safe to use, but to be on the even safer side you can soak in boiling water and then freeze and defrost or vice versa  |
| n/a |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 17:06:04
im glad shes still in good health bless her |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 15:09:57
Thanks Lilpunk.
GP - Is this the stuff you meant when you said Tamodine?
http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Tamodine-Veterinary-Wound-Skin-Cleanser-100ml/productinfo/TAMODINE/
And is this the right moss - http://www.888reptiles.co.uk/productdetails.php?ProductID=2739&ProductGroupID=1348
Does the moss need cleaning? Could it contain any bacteria?
Thanks alot
Gaz |
| Lilpunk |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 10:19:28
She's still a beauty, and it definatly was not your fault. Don't feel bad about it, just help her along the way and she'll have a great life with you I'm sure |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 10:14:28
Cheers Kellog.
Her tail looks alot better and not as sore.
All of the redness has gone and there is just about 0.5cm of black at the end, maybe less. It looks really dry and almost crusty like a scab.
To be honest, if it drops off in her next shed and it heals okay i think she will be fine, i dont think it will really be noticeable.
Any idea how long it will take to heal once she has shed and its dropped off?
Thanks alot
Gaz |
| Kellog |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 09:43:02
Am glad that Stella is a lot better in herself and doing everything she needs to do. I know that when I had to move Kellog onto kitchen roll because of mites it did scare him and he spent a lot of time hiding. Just takes them time to adapt, and they are more hardy and adaptable than we give them credit for...as Stella is showing.
How does her tail look now?
xxx |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 04/01/2010 : 08:53:32
Thanks alot to both Hannah and GP.
Will give the moss a try.
Just to let you know she seems alot better in herself now.
She has fed, emptied and been out and about yesterday. I think the kitchen roll scared her a bit at first as she cant hide like in the aspen.
But she is cool with it now.
Thanks again
Gaz |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 02/01/2010 : 12:35:03
as Hannah said above........leave the damp hide idea till she's in blue again cos you're right, putting in the damp hide now could potentially cause other health issues due to prolonged increased humidity |
| HannahB |
Posted - 01/01/2010 : 19:44:49
you dampen the moss with water and when it dries out you just redampen it..
you will only put it in once her eyes have cleared up again after being blue and then remove it once she has shed you could put it in from when she first goes blue if you want to |
| Gaz_1989 |
Posted - 01/01/2010 : 19:27:01
Thanks alot to all who have posted above, Chrissy, Kellog and G.P.
I put her on kitchen roll last night as soon as i got home. She seems fine.
I fed her 2 x Pinkies at 6pm (8 days since her last feed due to her shedding) and she gobbled them both down straight away.
She seems fine in herself so i just hope everything goes okay with the tail when she sheds.
When you say put a damp hide in (damp spagnum moss) do i just soak the moss in warm water so its damp?
Also wont her living in the damp hides cause respiratory problems? Or is this just when they live in damp for long periods?
Thanks again
Gaz |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 01/01/2010 : 12:52:43
quote:
Originally posted by Kellog
it is not surprising you didnt notice anything wrong and even if you had the damage was probably already done
like Judith said, she'd only had 1 previous shed with you, not the sort of timescale we're talking about for a tail tip to go necrotic, this will have been going on longer than you've had her hun |
| Kellog |
Posted - 01/01/2010 : 09:01:58
Gaz - by now you know GP and you know to trust everything she says and hers is definitely the advice to follow!
These may help - http://www.thecornsnake.co.uk/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=3654&SearchTerms=moss+hide and http://www.thecornsnake.co.uk/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=3699&SearchTerms=moss,hide
You mustnt, in any way, feel responsible for this. Stella is only young and this was only her 2nd shed with you...it is not surprising you didnt notice anything wrong and even if you had the damage was probably already done. I know she is in a great place to get the care she needs to get through this, especially with the help and support of GP.
Stella is still so small and has a lot of growing to do, so even if she does lose this bit of her tail I am sure it will not be too noticeably and you love her anyway...no matter what she looks like, that is obvious!
xxx |
| gingerpony |
Posted - 31/12/2009 : 21:25:32
my OAP/rescue corn has a deformed tail tip but it doesn't bother him, fortunately i got him in time and managed to save the tip but this is how it was when i collected him
 |
| n/a |
Posted - 31/12/2009 : 16:32:02
no worries Gaz
depending on how it heals will depend on how it looks in the end, Tofs' is not that noticeable to be honest, she didn’t loose much, not even a cm I don’t think.
You said that 0.5cm of Stellas’ tail has turned black which is not a lot really, so when its healed it should look rather normal because the tail will still flow in much the same way if you get what I mean lol
Tofs' tail doesn’t look bad at all, it just looks slightly see-through at the tip, which isn’t a problem considering she is white anyway like your Stella lol and its curved slightly at the top due to how it healed over, other than that it just looks like a normal tail, even the vet did not notice it when i took her in for a check up so 
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