Bump on albino checkered.....

[Repfanatic]

Hi. We got an albino checkered garter baby a month ago and I just noticed a rather large bump on her side/back tonight. I know it wasn’t there before because it’s VERY noticeable. It wasn’t there 2 nights ago either. There seems to be some discoloration to it, but I don’t think it’s a broken bone since it doesn’t protrude that drastically and nothing has happened to her. It feels rather hard, but I don’t want to push on it too much and possibly cause further damage. Here are some pictures. They’re kinda crappy since they were taken with a phone, so I circled where the bump is in the pic. In the first and second pictures you can see the blotch which I think is discoloration, but it could just be her normal skin color.....just a bit distended. In the third picture you can see the protrusion of it.



Has anybody seen, or experienced anything like this? Could it be a cyst? She still acts completely normal. She was drinking water right before we took the pics. She ate 2 rosy minnows Monday night, but also didn’t have this bump then. Any input is greatly appreciated. Thanks for looking.

[drache]

it's hard to see
if the discolouration is reddish, it's likely to be an abscess, if it's more brownish there is some other kind of tissue damage
do you have access to a vet who treats herps?

[Repfanatic]

Well, there's no redness to be seen, but not so sure about the brown. I can't get her to hold still long enough for me to see very well. We're taking our cat to the vet today.....also where our herp vet is, so we're going to bring the snake with us to see if she can be checked out too. She may not be able to be seen though which is why I posted this thread. We're getting ready to move across the country within the next week and even though she's acting fine now I wanted to make sure this isn't a serious thing that needs immediate attention. Sorry I couldn't get better pictures. It's not easy with a tiny snake and a camera phone. lol

[anji1971]

It's not easy to get pictures of a tiny snake with any camera!
Best of luck with her.

[reptile3]

Keep us posted!! I hope your snakie is ok!!

[drache]

let's hope your vet is willing to take a look

[Sid]

I really hope it's nothing major. Let us know what you find out.

[adamanteus]

Hi Brook. It's hard to see much in the photo, but if the lump is colourless and slightly hard, there's the chance it could be a subcutaneous worm.... or it could be nothing. Probably worth a vet visit if you can.

[Repfanatic]

Well, our herp vet wasn't there, but her assistant was. She wasn't sure, but she thinks it might be an abscess. They just said to try to put a warm compress on it once a day. We're going to keep an eye on her and as soon as we get moved we'll find a herp vet to look at her there. She's behaving normally and active right now, but I'm still worried. Thanks for the kind words.

Brook

[Odie]

Hi, from Oregon, Brook