Eastern Hognose

[jc]

I injured an adult Eastern Hognose snake (about 26" in length) while mowing
yesterday. He's missing a patch of skin about 2" long and 1/2" wide on his
back, about 6" above the vent and has a few other minor injuries, including
missing part of his tail (I say 'he' but have no idea of it's sex, nor do I
think it makes a difference). Perhaps the worst injury seems to be to just
above the left eye. It's a very small injury but may mean a brain injury,
because he tilts his head to the right and seems to have little direction or
purpose when crawling. At least all of the wounds have stopped bleeding. I
have him in the house now and while I have little hope of his long term
survival, I will do what I can for him.

I cleaned the wound and put some antiseptic cream on it and now have him in a
large tub on some towels. I offered him water today but he refused it. He
shows no sign of biting and only hissed when I was removing the grass clippings
from the wound. Otherwise, he's very lethargic, which I would expect from an
injured snake. I am not sure but I don't think I ran over him bodily with the
tires of the mower, just passed over him with the blades. At least his back
doesn't seem to be broken. He's not the first critter I've chunked up in the
mower, unfortunately, but the first to actually survive.

What I don't know is what temp should I keep him at that will offer the best
chance of surviving his injuries. The cool basement (low 70's) or in the house,
usually around 78 or so. Any suggestions on that, cool or warmer?

I've no intention of keeping this animal as a pet, I'm well beyond that stage,
but I would like to save him if possible. I don't kill offhand any of the
critters around here, but I do have neighbors (and I use that term very loosely)
that do, most especially snakes. These days, without dogs around, I don't even
relocate the venomous ones as I did in years past.

I'll try and catch a small toad for him (there are quite a few of them around
under normal circumstances but I suspect they'll be scarce when I'm actually
trying to find one) but I've no idea if he will take it. I will assume that he
was out and about because he was hungry, since their breeding season is over by
now. I've had a few notable successes with injured wild animals over the years
(a hummingbird chick with a broken foot once and 3 Eastern Phoebe chicks that
were infested with some kind of mites) but most have been failures.
TIA,
jc

[N Jill Marsh]

Post by jc
I cleaned the wound and put some antiseptic cream on it and now have him in a
large tub on some towels. I offered him water today but he refused it.

I'd leave the water in with him, he's not likely to drink unless he's
feeling unthreatened.

Post by jc
What I don't know is what temp should I keep him at that will offer the best
chance of surviving his injuries. The cool basement (low 70's) or in the house,
usually around 78 or so. Any suggestions on that, cool or warmer?

I will give you advice similar to what I received from a reptile vet
for treating a western hognose with multiple large abscesses that
needed to be cut open, drained and debrided, leaving several very
large gaping holes, including ones deep enough to show bone.

I'd keep him in the house. You want him warm enough that his immune
system and metabolism remain active, I suspect that if you cool him
off he'll settle down and just stay sick until he dies.

I would buy some betadine,and give him some soaks. Warm water, put
enough betadine in it to give it a weak tea colour. Soak him for
10-15 minutes at least once a day. This will keep the wounds clean
and help speed the healing process. Having the wounds scab over is
not as important as having them heal in the deep bits, snakes are very
prone to abscess formation following impairment of skin integrity.

You can dress the wounds with antibiotic ointment after the baths if
you wish.

Keep him on clean paper towels, not in substrate that can get in the
wounds.

If he ends up with abscesses, cleaning them isn't all that hard,
although it's a bit gross. Snake pus is solid, at least as hard as
toothpaste that's been left out a couple of hours, but it isn't
terrible to clean.

Post by jc
I'll try and catch a small toad for him (there are quite a few of them around
under normal circumstances but I suspect they'll be scarce when I'm actually
trying to find one) but I've no idea if he will take it.

Hopefully he will, if he doesn't, kill the toad and put it in the
freezer (if they are scarce). You can offer the snake pinky or fuzzy
mice rubbed with toad scent as an alternative to hunting down multiple
amphibians.

Best of luck with your rescue project, I hope he lives to run away
from your lawn mower another day.

nj"and more luck"m

[jc]

Post by N Jill Marsh

Post by jc
I cleaned the wound and put some antiseptic cream on it and now have him in a
large tub on some towels. I offered him water today but he refused it.

I'd leave the water in with him, he's not likely to drink unless he's
feeling unthreatened.

Post by jc
What I don't know is what temp should I keep him at that will offer the best
chance of surviving his injuries. The cool basement (low 70's) or in the house,
usually around 78 or so. Any suggestions on that, cool or warmer?

I will give you advice similar to what I received from a reptile vet
for treating a western hognose with multiple large abscesses that
needed to be cut open, drained and debrided, leaving several very
large gaping holes, including ones deep enough to show bone.
I'd keep him in the house. You want him warm enough that his immune
system and metabolism remain active, I suspect that if you cool him
off he'll settle down and just stay sick until he dies.
I would buy some betadine,and give him some soaks. Warm water, put
enough betadine in it to give it a weak tea colour. Soak him for
10-15 minutes at least once a day. This will keep the wounds clean
and help speed the healing process. Having the wounds scab over is
not as important as having them heal in the deep bits, snakes are very
prone to abscess formation following impairment of skin integrity.
You can dress the wounds with antibiotic ointment after the baths if
you wish.
Keep him on clean paper towels, not in substrate that can get in the
wounds.
If he ends up with abscesses, cleaning them isn't all that hard,
although it's a bit gross. Snake pus is solid, at least as hard as
toothpaste that's been left out a couple of hours, but it isn't
terrible to clean.

Post by jc
I'll try and catch a small toad for him (there are quite a few of them around
under normal circumstances but I suspect they'll be scarce when I'm actually
trying to find one) but I've no idea if he will take it.

Hopefully he will, if he doesn't, kill the toad and put it in the
freezer (if they are scarce). You can offer the snake pinky or fuzzy
mice rubbed with toad scent as an alternative to hunting down multiple
amphibians.
Best of luck with your rescue project, I hope he lives to run away
from your lawn mower another day.
nj"and more luck"m

Thanks, it sounds like good advice and I'll follow it. I was leaning towards
the warmer side and I've had him in the house, in a tall trash bin that lets
enough sun in. I know they prefer to be on the moist side but he's not moving
around much at all when left alone. In fact, he doesn't even sample the air
unless he's disturbed and I've had to touch him nearly every time I've checked
just to make sure he's still alive. I took him out today for a bit of sun but
it's difficult to tell if a snake is happy.

Really, I'm most worried about the head wound and his tilting his head to the
side. It doesn't bode well. The back injury is mostly just skin missing and
looks ok, considering it's only 24 hours old. He's still quite lethargic,
although he did go around in circles when I had him outside. He's definitely
not well enough to be left on his own. I'm sure the local foxes (a family group
of two females and one male, who live close by) would make a quick meal of him,
as he doesn't seem to have enough direction in his movements to even hide
himself, much less feed.

As I expected, there wasn't a toad to be found outside tonight. They're usually
attracted to the outside lights, where the bugs congregate, but I think it might
be a little chilly for them. I'll have to make a trip down to the creek and
maybe snag a leopard frog for him. They're relatively easy to spot and catch,
although I'll have to picky about size - some of them are rather large. If he
feeds, I don't think it will for quite a while yet. If the head tilting doesn't
go away, he may never feed. I'm not sure how much they depend on vision but I
can see blood in his left eye, which is never good.

But he's hanging in there, which is a good sign, so I'm at least a little
hopeful that I can return him to where he belongs.
Thanks for the info,
Cheers,
jc

[N Jill Marsh]

Post by jc
Thanks, it sounds like good advice and I'll follow it. I was leaning towards
the warmer side and I've had him in the house, in a tall trash bin that lets
enough sun in. I know they prefer to be on the moist side but he's not moving
around much at all when left alone. In fact, he doesn't even sample the air
unless he's disturbed and I've had to touch him nearly every time I've checked
just to make sure he's still alive. I took him out today for a bit of sun but
it's difficult to tell if a snake is happy.

When my hoggie was sick that was the sort of behaviour he had for
several weeks. He would eventually come out and drink, but it was
unusual.

Post by jc
Really, I'm most worried about the head wound and his tilting his head to the
side. It doesn't bode well.

No, it doesn't. On the other hand, if he doesn't die of the head
injury fairly soon I'd guess there's a reasonable chance of recovery.
Traumatic brain injuries will repair themselves to a great extent
given time, and considering how little brain he has to start with, if
he doesn't bleed out then he might square up. I wouldn't worry too
much about the bloody eye, that could be a relatively minor injury or
something serious, but I suspect it will take a very long time to go
away.

If he starts eating, then he's away to the races. He needs the food
to keep his immune system working and heal up, but they tend to go off
their feed when they are really sick, so there's not much you can do
other than to keep him warm and hydrated until he recovers enough to
decide to live.

Please keep us posted.

[jc]

Post by N Jill Marsh
Please keep us posted.

That I wil.

I did the bath thing today and wonder of wonders, I found the most unlucky toad
in the world this afternoon, who is just the perfect size for him. So far he's
shown little interest in the toad, but it's only been a couple of hours since
his 'bath' so I'll give it more time.

I'm beginning to think he may have been blinded by the hit on the head. I
looked closely at it today, and while it's stopped bleeding (as have all of his
wounds) I can't tell how deep it is. It's a slice that went across the
occipital scale and while only 1/8th inch long, it could be deep.

As you said, only time will tell. I'll keep an eye on him and check for
infection once in a while but mostly I intend to leave him alone and hope for
the best.
Cheers,
jc

[jc]

On 30 Jun 2009 17:10:01 -0500, jc <***@yahoo_nospam_.com> wrote:

The hognose has been quiet the last few days but today, when I offered, he drank
a huge amount of water - nearly 3/4 of an ounce. This is the first time he's
shown any interest in anything like that.

He still seems to be somewhat aimless in his movements. I believe he at least
bit the last toad I put in with him but did not eat it. He has another today
and perhaps he'll show some interest. This toad is even less lucky than the
last one, in that he's missing a rear foot. If things go well, he'll end up as
a meal for a snake.

The snakes back seems to be drying out nicely and there's no sign of any
infection. I'm not at all sure he'll ever grow skin there, however. Perhaps
when he sheds again, it will cover the scar but I honestly don't know.

At any rate, he's still with me for now and I'm actually beginning to think he
may survive this.
cheers,
jc

[Pat Kiewicz]

Post by jc
On 30 Jun 2009 17:10:01 -0500, jc
The hognose has been quiet the last few days but today, when I offered, he drank
a huge amount of water - nearly 3/4 of an ounce. This is the first time he's
shown any interest in anything like that.
He still seems to be somewhat aimless in his movements. I believe he at least
bit the last toad I put in with him but did not eat it. He has another today
and perhaps he'll show some interest. This toad is even less lucky than the
last one, in that he's missing a rear foot. If things go well, he'll end up as
a meal for a snake.
The snakes back seems to be drying out nicely and there's no sign of any
infection. I'm not at all sure he'll ever grow skin there, however. Perhaps
when he sheds again, it will cover the scar but I honestly don't know.
At any rate, he's still with me for now and I'm actually beginning to think he
may survive this.

Appreciate the update. Best of luck to you and Mr/Ms snake.

[N Jill Marsh]

Post by jc
The snakes back seems to be drying out nicely and there's no sign of any
infection. I'm not at all sure he'll ever grow skin there, however. Perhaps
when he sheds again, it will cover the scar but I honestly don't know.

This is all such good news. My hoggie's scars get smaller every time
he sheds, but I suspect that it will take several years before they
are gone - or at least, as gone as they are going to get.

If he has started drinking, then I think he'll eat sooner or later.
thank you so much for posting!

nj"yippee"m

[jc]

I turned the Hognose loose yesterday. After a good long drink and a few minutes
getting used to the idea (and warming up a little), he crawled off into the
woods, hopefully to continue his life. His back was scabbed over nicely and,
since he wasn't eating, I figured he had at least some chance on his own, rather
than a zero chance of living in a bucket in my house. With any luck at all, the
next time I run across him it won't be on the lawn mower! It's been a heck of a
ride and I think that he has a decent chance of survival. At least, that's my
story and I'm sticking to it!

Thanks for the help and advice!
Cheers,
jc

[N Jill Marsh]

Post by jc
I turned the Hognose loose yesterday.

I cut the lawn yesterday and saw a snake on the lawn, I thought of you
and your hoggie, and hoped you'd post an update soon. I am sure you
have done the very best thing for the critter concerned, and thanks so
much for the updates!

Jill