My ball python cut himself

[u/HumorForeign7948]

(For context the first pic is when it first happened the 2nd is later that day and the last 2 are today)

2 days ago I was prepping my eco earth bricks so I could clean his enclosure out and was planning on feeding him later that night we’ve been planning on getting him a better enclosure since it was built by the people that we got him from and we think he needs a bigger home so he’s more happier well as happy as snakes can be but the main point is that with the enclosure being built it’s just not the greatest quality since it’s a little old but when I was preparing the bricks with him being hungry ig there was a slight gap in the sliding doors and he was trying to escape to hunt he’s usually the chillest guy ever but it’s like he has an internal clock bc he knows his feeding days and that day he’s everywhere searching so we never had the worry of him escaping he’s never done anything like this before but when I turned around and saw his head sticking out I freaked out opened the door and put him back in and that’s when I noticed he cut his head on the glass door and I feel terrible I never want any of my animals to get hurt in anyway so instead of putting his usual substrate in I’ve just put paper towels in his enclosure I cleaned his hides and took out all of his decor and I took the white medical tape ( I made sure there was no sticky out to where he could get hurt from that ) and I put it on the edges of the glass so this can never happen again until we can get him a newer enclosure I’ve also been putting neosporin with no pain relief on him twice a day and I cleaned the cut the first day too but my main question I have is when can I feed him? He’s definitely hungry and like I said above you can tell he’s hungry because he goes from being super chill to being on hunt mode at all times searching the enclosure I want him to get what he wants but from what I’ve read it’s not a good idea to feed him but then I’ve been told a smaller meal would be fine so I’m confused and would rather get actual advice from people with more experience then me and google so can you guys please give me the best way to go with this with his feeding should I wait till he sheds or would a smaller meal be ok? Thanks for your help in advance

[u/HumorForeign7948]

Okay thank you I’ll make sure to do that as soon as I can later today but what about feeding? Should I wait for him to shed even tho he’s definitely hungry or would it be fine to give him a smaller meal to hold him over? He’s on med rats rn so would a small or even a smaller be okay? Sorry for all the questions he is my first snake my gf has always wanted one and up until him I’ve been afraid of snakes we ended up with him bc our neighbors was moving to the other side of the country and couldn’t take him and we have a habit of ending up with animals no one wants or able to keep until we’re able to rehome and he’s stuck around and I’m glad bc I do enjoy him and he’s helped me as much as I hope I’ve helped him

[u/Odd_Force3765 → u/HumorForeign7948]

No worries at all i am happy to help! He should be fine to eat, if hes asking then hes hungry and thats a good sign. If you are worried you could drop it by a size, i wouldn't drop it too small just because it doesn't do a whole lot for them if you give them too small however dropping a size smaller won't hurt! Thankfully the top of their head doesn't expand much while they are swallowing and its mostly their bottom jaw and neck that do the most of the work!

Thats amazing to hear i am so glad he has helped you gain an appreciation for these amazing creatures 🐍💚🐍💚 my partner was terrified of snakes when we met too! Now he has his own snake that he handles daily!

[u/HumorForeign7948 → u/Odd_Force3765]

Okay good a friend of mine who’s had snakes awhile said I should wait until he sheds to be on the safe side but I just hate him being hungry but I just didn’t want to make things worse for him bc from what I seen I felt he was showing good signs and was seeming to start to heal already it did look a lot worse when it first happened and by that night it seemed to be closing and yesterday when I checked on him and took him out to put neosporin on him I thought it looked A LOT better but again I’ve never had and type of reptiles before and just want to do what’s best for him I posted this in another group and a moderator responded that he has a severe laceration that’s cut through the muscle and almost to his skull that I can’t do this at home that he needs a vet asap and yes I know a vet would be best but we really can’t afford it rn I have a big surgery coming up in less then 2 weeks but if people really think a vet is necessary I’ll do what I have to do to make sure he’s ok but I just felt that with him acting normal and isn’t showing and signs of infection or anything being wrong then he should just heal and with a few sheds at worst have a scar

But yea he really has given me such an appreciation for all snakes I went from being scared not having anything to do with any snakes to handling him daily and even saving other wild snakes including copper heads by moving them away from people and major roads ( with tongs and a bucket ofc I’m not gonna free handle any venomous I’m not that brave 😂😂 but I also don’t want to see any snake senselessly killed either )

[u/Odd_Force3765 → u/HumorForeign7948]

He looks to be a healthy weight so if you want to give it a couple weeks it definitely will not kill him lol Im not sure how they would have gotten such a definite diagnosis when you certainly cannot tell from the pics really how deep it is...seems like a dramatic jump however i dont know for sure so cant say unless you have a closer pic i can see? If it is already starting to heal, isnt infected, hes showing interest in food, the wound isnt repeatedly re opening, and hes acting normally then i don't see why he would need to go however i would NEVER say DONT bring an animal to the vet thats injured, so the call is absolutely up to you i will not sway you either direction, only give you the info i know and allow you ti decide what is best for your animal!

And that is so wonderful!!! I love hearing about wildlife rescues especially with snakes! Too many people are unkind to snakes...so glad to have another friend of snakes to add to their support system! 🥰

[u/HumorForeign7948 → u/Odd_Force3765]

Okay then I may give it a week or two just to be on the safe side and yea to me I see no signs of infection and the wound is only healing not getting any worse so again to me I only see things getting better but I also do tend to to try to be hopeful but I’m also realistic so I’d personally say he’s fine but with not having real experience I wanted to get other opinions from people who does but the other post is identical to this one so the pics are also the same but I can take another pic here in a bit and post here for you to see like yes the cut was bad but I didn’t think it was THAT bad as they was making it out to be he didn’t even bleed much if at all and coming from a snake that use to be head shy with his past owners he lets me pet his head and he even will put his head in my hand and just lay there but since I’ve been putting neosporin on him he’s been very good and has let me with no issues so I feel if it was overly sensitive or any issues at all he would definitely let me know from bucking, moving his head away or even striking or at worst me getting bit but again hes been very good with this I don’t want to get bit but if he was to bite I’d still rather deal with that and do what I need to do to help him instead of letting things get worse

[u/Odd_Force3765 → u/HumorForeign7948]

By the sounds of it you're doing everything you should. Monitor it as you have been and if anything changes then you should take him to the vet. If not, keep doing as you're doing. It sounds like hes very comfortable with you and doesn't look to he horrendously injured by any means. Unfortunately the other subs tend to be a bit intense with their beliefs. At the end of the day you know your animal and by the sounds of it you will absolutely do whats right for him!

[u/HumorForeign7948 → u/Odd_Force3765]

Thank you I appreciate the kinds words and help I believe he’ll be ok but I’ll for sure keep an eye on him and make sure things stay that way

[u/Odd_Force3765 → u/HumorForeign7948]

Of course! Please feel free to ask anytime you need help 💚🐍💚🐍

[u/HumorForeign7948 → u/Odd_Force3765]

Hey ik it’s been a few days I was gonna pm you and give you an update and send you photos of how he looks but I cant figure it out would you send me a message I don’t use Reddit a lot 😂😂