Possible Haemorrhage in baby snake, opinions please

[Helenthereef]

I need some opinions please. I'm in Fiji and have no reptile vet available. I need to decide whether to euthanise this baby snake or let nature take its course.

This baby Fiji Boa, Candoia bibroni bibroni was born in May 2011, as the runt of a litter of 13. She has remained smaller than all the others but eats a tiny gecko weekly, and I had high hopes she was going to be fine.

She last ate 3 weeks ago. A week after she ate I noticed her abdomen was swollen bellow her stomach but above her cloaca. It is soft, not like a bolus of food, and I had thought maybe a retained dropping taking its time to come out. I have been bathing her regularly and gave her a drop of fish oil which worked before with a constipated snake.

This lump has remained. I've just been away for 4 days and on my return I can see that the lump has slowly grown. She has refused all food since that last meal.

She does not appear to be in pain, but it is now big enough that she cannot move as easily as normal, and it seems tender. It is located very near her egg sac scar / navel, and now I'm wondering if it is an internal haemorrhage. I was hoping it would heal itself but it seems to be worsening.

Any opinions or experiences would be most appreciated, Thanks.

 

[Helenthereef]

Well, its a few days later now and no change - for better or for worse.

In another forum it has been suggested that this could be intestinal parasites, and as that's the only thing I can try and treat I'm going with that.

I got some dog wormer tablets from my local cat/dog Vet (for those who don't know, I'm in a small island state, no reptile vet, so I have to do what I can with what I can get), and I have diluted the (normally given to dogs as a tablet by mouth) tablets down for the tiny body weight.

I intend to give it orally by dropper (I've managed this before with antibiotics). I just want to double check in case anyone knows a reason NOT to do this.

From research on other sites I found out that praziquantal could be a suitable wormer for reptiles. The tablets I have are DRONTAL, which is praziquantal, possibly mixed with pyrantel pamoate and febantel.

Unless anyone cries STOP, I'm going to risk it. Whatever it is it's not fixing itself and this tiny snake can't go much longer without feeding. if I get it wrong and poison her it's at least a faster death than being slowly parasitised or starving.

Any cries of "DON"T DO IT"?
__________________