Lump in BHP's tail

[smigga]

I got a BHP in about mid december noticed a small hard circular lump near his vent. I didn't think anything of it as the previous owner had fed him recently. However I noticed it again this week and was just wondering if anyone has had anything similar or if i should be worried about it?
A few details about him. He was born in January 2011 and was a slow starter.
I keep him in a 4ft tank with 2 hides, one in the cool end and one in the hot end.
The temp is about 34-36 at the warm end and 27-29 at the cool end.
I feed him one fuzzy rat a week and am about to up the size.
He is kept on breeders choice kitty litter.
Hopefully it is nothing but i just wanted to check.
Here is some pics showing the bump

 

[Fantazmic]

i have heard of substrate causing allergies ??

It doesnt happen often but it can happen

When in doubt I would go to a good reptile vet

 

[Boidae]

I'm thinking it might be a possible impaction from the kitty litter.
Do you feed him on the kitty litter?
Give him a nice warm bath, and maybe try gently massaging above the lump.
If that doesn't work, or if he starts acting limp or looking unwell take him to the vet.
When was the last time he defacated?

 

[Reptilefreak95]

i agree with boidae, warm bath and massages can work wonders, if nothing happens, go to a vet, it is a fair sized lump.

 

[smigga]

I'm thinking it might be a possible impaction from the kitty litter.
Do you feed him on the kitty litter?
Give him a nice warm bath, and maybe try gently massaging above the lump.
If that doesn't work, or if he starts acting limp or looking unwell take him to the vet.
When was the last time he defacated?

Yeah i feed him on the kitty litter.
He hasnt defecated with me yet but i thought that because i am only feeding small food items, he may have been digesting the whole rat because he has still been passing urates.
i will give him a warm bath and if that does nothing, i'll make an appointment tomorrow.

 

[junglelove]

ive known of snakes to get an infection in their hemipene pocket, i agree with the gentle massage.

 

[Shauno]

Hey Smigger,

Had something farely similar with one of my albino Darwins over Xmas. It turned farely nasty quite rapidly and the snake had to be euthanised. Personally I would get it to a reputable reptile vet asap or maybe if you can? email your vet some pics.​

 

[Boidae]

Yeah i feed him on the kitty litter.
He hasnt defecated with me yet but i thought that because i am only feeding small food items, he may have been digesting the whole rat because he has still been passing urates.
i will give him a warm bath and if that does nothing, i'll make an appointment tomorrow.

That's good. Yes, small food items will usually be completely absorbed by the snake.
I'd move him up to hoppers, they will have more nutrition than fuzzies and will also have fur which provides roughage.
That roughage may help to clear out his gut if that is the case.
I would change him over to newspaper, it may well not be the kitty litter, but better safe than sorry.

 

[smigga]

That's good. Yes, small food items will usually be completely absorbed by the snake.
I'd move him up to hoppers, they will have more nutrition than fuzzies and will also have fur which provides roughage.
That roughage may help to clear out his gut if that is the case.
I would change him over to newspaper, it may well not be the kitty litter, but better safe than sorry.

Alright cool, tonight is feed night and i have some spare hoppers, should I feed him in a seperate tub or skip feeding him tonight?
I will change his substrate in the morning.

 

[Boidae]

That would be fine. Try feeding him tonight, if he takes it then that is definately a good sign.
It might not be a bad idea to wait until he defecates afterwards. That way you can collect the feces,
and the vet can analyse them and check for any micro-organisms or bacteria etc.
But if he starts acting unusual before then, forget about the fecal sample and get your guy off to ther vet.

 

[smigga]

Alright cheers, you've been a great help.
I will take him to the vet once hes defecated and will report back with the findings.

 

[smigga]

UPDATE: good news, today I found an enormous poop in his enclosure. Along with that when I picked him up, there was no lump. I will take a picture of what I suspect was the lump tonight when I get home.

 

[Ramsayi]

ive known of snakes to get an infection in their hemipene pocket, i agree with the gentle massage.

Except that lump is no where near the reproductive organs.

Glad it turned out to be nothing.

 

[smigga]

Here are the pics of the suspects.

First is a bit of odd looking poo which was separate to the rest.
Next is a bit of kitty litter which was with suspect 1.
And the rest of the poo (just in case I missed anything

 

[Sutto82]

At least we know now not to feed on the kitty litter. My woma lives on crystal substrate so I feed him in an empty tub. I'll be doing the same with my BHPs when they start living on crystal too.

Happy to hear that it's lump is gone though.

 

[edstar]

glad to hear the lump has gone

 

[smigga]

Thanks guys, Im glad the lump is gone as well and it turned out to be nothing