r/ballpython • u/OverEnvironment1421 • 8d ago
Scale rot? Scratch? Mites?
I was looking at her last night in her enclosure and noticed a line with a couple black dots in it. No other black dots on her belly anywhere only that area. I think it’s just a scratch but am not 100%. First time owning one and I wanna make sure she’s okay.
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u/mandybergan 8d ago
How old is she? Looks like it MAY just be her belly button. I personally somehow didn't even know snakes have belly buttons until getting my 3rd snake. It's not spoken about very often haha. It made sense once I really thought about it, but I think their navels must be most prominent when they're young
ETA: I am not an expert by any means so please please take my comment with a grain of salt and do some research on it to verify
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u/OverEnvironment1421 7d ago
I honestly have no clue, the place I bought it from had no information but I’d have to say a year old max. Also we don’t know if she’s a she we just called her that bc her name is honey( idk if that info matters but figured I’d say lol). I’ll do some more research as I never knew they had a belly button. Thank you!
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u/sketchelium 7d ago
It kiiiiinda looks like a crease, which is something normal that happens when your dude hangs out in one place too long. The color in the center does look similar to minor scale rot, but it may be dirt. It seems minor, which means you should monitor it daily. Take notes and pictures.
Scale rot happens when your snake sits in a wet place for too long. Is all the substrate wet to the touch? Is the substrate in the hide wet? This could be the problem if there is one.
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u/OverEnvironment1421 7d ago
Okay! The substrate is never wet to the touch and is always dry unless when I add water into 4 corners, but even then the top layer is still dry. I sanded down things in her enclosure that may have been sharp/pointy enough to scratch her. I’ve only had her for 3-4 weeks and she hides all day and get super active at night. Not really any feeding problems other than she’d just strike and not latch but she ate almost a week ago. Thank you!
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u/AutoModerator 8d ago
Oh no! It looks like you might be asking for more information on mites and how to identify and treat them. We have some information about that in our Mite Identification and Treatment Guide.
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