Bone marrow from snakes is difficult but not impossible to obtain from snakes. The bone marrow cavity of the ribs of large snakes will yield a sample. The area around the dorsal fourth of a rib is aseptically prepared. The skin is incised and the cortical bone of the rib is drilled through with a 21- to 23-gauge spinal needle. The needle is then advanced a few millimetres to the marrow cavity. For smaller species, surgical removal of a portion of a rib or vertebral spinous process is possible. It is fixed in formal saline and placed in a decalcifying solution until soft enough to allow histological processing. It is also possible to obtain marrow from the ventral vertebral bodies by biopsy. | Bone marrow from snakes is difficult but not impossible to obtain from snakes. The bone marrow cavity of the ribs of large snakes will yield a sample. The area around the dorsal fourth of a rib is aseptically prepared. The skin is incised and the cortical bone of the rib is drilled through with a 21- to 23-gauge spinal needle. The needle is then advanced a few millimetres to the marrow cavity. For smaller species, surgical removal of a portion of a rib or vertebral spinous process is possible. It is fixed in formal saline and placed in a decalcifying solution until soft enough to allow histological processing. It is also possible to obtain marrow from the ventral vertebral bodies by biopsy. |