WTF happened? Bad Shed...

[Physician&Snakes]

I have never found it necessary to intervene before a specimen has attempted to shed, but I am also fortunate to live in an area with decent humidity and am pretty good at keeping my cage humidity up so yes I can see why someone would intervene in that time frame. Thanks for going into more detail, I wanted to keep it simple since Pythonminion nailed it down pretty good, but further clarification is always good.

Very close, but your timeline is slightly off. "Blue" refers to the period when fluid builds up beneath the currently exposed eye scale, and the fresh one beneath it making the eye appear cloudy or bluish. The fluid build up is thought to help loosen the skin prior to shedding. After going "blue" (which is usually 5-7 days after the first signs of pink on the belly) the fluid recedes and the eye will appear normal again, in fact the whole animal looks pretty normal, it may be slightly dull or dark, and feel a bit rougher to the touch, but generally normal. 2-4 days AFTER coming out of blue is when you would expect to see the actual sloughing off of the skin. If they pass that time frame without shedding, that is when you want to start thinking of intervening. If they manage a partial shed (like you say with small bits) then it can safely be left until the next shed. If there is a complete circle of retained skin skin around the neck it has to be addressed before then as this could interfere with feeding, or retained eye caps since they won't be able to see very well.

Just for clarification in my response...I should really be more detailed with quotes...

[brettliff]

Just for clarification in my response...I should really be more detailed with quotes...

You guys are awesome thanks. don't worry he's never tried to shed in blue. thanks again guys I think it's time for me to start a new thread

[patientz3ro]

Just for clarification in my response...I should really be more detailed with quotes...

WHOA! The bold bits you posted in post #101 are WAY off base! First of all, adding your own opinion in the middle of a quote from another member is a REALLY bad idea! Someone reading YOUR addition to a quote could very easily attribute YOUR opinion to the quoted member. Don't EVER "intervene" with an animal who has not already shed! NEVER!

Seriously man...I'm not trying to be a jerk, and I mean this in the most polite way possible, but maybe you should consider not giving advice for a while? I know you're just trying to help, and I think that's awesome, but I won't lie to you. You're starting to scare me a little. You've had a few posts lately that were downright dangerous. Again, I'm not trying to bust your chops. I'm just looking out for these animals, AND their keepers.
You have to understand, not everyone here has a huge collection of breeding stock. The majority of the members here have one or two animals, and we get almost ridiculously attached to them. They're family. If one of those snakes dies it's going yo be devastating. Plus, you obviously care about the wellbeing of all of our little monsters. If one of them was harmed, it would be pretty rough on you too, right?

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[satomi325]

If a snake sheds poorly, that's a sign that the humidity is too low no matter what the hygrometer says.

I'll be honest, I've quit using hygrometers years ago. I've learned to adjust my humidity based on how well my snakes' shed. I haven't had a single shedding issue since.

Ghana's average humidity is in the 90s. So don't be afraid to give your snake a lot of humidity. Just make sure you have good airflow because stagnant air and high humidity are not a good combo.

If your snake has a poor shed, put it in a warm damp pillow case. The movement of slithering through the case will remove whatever shed he has left. Its a lot less stressful on the snake than giving it a bath since ball pythons are not fond of water.



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[patientz3ro]

If a snake sheds poorly, that's a sign that the humidity is too low no matter what the hygrometer says.

I'll be honest, I've quit using hygrometers years ago. I've learned to adjust my humidity based on how well my snakes' shed. I haven't had a single shedding issue since.

Ghana's average humidity is in the 90s. So don't be afraid to give your snake a lot of humidity. Just make sure you have good airflow because stagnant air and high humidity are not a good combo.

If your snake has a poor shed, put it in a warm damp pillow case. The movement of slithering through the case will remove whatever shed he has left. Its a lot less stressful on the snake than giving it a bath since ball pythons are not fond of water.



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I prefer a warm damp towel. Slightly more abrasive. You could put the towel IN the pillow case.

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[satomi325]

I prefer a warm damp towel. Slightly more abrasive. You could put the towel IN the pillow case.

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That works as well. I've always prefer either instead of a soak. The snakes seem more calm and less stressed.

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[patientz3ro]

That works as well. I've always prefer either instead of a soak. The snakes seem more calm and less stressed.

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Ajja's first shed after I got her was a little, um... Less than perfect. I had read that soaking was helpful, and that the water should be slightly warm to the touch and only about halfway up the side of her body. I decided to err on the side of caution, and only make it 1/4 of the way up. Clearly she knew I was a nervous new parent, and decided to have some fun at my expense. No matter what I did, she managed to get her nostrils under water. I don't know if you've ever seen a hatchling python blow bubbles out of her nose, but I can assure you it's not NEARLY as amusing as it sounds.

It didn't seem to bother HER, but it stressed ME out enough to keep me from ever trying it again. Now she has a fogger and a hygrostat, and I have normal blood pressure again.

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[ViperSRT3g]

No matter what I did, she managed to get her nostrils under water. I don't know if you've ever seen a hatchling python blow bubbles out of her nose, but I can assure you it's not NEARLY as amusing as it sounds.

My snake has done this to me as well. I freaked out a bit. Still hesitant to stick him in any sort of pool of water that he can't get out of easily.

EDIT: This was more of an afterthought, but do BP's know how to swim instinctively? Or do they need to learn like some humans?

[patientz3ro]

My snake has done this to me as well. I freaked out a bit. Still hesitant to stick him in any sort of pool of water that he can't get out of easily.

EDIT: This was more of an afterthought, but do BP's know how to swim instinctively? Or do they need to learn like some humans?

I've never tested the theory, but ALLEGEDLY they're excellent swimmers. As heavy-bodied as they are, though, I'm not testing that claim. I can't recommend anyone else try it either. Either way, I'm not 100% sure, so maybe someone else can weigh in?

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[ViperSRT3g]

I'm tempted to fill the bath tub with a little bit of water and see if he can navigate properly haha. That way at least it's shallow enough that he can't drown and I can still save him in case he flounders.