Introduction/shed questions

[MsGolightly]

Hi everyone!
I have been browsing for a while now, but decided to actually register and start being social! I got my first snake (a normal) on 10.6.13 I was actually really skeptical and nervous about it in the beginning. I am completely and hopelessly addicted now! I absolutely love ball pythons!! I got my 2nd BP on 10.26.13 (a pastel) ultimately because I could play with my first while she was shedding and I was impatient! My husband got his axanthic that same night. And I just recently got my 3rd BP on 11.9.13 (a spider). They are all such great and gentle snakes. I have yet to be bitten, so I am still a little nervous about that, but I gues we will cross that bridge when we get there.

As for my shedding question... All of my snakes excluding the axanthic are hatchlings. I don't have a scale to weigh them yet, but they are pretty small. My pastel went into a shed cycle around 11.19 his eye are all cleared up now and you can see the skin on his nose starting to peel. The problem is; he hasn't started rubbing or trying to get his skin off AT ALL!! I check on him every day and he is just always in his hide curled up.
I soaked him earlier in his shed cycle twice and I have been spraying his tank ( I am in the process of building a rack) but I'm not sure why he isn't trying to rub his skin off. Should a shed cycle be taking this long and is it normal for him to just be hanging out in his hide like that?

[Spencer88]

What's the humidity like in the cage? Does he have anything to rub up against to get the skin off?

[satomi325]

Welcome to the forum!


When a snake goes blue in a shed cycle, the go clear again before shedding.
Sounds like he doesn't have enough humidity to shed.

And don't worry about bites. Paper cuts hurt more, in my opinion. In fact, the 2 times I've ever been bitten in the years I've owned ball pythons, I didn't even notice I was bitten till I saw the blood.

[Crazymonkee]

I'd definitely make sure the humidity is at 70, if it is he'll get it off!

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[MsGolightly]

To be completely honest the humidity is not that great. I recently got a new tank thinking that it would be better, but it has a screen lid and I'm having a tough time keeping the humidity up. I was considering movie him to the previous tank but it's pretty big for a hatchling (55gal) and I don't want to over stress him. This is why I am building the rack system.


He does have a nice rough and edgy rock formation in his tank to run against.


And satomi325 thanks for the biting preparation. Makes me feel better know that it doesn't hurt. I've been told it will scare me more than anything.

[Spencer88]

Lay a wet towel over half of the screen top and mist the cage.. This should help a lot.

[satomi325]

To be completely honest the humidity is not that great. I recently got a new tank thinking that it would be better, but it has a screen lid and I'm having a tough time keeping the humidity up. I was considering movie him to the previous tank but it's pretty big for a hatchling (55gal) and I don't want to over stress him. This is why I am building the rack system.

Try covering 90% of the screen with a damp towel, tin foil, or plexiglass. Also using a substrate such as coco-husk or cypress mulch will help retain humidity.

And satomi325 thanks for the biting preparation. Makes me feel better know that it doesn't hurt. I've been told it will scare me more than anything.

Yes, it can be pretty surprising, but it happens so fast that it's over before you even process what happened.

[MsGolightly]

Great!! Thank you so much guys! I will be putting a damp towel on the top of the tank right now. Should the towel be damp with warm water or cold water, or will it be okay once the warm water cools? I am sure I am being irrational now and just picky, but I'm worried about my boy.

[Spencer88]

I always use warm water.. But it really doesn't matter

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I always use warm water.. But it really doesn't matter

[MsGolightly]

Thank you everyone! I have a damp towel on his tank and I am misting it often as well. Hopefully he will shed in the next couple of days.