Saoirse the WC rescue...good and bad news

[frankykeno]

Well poor Saoirse has had quite the week. She has been eating successfully for us which is wonderful! However the poor dear went into shed and it was a total disaster no matter how high we pushed her humidity it just would NOT budge.

We've had to soak her three times to get it off and there is still small remnants that we will likely have to deal with but we are giving her a break from the stress of the soaking. It appears that in some areas of her body there was more than one layer of shed coming off. Having never seen this before I'm not completely sure but it seems a lot of shed, almost layers of it or quite "thick" on certain parts of her body.

We did not offer her feed this week as she was so stressed from all this messing with her and still heavily in shed on feeding night.

But on the good side, despite all this mess and stress, I had her in my hands last night as Mike cleaned up her cage and she for the first time did NOT ball up or attempt to flee. She actually stayed nicely in my hands and looked around, tongue flicking and acting fairly "normal". It only lasted perhaps 2 minutes until we tucked her back inside her home but it was a sweet time and I'll admit I got teary (silly I know).

Hopefully her next shed will be so much easier on her and on us.


~~Jo~~

[tigerlily]

Oh dear. Poor girl! I'm glad you were able to get most of the shed off, even if it did cause her quite a bit of stress. I'll keep my fingers crossed for a better shed next time. I know you will be anxious until she eats for you again. Hopefully she feels better getting most of the shed off enough to eat next week. Sounds like all the normal OCDness associated with our beloved bps is amplified in poor Saoirse. Hopefully you'll have her on the right track soon!

[mlededee]

aw, sorry about all the shedding woes. if it makes you feel any better just know that this first shed is not a reflection of your husbandry but of her previous conditions. i am sure that her sheds will improve more and more the next few times until they are perfect. i'm glad to hear that despite the awful shed she seems to be settling in nicely.

[rabernet]

Poor girl! I'm glad to hear that she's starting to relax with you, despite the perceived "meanness" (from her perspective) of her snake mommy in working on her shed. Sounds like she probably feels better after getting all that old shed off! She's very lucky that you rescued her, she couldn't have asked for a more loving home!

[Adam_Wysocki]

Try keeping neosporin on those "layered" stuck shed areas until her next shed. Once a day is usually enough. It will help.

-adam

[SatanicIntention]

Well, I bet she feels better getting all of that mess off. You're a good snake mom.

See, what did I tell you about putting an ointment on her? LoL, although I did say the generic A&D ointment. Good for the skin. Either way, I am sure both work the same in helping lubricate that remaining shed, and get it off of her.

[frankykeno]

Okay just to double check here (freakin OCD!)....

So just dab on the neosporin on the bits of shed that are still stuck (none are encircling) and let her be basically? We haven't repeated the soaking after doing it for 3 straight nights (trying to give her a night or two off that stress).

The shed that remains is just ragged bits and some big pieces mostly along her spine and a bit on her neck. Not a lot left and as I said, none that I can see that encircles her fully.

Thanks everyone for the kind words. I adore all the snakes but for some reason Saoirse and her shy ways just tug at my heart. She's sort of my favorite.

Well okay, so is Orlah for her lovely gentle nature...and Brannagh for being a big ole brat...and Kyna for....oh hell they are ALL my favorites LMAO


~~Jo~~

[frankykeno]

Just a quick update on Saoirse.

The applications of ointment have helped tremendously! We are finding a few layers of shed still coming off, mostly on her neck and head area but slowly working at that, trying not to overstress her.

A huge thanks to Adam for his advice last night on the phone with Mike. A bit of a concern here trying to remove three stuck eyecaps on one of her eyes (the other is clear thank goodness!). Our first experience with stuck eyecaps....a bit scarey LOL. We've got two layers off and can see her eye moving under the last thin eyecap so hopefully all is well with that and it will come off with the next shed or before that.

Always looking on the upside however, she's eating wonderfully well, showing obvious weight gain and defecating/urating normally! Also no tendency to strike or bite during all this mucking about with her shed.....what a lovely girl she is!


~~Joanna and Mike~~

[tigerlily]

Sounds great! Congrats!

[Lady Python]

I'm sure she's going to be just fine We had to help Bobby shed too after neglect from his previous owners The first time he shed with us, he got all the head, including eyecaps as far as his neck...and didn't bother with the rest! I'm hoping the next time he sheds he does it all himself. He's a lot happier with himself now, eating well, doing everything else well and is gaining approx 30g - 33g per week. It's sooooo rewarding when you see them coming on in leaps and bounds