Bad Shed, New Ball Owner

[PlaysWithBalls]

I recently (2 weeks ago) got two, 2 year old ball pythons.

Snake #1 was on the verge of a shed when I got them. On the third day, he shed in many pieces, but completely. Eyecaps included. His eyes are now very clear and dark, but still have a crackly appearance.

Snake #2 is starting to get a pink underbelly, and his eyes, too, are crackly in appearance, but clear and dark, not cloudy like they are before a shed.

If the eyecaps came off for snake #1's most recent shed, why are his eyes still crackly in appearance? Is this a case of retained eyecaps from previous sheds? I would have guessed they'd be cloudy too if that were the case. Do I need to up my humidity?

[Toronto Python Gurus]

whats your humidity at? my snake room is always at 50% humidity and i mist them when i notice they are in shed to get it up to about 60%-70%

and as for the eye-caps post a pic and im sure someone will be able to help you out

[disabled.101]

They are housed separately right?

[PlaysWithBalls]

Humidity is around 40%, though I had a hard time getting it above 30 the first week or so.

This is the best I could do with a picture. Not the greatest, but I left it large so you can sorta see that the eye isn't real smooth. They have been this way on both snakes since I brought them home.

Do I need to up the humidity more?





And no, they are housed together. They have, according to previous owner, always been housed together.

[Toronto Python Gurus]

40% isnt too bad but what are they house in? first of all you have to keep them seperated/housed apart . . . if they are housed in a tank then there are a few things you can do to up the humidity:
1. cover more of the tank top . . . towel, shrink wrap, etc.
2. place the water dish over the under tank heater(if u have one, if u dont i suggest you get one)
3. avoid using heat lamps they tend to dry out the air and ball pythons need belly heat anyways

but definately get them out of the same enclosure, especially if they are both males(which i think i read)

[PlaysWithBalls]

They're currently in a glass tank (55 gal) with a screentop lid. I do have half of the screen covered with aluminum foil while I wait for my plex cover to come. I'm misting often to keep humidity up til then.

I don't have a UTH, because I'm a terrible worrier of belly burn. I am going to go for a different substrate (bark chips? I don't know, so many mixed reviews on substrates) but for now they're on newspaper til I figure out one that is actually 100% safe.

As for gender, I call them both "he" but they've never actually been probed. Separating them is definitely an option, but they show no signs of stress or aggression with each other. I'm under the impression it's not terribly unheard of for two balls to coexist. Is that not true?

Thanks

[Enser54]

I have a snake with the same thing going on with his eyes, and it has been that way since I got him but my other snakes don't have this problem. Here is a picture[ he was in shed, but its still that way after and before the shed]...


And also they say you shouldn't house them together, but that is a large tank for BPs so it may work out if you give them enough hides and such to stay away from each other. If they feed alright you should be fine, but if one doesn't eat I'd separate.

[Toronto Python Gurus]

the under tank heater should be fine if your worried about "belly burn" then get one with a dial to adjust the temperature, all my snakes(14 BP's) have under tank heaters and are on newspaper and i have never had one of them get "belly burn"

male/male - female/female - male/female doesnt matter they should be kept seperately not just for health reason but also so you can keep a watch on them . . . see who is poopin, producin sperm slugs(if male), sheddin etc... the only exception is during breeding but even then i only keep my males with my females for 3 days then give then a 3 day rest apart and then 3 days on again

[Kaorte]

Please please take a look at the caresheet: http://ball-pythons.net/modules/Sect...warticle&id=59

It sounds like you have quite a few husbandry issues to sort out. I would try upping the humidity more to see if that helps with the eye caps. You can try placing sphagnum moss around the tank.

[PlaysWithBalls]

Actually, aside from the humidity issue, according to the care sheet link you provided, everything else is well within desired ranges.

I wasn't even sure the eye issue was actual eyecaps, as snake #1 definitely shed the eyecaps with his recent shed. Yet his eyes retained the crackled look without the cloudiness.

I'll work on getting the humidity at a higher level.

Thanks for your help.