Retained Shed on Tail of my BCI

Hey,

So I was checking out my 16 month BCI and I noticed he had some retained shed on the tip of his tail. I have soaked him multiple times and assumed it would come off naturally. After a week and multiple soakings I noticed it had not come off yet so I tried to rub some of the shed off while he was soaking in the water. As of now I have had no luck and he already has shed again. Now looking at the tail it looks like the tip may be loosing circulation in the last millimeter. I was wondering if this is detrimental to the snakes health or if he should be okay. Any tips or suggestions on how to remove the shed or the next step I should take would be extremely helpful. Thanks!

This needs to be dealt with ASAP as stuck tail-tip shed will shrink, cut off the blood supply to the tail, and then the tail goes necrotic and dies. If it gets bad enough it can eventually become septic and kill the snake.

You need to fix your husbandry to keep your boa more humid and hydrated. In the meantime this is the one instance where applying a petroleum-based ointment or lotion to your snake over time is called for, as it causes scales to slough off, which is what you want.

Either use a wet towel or paper towel to massage it gently after soaking for up to a few hours. DO NOT pull off tail shed ever. You cna also try petroleum jelly or water based lubricant to hydrate the shed. If however it will not come off I highly recommend a vet visit because the last thing you want is necrotic tissue on the tail.

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Originally Posted by SDA

DO NOT pull off tail shed ever.

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wait, why not? could you elaborate?

You never pull off stuck shed that is not loose and ready to come off. It can rip delicate tail scales and cause physical harm that then is a medical emergency. You can gently massage stuck shed until it is soft enough to come off or if it is dry enough to just pop off but you never ever pull of retained and stuck shed on a tail.
By pull off I mean have to actually tug and not just gently come off.

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Originally Posted by SDA

By pull off I mean have to actually tug and not just gently come off.

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that's what had me stumped as well as the "ever" part. i just had to shed out Pumpkin by hand so i got nervous when i saw your post, but his skin was softened and ready to go.

thank you for clarifying for me! :)

Well I may or may not have wrote that mid sneeze and hit submit before my brain had time to realize that I may or may not have only made partial sense!

You could also soak the snake for a while ,approx half hour with a lid on ,then gently rub till it starts to peel off ,it’s quite easy


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Easiest way is to soak a rough textured bath towel and keep 'feeding' the snake through the towel , applying gentle pressure on the tail region each time that part slides through the towel ... You can feel easy enough through the towel ...


Any stubborn skin will come off after about 5 minutes ...

This also works a treat for retained eye- caps ...

Except you apply gentle pressure on the head region then , of course :)


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Originally Posted by kjbingha

Hey,

So I was checking out my 16 month BCI and I noticed he had some retained shed on the tip of his tail. I have soaked him multiple times and assumed it would come off naturally. After a week and multiple soakings I noticed it had not come off yet so I tried to rub some of the shed off while he was soaking in the water. As of now I have had no luck and he already has shed again. Now looking at the tail it looks like the tip may be loosing circulation in the last millimeter. I was wondering if this is detrimental to the snakes health or if he should be okay. Any tips or suggestions on how to remove the shed or the next step I should take would be extremely helpful. Thanks!

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Not quite sure how you didnt catch it before the snake started to shed again but thats irrelevant atm. I always check sheds for eye caps and tail ends as well as grab my snake and check their tail tip. If there is any shed on it, i just toss them in a tub with enough water to cover half their body and leave them in there for about 15-20 mins, then i just rub the tip with my finger and the shed comes off. Or in most cases, i can just peel it off without even needing water. If there is a build up of shed, it can be difficult to remove. But like others have said, you need to get it off by methods listed above.