first time shedding!

first time with me that is. her eyes blued over 3 days ago but they cleared up already, and i can tell that the skin on her tail is wrinkly and getting ready to shed (btw is that normal? all backwards and whatnot?). i mist her once a day if i can cause shes always in her hide. if i cant spray her i just do the walls. i dont wanna soak her cause i dont wanna stress her out. anything else i should do? add a rock to rub against etc?

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Originally Posted by elra

first time with me that is. her eyes blued over 3 days ago but they cleared up already, and i can tell that the skin on her tail is wrinkly and getting ready to shed (btw is that normal? all backwards and whatnot?). i mist her once a day if i can cause shes always in her hide. if i cant spray her i just do the walls. i dont wanna soak her cause i dont wanna stress her out. anything else i should do? add a rock to rub against etc?

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From my experience, just keep the humidity up to around 65-70% during shed times, and it's quite possible by the time you read this, that you'll find a (hopefully) complete shed in her hide. About 3 to 4 days after their eyes go back to clear, they seem to be in full shed. If your husbandry is incorrect, then you'll notice a partial shed, and that just means get your temps/humidity correct and soak her a little to get rid of the partial.

Good luck, here's to finding that complete shed we all hope to see! :)

Don't worry about soaking until you find that the shed has gone poorly. It can't hurt to add a rock to rub against, just be sure you've disinfected the rock if you found it outside or something. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!

thanks guys! she didnt end up shedding in one piece :( i covered the majority of the mesh cover with saran wrap, misted her and the walls daily, but i dont have a hygrometer so im not sure if humidity was the culprit. she's still having a hard time with her head and tail. i soaked her for a little while this morning, hopefully she does the deed on her own.

Next time instead of using Saran Wrap, use a wet towel to cover the lid of the tank. It does wonders for humidity. I almost never have to mist if I wet the towel every day (I usually just run it under the bath faucet and then wring it out so it's not sopping wet).

Also, if you're using any sort of overhead heat (lights, ceramic heater), try switching to just a UTH for your heating needs if possible. Overhead heat tends to zap humidity.

Last, but not least, invest in a hygrometer. Even one of those stick-on cheap ones is better than nothing.

Just a couple tips... hope they help for next time!

(If she can't get the rest of the shed off, soak her for like half an hour in very shallow water and you should see the remaining shed literally just hanging off. It's very easy to sluff off with a wet washcloth or whatever, just BE GENTLE!)

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Originally Posted by PrincessErica

Next time instead of using Saran Wrap, use a wet towel to cover the lid of the tank. It does wonders for humidity.

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That works great :) But you know what will really get the humidity up...Try using a wet towel on the cover, then putting saran wrap on the wet towel. To 'rehydrate' the towel, just flip the screen top over and spray the towel. Combining the two methods works great.

ooooohhhh good ideas! I'm not used to having to worry about humidity all that much with these sterlites but Becky's BCI is in a glass tank and it's a bugger to keep high enough for his shed...off to grab a towel and some clear wrap!


~~Jo~~

Dang, I never thought of using Saran Wrap in tandum with the wet towel... good call! Probably helps keep the towel wet a bit longer.

i got a hygrometer! the humidity is 70% even without any saran wrap, probably cause i live in san francisco (where snakes are illegal...dont tell on me please) 5 minutes away from the beach. maybe shes just stressed out.. next shed im going to put a sheet over her cage to give a little more privacy :)