Problem Shedding

I got my first snake earlier this year a ball python and he's just now been going thru his first shed. His eyes cleared up and he's been actually shedding for about a week now he's only shed his head so far. I don't why he hasn't shed completely yet. Is there anything I should do to assist him? And if this happens again when should I know it's time to assist him? He's temp has been about 85 on the hot side and humidity about 50-55. Also is there anything I can do differently for his next shed to make it go smoother?

Yeah, you're going to need to bump his humidity up for sheds. Between 65%-70% is a good target range. 55% - 60% is a good average range normally, but they need that 15% or so bump to help them during their sheds.

I don't know what type of enclosure he's in, or how easy it is for you to maintain the humidity, but go ahead and get your humidity up to 70% and see if that doesn't help him complete his shed in the next day or two.

Pay special attention to his eyes to ensure the eye caps come off and are not stuck. This is a critical area.

ETA: Just re-read and noticed your warm side temps. You are going to want to recheck all of your husbandry because everything seems low. Hot side surface temps should be 88º-90º, regulated by a thermostat to ensure no temp spikes, cool side surface temps between 77º-80º with ambient air temps in the high 70s to 80º. Avg. humidity from the low 50s - 60%, with an increase to 70% during shed.

If you really want a thorough review of your setup, post a picture here and let us take a look. We can point out anything amiss and get you on the right track.

Whatis your enclosure like? You need to bump up your heat and humidity. If you have it in a fish tank its going to be a constant battle to keep humidity in check but there are various posts with tips on modifications that can be made to help it out. Congrats on your new friend!

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Originally Posted by BossG

I got my first snake earlier this year a ball python and he's just now been going thru his first shed. His eyes cleared up and he's been actually shedding for about a week now he's only shed his head so far. I don't why he hasn't shed completely yet. Is there anything I should do to assist him? And if this happens again when should I know it's time to assist him? He's temp has been about 85 on the hot side and humidity about 50-55. Also is there anything I can do differently for his next shed to make it go smoother?

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As soon as they get their colours back and the eyes clear up THEN you start spraying the tank / viv a few times each day until they actually shed the skin .

If you have a mesh lid you really have to cover it at all times with some plastic or similar to keep the humidity up


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Once I see that salmon color belly....humidity goes to 70%.