A health concern & a missing shed?

I'll cut to the quick of it: I thought my bp was getting ready to shed, as his eyecaps were vibrantly blue and he was very pale. I skipped his usual feeding day to allow him to squirm out of his old skin. Today his eyes are red again and he's a brighter yellow, but I couldn't find a skin anywhere in his tank. Is it possible he ate it..?

For whatever reason, the internal photo systems on this site are NOT working for me, so I have to use an image hosting site.
This is Smake when I thought he was "in blue": https://i.postimg.cc/C1Xc7RFr/smake1.png

This is him now, a day later: https://i.postimg.cc/4d75YXz6/smake2.png

My health concern is that he has these crusties around his nostrils and weird-looking skin on his head/face and I want to know if I should be concerned about it.
Here's that: https://i.postimg.cc/d00nK23S/smake3.jpg
A second img: https://i.postimg.cc/g2s45SzZ/smake4.jpg

Let me know if I ought to take him to a vet, and if it's possible he ate his shed/wasn't in shed at all.
Depending on the responses I get here, I may feed him tmrw. Poor lad is probably hungry.

Thanks!

No, he didn't eat it, lol. It can take days from the time a snake goes back to "clear" before they actually shed their skin. This confuses many or most new snake owners- but it helps to understand why this happens. Snakes cloud up ("go blue") & then they secrete moisture between the old & new skin to facilitate the shed- it's that moisture that makes their skin appear almost normal- as if they'd already shed. And some time after that, they actually do shed. (Hint: It's virtually NEVER the next day after being "blue".)

There is no exact time or # of days- snakes are individuals & various things can make a shed take longer- for example, feeding them after they started a shed cycle- & it's best to avoid doing that because both shedding & digestion requires (uses) water from the snake's body, so if their hydration isn't great, they end up getting "stuck" in their shed, or it comes off in a zillion pieces. More rarely, they might barf up their meal if they cannot digest it properly.

His skin (face etc) looks weird because he hasn't shed yet- ;) Be sure to keep up his humidity (65-75%) & wait. No, you don't need to run to a vet. :snake:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

No, he didn't eat it, lol. It can take days from the time a snake goes back to "clear" before they actually shed their skin. This confuses many or most new snake owners- but it helps to understand why this happens. Snakes cloud up ("go blue") & then they secrete moisture between the old & new skin to facilitate the shed- it's that moisture that makes their skin appear almost normal- as if they'd already shed. And some time after that, they actually do shed. (Hint: It's virtually NEVER the next day after being "blue".)

There is no exact time or # of days- snakes are individuals & various things can make a shed take longer- for example, feeding them after they started a shed cycle- & it's best to avoid doing that because both shedding & digestion requires (uses) water from the snake's body, so if their hydration isn't great, they end up getting "stuck" in their shed, or it comes off in a zillion pieces. More rarely, they might barf up their meal if they cannot digest it properly.

His skin (face etc) looks weird because he hasn't shed yet- ;) Be sure to keep up his humidity (65-75%) & wait. No, you don't need to run to a vet. :snake:

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This ^^^


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Thank you all so much! I had no idea. I am keeping his humidity up! He has a humidifier and I spray his tank daily. I'll hold off feeding until his skin is off! He had a bad shed last time and I think it's because I fed him during his process. Thanks again!!

Great news!! His shed came off in one full piece and there isn't even a little bit stuck. It was an excellent shed. He also took this as an opportunity to poop, lol. I'll be feeding him after I get his tank reset and clean. : ))