Potential Nerve/Muscle Damage?

This is just a hunch but he actually seems like he can control that part of the body and is trying to keep it from touching the ground/water. How badly damaged are the scales on his belly in that area, and does he flinch away if you touch him there? Looks like he may just be really sensitive since he's still healing.

Does he move normally when out of the water or still try to roll that part of his body off the ground?

You can see the scars but he won't flinch if you touch them, it looks fully healed to me. He does it sometimes out of the water but it's extremely noticeable whenever I let him soak. He was also pretty agressive and grumpy right after he was hurt (understandably so!) But now he's mellowed out and doesn't strike at me anymore, so I take that as a sign he's feeling better.

Soaking before a shed really isn't necessary to begin with (just do a search, there are a lot of threads on it; the general consensus is that it is stressful and can deplete beneficial oils that help the shedding process when a moist hide would be a better idea) but since it seems to stress this guy so much you might want to stop soaking at least for him.

If he doesn't do it all the time and moves normally this may be something that gets better with time. If it improves I would see no problem with eventually breeding him.

What DVirginiana said. If humidity is spot on they will shed OK. Soaking is not necessary and can be less helpful because it can mess with the oils that form between the old and new scales which help to slough the old skin. It is not helpful for them, and it can be quite stressful.

What temperature was the water?

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Originally Posted by dr del

What temperature was the water?

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I had that thought too.

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Originally Posted by dr del

What temperature was the water?

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You know, I've never measured the water temp. I always run it so it feels warm but not hot. I've never had a snake recoil from the water, and I let them venture off my hand when they're ready.

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Originally Posted by DVirginiana

Soaking before a shed really isn't necessary to begin with (just do a search, there are a lot of threads on it; the general consensus is that it is stressful and can deplete beneficial oils that help the shedding process when a moist hide would be a better idea) but since it seems to stress this guy so much you might want to stop soaking at least for him.

If he doesn't do it all the time and moves normally this may be something that gets better with time. If it improves I would see no problem with eventually breeding him.

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I probably will stop soaking him since he seems to freak out a bit. I've never used the moist hide idea so I'll hafta look into it :) I hope he can breed one day, we were curious what a pastel and axanthic would make.

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Originally Posted by anicatgirl

What DVirginiana said. If humidity is spot on they will shed OK. Soaking is not necessary and can be less helpful because it can mess with the oils that form between the old and new scales which help to slough the old skin. It is not helpful for them, and it can be quite stressful.

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I can never get the humidity to stay above 50, so when I asked some friends what they did, they recommended bathing. While for Loki it may be stressful, and perhaps for the new snake too since I'm not sure how to read her yet, My normal ball python does seem to enjoy them and has been having perfect sheds each time she gets a bath.

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Originally Posted by Vanouri

My normal ball python does seem to enjoy them and has been having perfect sheds each time she gets a bath.

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What does she do that makes you think she 'enjoys' it? BPs signs of stress are things we would think mean something else 'enjoys' something, such as increased alertness, tongue flicking, movement, ect. It's really not beneficial at all and can actually make a shed more difficult.

You can fill a hide with damp sphagnum moss. The snake will go in there on its own if it needs more humidity during a shed.