The Shedding Process

So Traya had her first very surprise shed with me. Could just be because she's a pale grey with a white belly, but never caught her getting dull and she only has one eye and I never caught it looking blue. She also ate on Thursday just fine. Just went to clean her cage yesterday cause I smelled poop and also found the shed skin.

The issue is she shed butt first and it's all off except for about two inches back from her head up to her snout. She's understandably head shy, so any tips for helping getting stuck shed off of her head?

Some morphs can be hard to see when they go into shed. It took me a while to figure out albinos. You should be able to pick up on some slight changes after awhile. If it is a morph with a clean white belly, the pink belly phase is easiest to pick up.

For stuck shed problems, I always recommend a humid hide. They do wonders.

Hello! So I just want to reassure that my first ball python- Salazar is doing good. I believe he is in Day 10 of the shedding process. I haven't seen him come out at all. He's just been hiding. This is normal? And will he be dehydrated? I haven't seen him drink any water either since he hasn't came out of his hide.
Thanks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I only have on BP to compare to, my others are all colubrids...
Just for reference, my BP has shed twice with me and both sheds took 5 days from eyes turning opaque to two perfect sheds. I don't know if my guy shads fast, or if age or other variables affect shed time. My two corns have both had sheds that lasted 10 days though. I'm curious to see if shed times vary with species, age, etc... I'm looking forward to seeing what others have to say..

But yes, it is very normal for snakes to hide throughout the shed process. Their vision is obstructed and they feel vulnerable while in shed, so they stay where they feel safe and secure. As long as the ambient humidity in the enclosure is right he should be fine. A lot of people suggest putting some damp sphagnum moss in their hides while they are in shed.

Ok. Thanks for the info.
I actually have another question and am just curious if anyone has any input. So I just got home from work- and he's poking his head out of his hide. This is the first time I've seen him alert since Friday the 10th. He hasn't shed yet- but his eyes aren't cloudy anymore. So I'm thinking it's about to happen? And I'm wondering do they get alert before hand? Or is he possibly just hungry? He had no interest eating on the 10th which was his feeding day- so he hasn't eaten since February 28th.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have yet to experience this with my BP since I got him 5 days ago. You did a great job of getting the information across in a easy way to understand.

Thank you for this very informative thread. I have a candino BP and I've only had her a little over a week. I'm concerned that I won't see the dulling of her colors easily or that her eyes won't go blue (because they are red). Other than the pink belly, what else should I look for in a BP that is part albino? I appreciate any and all advice. :3
129

Hi everyone,

This is a very interesting thread, thanks.

So I have a little question regarding my BP, which I got around 4-20-2017, and didn't experience any shedding process with him yet (the breeder said he shed 2 or 3 days before I purchase him, and btw he's born on sept 2016).

As you can see in this link, his eyes look like they are turning white at their upper part, except it doesn't really look like the photos in this thread, where the eyes become blueish.

Is this how it all starts or should i worry about it? Does this look normal to you?

Thanks.

UPDATE: after posting the reply, I remembered the breeder sent me a pic of him before I purchase him and it turns out his eyes are actually blue. Now it looks like he's loosing that white/blue color around the eye, and more black is gaining field there. You can see the breeder's pic here.

I am in temporary custody of grandson's BP, about 2 yrs old. I have no prior experience. I noted blue, cloudy eyes on June 4 when he struck at offered prey (thawed frozen mouse), and missed, but tried again and readily swallowed mouse. I prepared moist shed box and he went in on June 8. He has chosen the warm end (ambient in tank is 83F) and there he remains. Has this gone on long enough for me to be concerned, or is this within normal range? I've tried to avoid curiosity gawking but when I peeked this morning, eyes are still milky blue.

Nervous Grandma

Nothing at all to worry about. Snakes shed at their own pace and can take up to 10-14 days from turning blue to shedding.

Seems like you're doing a good job snake sitting. What is the humidity in the enclosure?