ball python scales falling off (pics)m please help

I have a 2010 spider ball python and his scales look like the top layer fell off. you can still see the outline of the scale on his body; however, because the scale is missing it is discolored. he had a spot like this and i thought it was due to a poor shed, but after this shed there are more patches with missing scales.

He is housed in a 20gal long glass tank with an under the tank heater. he has a log hide by the heat and a decorative hide on the cooler side. there is a large water dish and a climbing branch too. the humidity level is roughly 40-55%, but i raised it when he went into shed. (it came off in one piece the past two times).

i fed him rat pups, but i switched to a larger meal (rat crawler) and then he went into shed. i thought after this shed the scales would improve, but they have not. i read online that it may be a bacterial or fungal infection, and can treat it with athletes foot cream (but that sounds crazy to me) please help me. below are pictures of his scales...

i took these pictures the day after he shed.
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/191/49454082.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/850/97926823.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/37/32040935.jpg/

Okay,

Bear with me here. You said you can still see the outline of the scale ? If the scale was truly missing, the skin beneath should be white/cream, not dark.

The photos are a little fuzzy and not really close up, it looks to me like his color changed, not that he lost scales. If you run your fingertip over the spot, is it soft and leathery or can you feel scales?

If you can feel the scales, it is entirely possible that he just changed colors. It happens all the time with ball pythons. If you cannot feel the scales at all, just soft, faintly leathery skin, I would recommend a vet visit to rule out infection.

NEVER home treat anything like this with a unproven method you read on the internet, that is a really good way to get into a lot of trouble.

Gale

angllady2 has great questions and advise. I'll just add a little to hers. Sometimes during a poor shed they will scrape trying to remove the stuck shed and in that process will remove a few new scales as well. If it is a few and if you find no more are coming off this could be what is going on.

Check for sharp things in and around the enclosure.

Keep an eye on it for inflammation or anything odd, but if it is only a few scales and no more come off and there are no redness or swelling it is likely that after the next shed (or two) it will correct itself. It does happen every now and again.

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/62/82505785.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/827/37319623.jpg/
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/43/90061413.jpg/

Sorry about the poor pic quality. i took additional pics and the links for them are above. i hope that they are better and show the scale problem. also, i hope the new pics answer your questions and provide better info to answer mine.
thank you for taking the time to read and answer my post

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by angllady2

Okay,

Bear with me here. You said you can still see the outline of the scale ? If the scale was truly missing, the skin beneath should be white/cream, not dark.

The photos are a little fuzzy and not really close up, it looks to me like his color changed, not that he lost scales. If you run your fingertip over the spot, is it soft and leathery or can you feel scales?

If you can feel the scales, it is entirely possible that he just changed colors. It happens all the time with ball pythons. If you cannot feel the scales at all, just soft, faintly leathery skin, I would recommend a vet visit to rule out infection.

NEVER home treat anything like this with a unproven method you read on the internet, that is a really good way to get into a lot of trouble.

Gale

---

There isnt any inflammation, redness, or swelling. i replied to angllady2 and inserted links for new pics. hopefully they are better than the initial ones.
thank you for reading and replying to my post

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by kitedemon

angllady2 has great questions and advise. I'll just add a little to hers. Sometimes during a poor shed they will scrape trying to remove the stuck shed and in that process will remove a few new scales as well. If it is a few and if you find no more are coming off this could be what is going on.

Check for sharp things in and around the enclosure.

Keep an eye on it for inflammation or anything odd, but if it is only a few scales and no more come off and there are no redness or swelling it is likely that after the next shed (or two) it will correct itself. It does happen every now and again.

---

From what i can see, he is either changing color or maybe has some old shed stuck on him. Did you feel his skin? If you feel like something is wrong, take him to a reptile vet! No one should really diagnose from a picture, even a trained professional, but the pics you are showing do not look like anything unusual. Again, if you are worried, take him to a good reptile vet. Good luck!

Hey there! Don't worry. That has happened to my ball python before also. It goes away with the next shed. :]
Just make sure everything is up to par for shedding. Humidity especially. And you should be fine. A bad shed sometimes causes this.

Agreed, it's from a bad shed. Soak him in some warm water for an hour or so, they should mostly come off. I prefer to use a small shoe box tub with paper towels in the bottom to soak them in. Make sure you have the paper towels clumped enough that he can partially crawl up on them if he doesn't want to set in the water.

You might have to do this a couple of times, but it usually gets 99% of them the first time through.

Did you run your fingertip over the area in question ? As I said, if the scales are gone you can feel it.

To me it still appears to be spots where the scales have changed colors, which may or may not change back when he sheds again.

If it is a patch where the scales are truly gone, and you notice they have spread or there are more spots where he had scales before, I would suspect an injury or infection.

If you still cannot tell by feel if the scales are gone, have someone hold a flashlight at an angle to the area in question and gently coax the snake to flex it's body along those spots. With the aid of a flashlight you should easily be able to see the scales as you move the snake's body. If you cannot see scales in the areas, then you know for sure you are dealing with something more serious.

Gale

i understand that an issue like this should not be diagnosed via pics, but it will at least shed some light onto the situation for me if anyone has seen/heard of this problem.
thank you for your reply

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by darkbloodwyvern

From what i can see, he is either changing color or maybe has some old shed stuck on him. Did you feel his skin? If you feel like something is wrong, take him to a reptile vet! No one should really diagnose from a picture, even a trained professional, but the pics you are showing do not look like anything unusual. Again, if you are worried, take him to a good reptile vet. Good luck!

---

I found an image online of another snake that shows the problem that i am having. hopefully the image/quality is better than what i was able to capture.
http://fire-eyes.org/gal/d/45984-3/_N9H4131.jpg
http://fire-eyes.org/gal/d/45981-3/_N9H4125.jpg
thanks again for your reply, i appreciate it

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by angllady2

Did you run your fingertip over the area in question ? As I said, if the scales are gone you can feel it.

To me it still appears to be spots where the scales have changed colors, which may or may not change back when he sheds again.

If it is a patch where the scales are truly gone, and you notice they have spread or there are more spots where he had scales before, I would suspect an injury or infection.

If you still cannot tell by feel if the scales are gone, have someone hold a flashlight at an angle to the area in question and gently coax the snake to flex it's body along those spots. With the aid of a flashlight you should easily be able to see the scales as you move the snake's body. If you cannot see scales in the areas, then you know for sure you are dealing with something more serious.

Gale

---

The examples you posted if this is similar to what your snake has is just a few missing scales. Usually associated with rubbing trying to get rid of a stuck shed. As long as the skin isn't broken and it isn't spreading it isn't anything to worry about.

keep an eye on it and if there is changes go to a vet. But the examples are just a few missing scales likely from rubbing. Check you edges of the hides and enclosure to make sure there is no sharp bits if there are file sand scrape them smooth.

Well, I think you've had the best answers you can get. What I will say is well done for looking for advice, and good on you for not trying the athletes foot cream without asking! Just today I read about a guy on one of the South African reptile forums that crushed his corn snakes tail with his office chair(the ones on wheels), and somehow got it into his head to take a kitchen knife and amputate the damaged part of the snakes tail! Self medicating can be VERY bad!

I've always been under the impression that if there is no infection or outright scaring, a sakes skin will heal itself during a shed, but I may very well be wrong. My advice is that if you're really worried, go see a vet, and put your mind to reast!

Like I said nothing to worry about. Don't believe me? Here are some pics of when my bp had this. From a bad shed. Like i said it goes away

You can clearly see the spots similar to your ball python.

http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...el11/010-3.jpg

http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...shel11/003.jpg

http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/z...el11/002-2.jpg

Hope this helps :]

My little boy Harvey has one small spot on his back and a larger spot (like 5 scales on his belly). Both spots are white. I'm pulling his super scratchy stick until next shed. It has an end that I've seen him going over again and again, and I think that is it. I will trim it and sand it. He does way better when I let him swim in his bin and I give him a washcloth massage followed by a mineral oil massage. He is used to his spa treatment, as his mommy is a massage therapist!:):snake: Happy snake, happy mommy!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Merriah

My little boy Harvey has one small spot on his back and a larger spot (like 5 scales on his belly). Both spots are white. I'm pulling his super scratchy stick until next shed. It has an end that I've seen him going over again and again, and I think that is it. I will trim it and sand it. He does way better when I let him swim in his bin and I give him a washcloth massage followed by a mineral oil massage. He is used to his spa treatment, as his mommy is a massage therapist!:):snake: Happy snake, happy mommy!

---

You realize that you responded to a almost 6year old thread right and the op hasn't been on in the same almost 6 years

First of all, can you imagine having all of your skin fall off at once?!? Second, try to do it in a cold dry winter when the humidifier can't keep up? I've seen a bad shed, and I help with giving them some swimming, but this time he actually shed too much! Losing scales? Dang it! It's hard to get it just right.:confusd:

You realize that you responded to a almost 6year old thread right and the op hasn't been on in the same almost 6 years

Gee, so sorry, I was looking for advice and providing my own recent experience. I will not post again if it's a problem.

I can't even respond to what you post....
It's painful to read and I feel horrible for your snakes

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Merriah

You realize that you responded to a almost 6year old thread right and the op hasn't been on in the same almost 6 years

Gee, so sorry, I was looking for advice and providing my own recent experience. I will not post again if it's a problem.

---

If you are providing advice doing so to someone that has not been own in 6 years makes little sense.

If you seek advice than I suggest you create your own thread so you get more views as people very rarely revisit old thread that are no longer relevant since the OP has not participated in years.

Now sound advice are always appreciated but putting mineral oil on a snake is not one of them, it's not a good idea it will loosen up scales and the scales will start falling off.

When you have stuck shed a simple warm damp wash cloth to rub the stuck shed of is all that is necessary.