Humidity problem and sheding

[ballpythonandragon]

Hello im having a problem with getting the humidity is between 50 to 60. I have a Vision cage with cypress substructure and a heating pad on the warm side of the cage. I have a water dish and also sweat box in there for him. Here is a picture of his home. He hasn't shed a whole piece since i put him in this new home.

[ballpythonandragon]

also i was wondering does anybody know how good those Infrared tempture guns are better than using the other tempture guages

[emroul]

I don't think you posted the picture..:-\ Anyway, temp guns are a great thing. I have one, and rely on it more than anything else. Those "stick on" thermometers aren't very reliable AT ALL imho.

As for the humidity, the cypress mulch should be helping the it alot. What is the humidity right now in the vision?

[ballpythonandragon]

it's at 42% right now it's a 36x28x18 cage. i have a heat pad on i got with the cage but i don't know how to raise the temp and humidity?

[Runit]

I'm having the same problem. I just got this snake from my brother who didn't take very good care of it. He's feeding but looked a little dehydrated. I bought a bigger water dish that he could soak in but he doesn't seem to use it, and a bigger hide that is a rock dome with an opening on the side. Should I get small and shallow water dish to put inside the hide?

[Marla]

Runit, try doing what the vet told me to do for my dehydrated bp: soak it for an hour a day in tepid water (tepid = not cold to your touch and definitely not warm to your touch -- that's too hot). You can do it in a bathtub, but because it should be prevented from escape, it's a lot easier to do it in an appropriately-sized Rubbermaid or similar container with a lid.

The depth should be about equal to the snake, and if the snake appears to be weak or lethargic as dehydrated ones will get, put something clean and heavy in that it can rest its head on (coaster, stone, saucer, whatever), so that it doesn't have to fight to keep its head above water. It's okay if the snake puts its head below water (and it probably will), but it shouldn't have to work hard to keep its head above.

[Marla]

ballpythonandragon, do you have a water dish in your cage? if so, is it made of a heat conducting material (ceramic, glass, terra cotta, etc.) and placed at least partly on the heat source? if not, give that a try. if so, other ways to boost humidity are to add another water dish, mist the cypress daily, and/or put a clean, damp sponge in the cage. Also, under tank heaters seem to work better for humidity than lights, so if you have any lights you may want to cut them off or switch to lower wattage and make adjustments to your heat sources to keep the temps right.

[Runit]

after he's in the bath for an hour, the water is pretty cool. Almost like he pulled all the warmth out of it. Is this ok, or should I find a way to keep the water warm longer?? I don't think he likes a bath. But his skin lookes better now. Maybe I'm just paranoid because he's my first snake. I don't want him to get sick and die. Any other help for a newbie would be welcomed! Thanks
-Andy

[Marla]

Nope, that's okay as long as it's not in too cold an area. If the ambient (room) temps are low, you might want to put it on top of a couple inches of heating pad. Chances are that he'll be more comfortable with it after a bath or three and will actually head for the water once he can feel it on his tail. He will absorb some of the water through his skin and should start to feel better in just a few days, but my vet told me to do it for a couple of weeks.

[Runit]

My BP finally shed, but it was last night whene i wasn't looking. It wasn't all in one solid skin. I found chunks around and inside his hide. He seems to be alot more alert now and not so blind. Thanks, marla, I think soaking him really helped. I also misted the inside of the cage twice a day to keep the humidity up around 60-70%(I think my meter is off, I need a digital one ).