Shedding again..

[EntertheWutang]

My python looks very dull and under light you can see the blueing of his eyes, but how long does it take for balls to shed? I looked closely at his eyes and one of them is dented in. Is this bad?

[sho220]

My python looks very dull and under light you can see the blueing of his eyes, but how long does it take for balls to shed? I looked closely at his eyes and one of them is dented in. Is this bad?

Dented eyes are usually an indication of dehydration. Up the humidity and it should eventually return to normal. The whole shedding process takes about a week from start to finish...from initially going into blue to finishing up shedding. The actual act of shedding only takes 10 minutes to an hour...

[Eric Alan]

The entire shedding process can take 9-14 days. Once they've started to go blue, it's usually a week to 10 days left in the process. Here's a really good post to read up on shedding: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...edding-Process.

As far as your other question, a dented eye can be a sign of dehydration in ball pythons, but it could be related to him going into shed as well. It is important - especially during the shedding process - that you make sure his humidity level is where it needs to be. Do you have a way to measure the humidity level is in your enclosure? If so, I would make sure you crank it up to between 60-70% for the remainder of the shedding process (and then keep it between 50-60% after that). If not, then I would pick up one of these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 either online or from Wal-Mart and then follow the advice I gave earlier.

Best of luck to you both!

Eric

[EntertheWutang]

Thanks a lot guys!

[EntertheWutang]

The entire shedding process can take 9-14 days. Once they've started to go blue, it's usually a week to 10 days left in the process. Here's a really good post to read up on shedding: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...edding-Process.

As far as your other question, a dented eye can be a sign of dehydration in ball pythons, but it could be related to him going into shed as well. It is important - especially during the shedding process - that you make sure his humidity level is where it needs to be. Do you have a way to measure the humidity level is in your enclosure? If so, I would make sure you crank it up to between 60-70% for the remainder of the shedding process (and then keep it between 50-60% after that). If not, then I would pick up one of these: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 either online or from Wal-Mart and then follow the advice I gave earlier.

Best of luck to you both!

Eric

I do daily misting of the terrarium, can bathing my python help with extra moisture?

[Eric Alan]

I do daily misting of the terrarium, can bathing my python help with extra moisture?

Bathing is not a substitute for proper humidity levels. Unless there's a stuck shed (usually from improper humidity levels to begin with) or they've made a mess of themselves crawling around in poo, there's really no reason to give them a bath.

There are lots of threads on the forums about how to raise humidity to the proper levels in glass enclosures. The most commonly recommended way is to cover a portion of the screen lid with something like plexiglass to keep more humidity inside the aquarium. You can also try switching your substrate to cypress mulch since it tends to hold moisture better than aspen shavings or regular ole paper towels. Another fix could be placing moss in your hides and spraying it to have a humid hide or leaving damp towels on top of the screen top.

What are you using to heat your terrarium? Got a picture of your setup?

[EntertheWutang]

Bathing is not a substitute for proper humidity levels. Unless there's a stuck shed (usually from improper humidity levels to begin with) or they've made a mess of themselves crawling around in poo, there's really no reason to give them a bath.

There are lots of threads on the forums about how to raise humidity to the proper levels in glass enclosures. The most commonly recommended way is to cover a portion of the screen lid with something like plexiglass to keep more humidity inside the aquarium. You can also try switching your substrate to cypress mulch since it tends to hold moisture better than aspen shavings or regular ole paper towels. Another fix could be placing moss in your hides and spraying it to have a humid hide or leaving damp towels on top of the screen top.

What are you using to heat your terrarium? Got a picture of your setup?

I covered my screen lid with serran wrap (or however you spell it. Haha!) and I'll post a picture of it in a few minutes! I have a 75 bulb heating the hot side, and I also use cypress mulch.

[EntertheWutang]

[EntertheWutang]

[EntertheWutang]