(Am I accidentally hurting my BP?) Helping with stuck shed problems

[pythondad]

so, my 1 yr old BP has multiple stuck sheds and he just came out from his 3rd soak. I have some small concerns.

first, in this soak he hissed twice and struck once for the first time. (even outside of soak, he's never in his entire life tried to hiss/bite at me) i'm thinking it's because the water might stress him out, but he just didn't do it before. am i doing something wrong?

second, i try to squeeze him as lightly as i can when i'm running the wash cloth down his body, but he seems to keep peeing/pooping. am I accidentally squeezing him so hard he goes to the bathroom? I'm honestly not trying to, but he just squirts out pee while i'm rubbing him off.

and lastly, no matter how hard I try, he will not (and I mean NOT) let me wipe of his head/eyes. i thought about holding him still by his jaw to do it, but i hate when i see that happen in videos (real or fake).

what can I do to help this situation out? his eye caps are still stuck on after 3 soaks and i don't have the money to take him to an exotic vet. please help!

[Joppsta]

This might help you out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z81K45K1YEU

[Craiga 01453]

I'm think the video posted above should help you out a bit, and prevent you needing to do multiple soaks.

As far as the hissing and striking, my guess would be the animal was stressed. So, why was the animal stressed? Was the water temp right? How long did you go between soaks?\

I wouldn't sweat the peeing/pooping. It could be stress, but many snakes will often go in their water dishes even when not stressed. Whether it be temp related or whatever, sometimes it just helps them go.

As far as the head and eyecaps go, follow what is done on the video and you should be fine. I know, it can be tricky and uncomfortable for you and the animal, but without a vet visit as an option that leaves you. Unless you have a friend/family member who has experience with snakes or reptiles or someone who can assist you?

[bcr229]

You absolutely must fix the snake's husbandry so that he doesn't have stuck sheds any more. The rest will fix itself.

So, what is his setup like?

[Ba11er]

humid hides are something to look into. You can easily put one into your snakes cage when their in shed and remove it afterwards.

[FlynnTheBP]

My snake had a retained eye cap, I soaked twice, cranked up the humidity, and used a rough towel on his face to gently wipe the eye. The issue resolved itself once the humidity came up, so I'd just fix the husbandry issue like others have said, and then worry about this specific problem.

[pythondad]

This might help you out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z81K45K1YEU

thank you so much!

[pythondad]

I'm think the video posted above should help you out a bit, and prevent you needing to do multiple soaks.

As far as the hissing and striking, my guess would be the animal was stressed. So, why was the animal stressed? Was the water temp right? How long did you go between soaks?\

I wouldn't sweat the peeing/pooping. It could be stress, but many snakes will often go in their water dishes even when not stressed. Whether it be temp related or whatever, sometimes it just helps them go.

As far as the head and eyecaps go, follow what is done on the video and you should be fine. I know, it can be tricky and uncomfortable for you and the animal, but without a vet visit as an option that leaves you. Unless you have a friend/family member who has experience with snakes or reptiles or someone who can assist you?

when i soak my snake i keep the water at about 92 degrees farenheight, though it seems to cool down a bit quickly to my touch.

and as for the times between soaks, i wait about usually 5-7 days before i put him back in the tub. i think my method is alright, but please do tell me if it's wrong LOL.

[pythondad]

You absolutely must fix the snake's husbandry so that he doesn't have stuck sheds any more. The rest will fix itself.

So, what is his setup like?

already on it. just two days ago i bought a UTH and a thermometer + humidity tracker. I just started spraying the cage today because the humidity in my room is constantly terrible. currently, it's at 75 degrees on the hot side, which i know is waaaay too cold, but i'm working on it getting it higher, and the humidity is at 53%.

the UTH is on the right side of the 20 gallon tank, below the water bowl. then there's a red heating lamp on the left side.

i only have one hide on the left side under the red lamp, and i know it's recommended to have one on each side. i'm planning to buy a second one asap.

and then, for substrate, i have aspen wood shavings, which i'm going to change to newspaper later this evening.

[pythondad]

My snake had a retained eye cap, I soaked twice, cranked up the humidity, and used a rough towel on his face to gently wipe the eye. The issue resolved itself once the humidity came up, so I'd just fix the husbandry issue like others have said, and then worry about this specific problem.

yeah, i think i'm going to have to hold the poor guy behind his head to get those eyecaps off.