New BP Stuck Shed Concern?

[ava]

A little background info; I got a BP this Monday (5.14.18) after 3 years of waiting and mom convincing!!!! Super excited, got a little roughtly 9-12" unsexed dude, affectionately dubbed male. But then comes the issues. I didnt have the opportunity to look at the snake hardly any when I got him, but upon taking him home I have some concerns. The skin along his lateral is pinched somewhat into a line, I'm guessing this is dehydration :( He is also very dull and his nose was peeling in the starts of shedding. I picked him up once to transfer him into his cage and he felt dry and almost rough, not at all what I've felt before when at my first expo. That and he has prominent wrinkles which just give me a bad feeling?

Now my concerns. Hes been shedding in the two days I've had him. Small chunks and flakes, and pieces stuck to him. I'm p sure he might have a previous stuck shed, because I can see layers and he has wrinkles. Though I'm very very new to this so not sure? The problem is, since he is new I dont want to handle/disturb him in any way, but the possible stuck shed thing is really stressing me out and I don't know how much of a pressing concern is it. If its a stuck shed I want to act asap to help. I added a humidity hide and started misting in the meantime : /

His cage is ambient 76 and basking around 84-90, and ive upped the humidity to 60% at night and early morning due to misting.

Any advice???

[Avsha531]

Hey there, you can definitely bump the humidity up to 70% to help the little guy out.

Can you share some details on your setup so we can get a better picture for now?

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[ava]

20 gal long breeder; repti bark substrate to help with humidity, mesh top but its covered with a towel 2/3 of the way for humidity and heat purposes.
on the left side i have an undertank heat pad and a hide on top, humid hide in the middle of the cage, a large weighted waterdish that takes up most of the cool side. i have a heat lamp, but i havent needed to use it much as the heat pad does most of the work. and one uber long branch that extends through the entire cage lol.

does this help any?

edit// forgot to add! yes i have a thermostat lol

[dr del]

Hi,

Sounds like it may be time for this thread.

[ava]

Yeah I’ve looked at the thread, my only problem is how pressing is it? Should I wait the recommended week and then after he’s eaten to handle or is this more important?

Thanks for the help!

[dr del]

Hi,

I would probably try the damp pillowcase trick just now as it is relatively low impact, will help with dehydration somewhat and should get most of it off as he moves around. The idea of waiting a week before handling is to let them de-stress so having the snake sitting there with a stuck shed, which might be stressing them doesn't add up for me.


dr del

[larryd23]

Hi,

Sounds like it may be time for this thread.

OP's shed problem sounds exactly like what we experienced when our first BPs shed for the first time (a few days after we brought him home). We followed tigerlily's guide in the link you provided and it worked great. Second shed was better. Since then our sheds have been perfect.

There is no substitute for good husbandry when it comes to BPs.

[ava]

Hi,

I would probably try the damp pillowcase trick just now as it is relatively low impact, will help with dehydration somewhat and should get most of it off as he moves around. The idea of waiting a week before handling is to let them de-stress so having the snake sitting there with a stuck shed, which might be stressing them doesn't add up for me.


dr del

Alright, thanks. I just wanted a more clarifying answer as I'm new to this. I was just trying to weigh which option was more stressful; which you've.. pointed out lol.

Only trying to figure out the best decision heh, thanks to everyone who commented with some help! I'll try the pillowcase method!