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  1. #1
    Registered User TheReptileCyka's Avatar
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    Humidity, and bad sheds.

    So I have a dwarf retic I’ve had for 4 years, and he had a respiratory infection we got treated. We’ve taken him to multiple different vets, with multiple different answers that we should keep his humidity at 50% to 75%, and the most recent one who specializes in reptiles and one of my good friends said to not add any humidity and to just give him soaks when he’s in shed. But the problem is, he’s had multiple bad sheds using this method, and I don’t really know what to do. With all of these contradictory answers it’s very frustrating. I just want my snake to thrive for me, but I don’t know what to do as he’s my first snake. I’m willing to make any changes I can to make his life better. I’m in need of some advice. He’s in a 6x2x2, wooden enclosure with glass, with paper towels as substrate, his temperature is 90 to 95 depending on where he goes on the warm end, and 78 to 80 on the cool end. He has a big enough water bowl he can completely soak in which is what the vet recommended me to do. I’ve been really beating myself up over this and all I want is to make my snake happy.

  2. #2
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    A proper shed starts with proper husbandry.

    Whoever told you to just soak couldn't be more wrong.

  3. #3
    Registered User TheReptileCyka's Avatar
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    Re: Humidity, and bad sheds.

    But what confuses me is that he’s a licensed vet and a “reptile expert”. See I would add humidity, but my mom is extremely scared to add humidity to cause another respiratory infection and pay a bunch of money to treat it.

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    Then maybe I'm wrong (I'm not).

    I keep my humidity at proper levels for all my animals. Different species get different humidity. And with the exception of my KSB they all shed beautifully EVERY time.

    You said yourself you've had multiple bad sheds using the suggested soak method. That should answer your question right there.

    The shed cycle begins as soon as the old shed comes off. There's a reason care sheets and general research shows the importance of proper humidity and husbandry. Because it matters, the whole time, not just leading up to a shed.


    I think you and your mom should sit down together and research your pet as if you know nothing. Start from scratch, learn together. Act as if you're researching your animal like you're brand new. Learn from multiple sources and cross reference information. Just cause one person says something doesn't make it true.
    Last edited by Craiga 01453; 05-28-2020 at 12:52 PM.

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  6. #5
    BPnet Royalty KMG's Avatar
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    Does the snake soak in the bowl? On its own?

    If so,

    Do you keep it in there all the time, or only during a shed?

    If not all the time,

    I would leave it in there.

    If it doesn't really soak I would start misting each day.

    I would also make your mom realize keeping the humidity low will send y'all to the vet too. If the humidity is between 50-75 regularly you should start having good sheds.

    Does it have hides? If so, a simple fix is placing damp moss inside them.
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  8. #6
    Registered User TheReptileCyka's Avatar
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    Update: we bought coconut fiber for our snake, so that should help with humidity. But it’s just confusing how a licensed veterinarian recommended something that’s unhealthy for my snake. I just feel really bad about it. But thank you both for your advice. And yes I always keep the water bowl in his enclosure.

  9. #7
    BPnet Senior Member jmcrook's Avatar
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    Re: Humidity, and bad sheds.

    The majority of veterinarians are not as familiar with reptile husbandry as they would lead you to believe. Even less so in regards to advanced care level reptiles, which I and many others on here would consider a Reticulated Python to be. They are unlike almost any other snake kept in captivity and can be very demanding of their keeper’s husbandry and wellness practices. I would suggest some very thorough re-research on the species moving forward.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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  11. #8
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    Re: Humidity, and bad sheds.

    Quote Originally Posted by TheReptileCyka View Post
    Update: we bought coconut fiber for our snake, so that should help with humidity. But it’s just confusing how a licensed veterinarian recommended something that’s unhealthy for my snake. I just feel really bad about it. But thank you both for your advice. And yes I always keep the water bowl in his enclosure.
    If your vet specializes (was TRAINED) in reptiles, he "should be" reliable for information, but if you just took your snake to a vet willing to SEE reptiles, they are often not up on proper husbandry...& keep in mind how MANY kinds of exotics there are (reptiles +++). Anyway, the larger water bowl will slightly raise the humidity just by being in there-but what kind of enclosure is this? or rather, is there a screen top? (how much ventilation there is will determine how much humidity it retains...the more air flow there is, the more it dries out, especially because of the heat)
    Last edited by Bogertophis; 05-28-2020 at 03:45 PM.
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  13. #9
    Registered User TheReptileCyka's Avatar
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    Re: Humidity, and bad sheds.

    There is only one part of it with a vent on top, so it should hold humidity fine, if it doesn’t I can just cover it up with towels or more wood. But I’m pretty sure it shouldn’t be completely air-tight am I correct?

  14. #10
    Registered User TheReptileCyka's Avatar
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    Re: Humidity, and bad sheds.

    What’s funny is that he claims he was a reptile expert, so he flat out told me lies which only hurt us in the long run. I feel so stupid for abiding by what he said, it just makes me feel horrible that a trained professional would say something like that. I can only imagine how many other people he swindled including me.

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