my first snake is in horrible condition.. i have some questions!

[Stubean15]

ok yesterday i got a ball python and it was a rescue (kinda).. my friend bought him about 4 months ago at petsmart and took really good care of him but recently he accidentally started neglecting it (he was in over his head with his job and everything though he wouldnt admit it).. so i was talking to him telling him i was thinking about buying one and he said ill save you $250 and you can have mine and all the stuff so i took it.. his skin is coming off pretty good i would say its coming off in pretty big peices not ideal but its decent considering his dehydration

its extremely dehydrated more wrinkles than i can count, yesterday i fed him a fuzzy and he ate it fine (first food in 14 days) but i know he was really hungry cus hes smack in the middle of a shed so ive done ALOT of reading and ive been misting and keeping the humidity up and earlier i had him in the tub in like an inch of water for about 10 minutes.. he looks 100x better that when i got him but im kinda worried and have a few questions

also im fairly certain hes under weight so i tried feeding him another fuzzy today and he wouldnt take it.. granted i thawed it with this little steamer i have (i wont be using it anymore lol) and when he struck it it fell apart and made a huge mess hence the freshly cleaned cage.. so i thawed another one in a zip lock bag in hot water but he refused

1. should i stress over the lack of interest or try tomorrow or what?

2. should the temp be different for a dehydrated snake be different?

3. is there anywere i can find a weight to length ratio chart or something so i can weight him and see how underweight he is if at all?

4. if at all how often should i soak him until he gets better?

5. how long can his eyecaps stay on before i should worry?

my setup (for now)


i switch to a black bulb at night 50w and i have an 8x10 heating pad under the smaller hide


keep in mind it wasnt me that did this.. i want to use the vet as a last option but thats not to say i wont take him immediately but i dont want to pay for a vet visit when he is just going to tell me to soak him or something so if its necessary to take him i will but im hoping it looks worse than it is

and if you guys have any tricks of the trade kind of things that would be awesome

ill post pictures of him as soon as i find my memory card lol

[Adam Chandler]

1. should i stress over the lack of interest or try tomorrow or what?

2. should the temp be different for a dehydrated snake be different?

3. is there anywere i can find a weight to length ratio chart or something so i can weight him and see how underweight he is if at all?

4. if at all how often should i soak him until he gets better?

5. how long can his eyecaps stay on before i should worry?

1. What do you mean you fed him a fuzzy? a fuzzy mouse? If so fuzzy mice are what BP's eat right after they hatch, need to see some pictures but I'm guessing he should be eating small adult mice or at least hoppers.

2. Temps should be the same, humidity should be higher and clean water should be available.

3. There is no length to weight ratio, its all about how he looks, again we need a picture but his body should look rounded, not like a triangle with his spine sticking out.

4. You should not be soaking him excessively. odds are its doing more harm with stress than good. Just keep the humidity up and leave him alone to relax.

5. Keep the humidly up in his enclosure and the eye caps should come off with the next shed.

Don't stress about him not feeding, if he refuses leave him alone for at least 5 days (some people recommend more) and try again. I'd recommend the best thing for him is proper temp, proper humidity and time to relax.

Also if you can maintain proper temps with just the heating pad I'd recommend losing the light, dehydrates the air pretty fast.

[steveboos]

Haha all PetSmart products, too funny. I wouldn't worry about him not being interested yet, depending on how large he is, 14 days is nothing. Try and put a pen or chapstick in the picture so we can get a size comparison.

Soaking for 30 minutes is about the most you want to do with luke warm water coming half way up the body. Put a towel in their for them to rub on and they will take most of the shed off. Once they have access to clean, fresh water, they will start to take advantage.

You can over stress a snake by trying to feed too often, leave him alone for another 3-5 days a try again then. Don't try and remove eyecaps yet, it can hurt your snake if your not expierienced in doing it.

The temperatures should still be from 88-94 on the hot side and 78 or higher for the cool side, don't worry about trying to change the temps any, just make sure they are correct with a good thermometer, digital that is.

[Stubean15]

im an idiot i just read the box and its small adult..

he looked even worse yesterday


i think hes about 7 months or so

[cinderbird]

he's got a stuck shed but he's not in any danger.

A good 20 minute soak in tepid (luke warm) water will soften the skin and allow him to either get it off himself, or let you get it off (pillow case, towel, whatever method you choose). A few bits of stuck shed will not harm him as long as they aren't constricting him or wrapping all the way around him. They'll just come off with the next shed.

I would work on getting the enclosure a little more up to speed for your new buddy. The caresheet here will give you all the info you need.

1. Wait 5 days and feed him. If he refuses, wait 7 more. If he refuses then, wait 7 more. If he refuses then, double check your husbandry.

2. Temps are the same 90-94 on hot, 80-82 on cool. I'd bump the humidity to 60% or so.

3. He might be a tad on the thin side but each animal grows at their own pace. Don't worry about a chart. these guys can bounce back from a lot.

4. Just soak him once or twice (if you've already done so, perhaps 1 more soak). Too much soaking is bad for them.

5. Ive read stories here about snakes having 5+ layers of caps on their eyes. He'll be fine till his next shed.

[Stubean15]

thanks to everyone for the help.. and i know its kinda bare in there im going to add some stuff for him.. the tree stump hide thing isnt as rough as it looks so im definitely gonna replace it with something a little rougher but cinderbird made me feel better lol.. he just looks unhealthy and it freaks me out a little bit haha but yea thanks ill just be patient and keep the cage misted

thanks again

[Adam Chandler]

If you soak him again I'd recommend adding some Shed-ease from Zilla. Its got a bunch of aloe and stuff that helps loosen up the dead skin.

Also if you replace the tree stump hide I'd recommend putting in a identical hide as the heating pad side. Reason is, Ball Pythons will always pick security over comfort. He'll stay in whatever hide makes him feel most secure rather than thermo regulate.