Timid after bad shed

[scotty99]

Well this was his first shed in his new(ish) tank. He was in a glass aquarium that he came in,where the humidity was too high(70-80%) He is now in a plastic enclosure where temps are good , and humidity is 60-63. He went into blue and i added some wet paper towels to boost humidity, but the shed came off in pieces and he has become very timid since and only pokes his head out of his cave.

Is this due to retained eye caps? (its pretty hard to tell whether they are still on) and that his sight is restricted. He is eating fine, and came out for a rat a day after shed but went straight back in the hide after eating.

Thanks Scott

[scotty99]

Any advice please

[Spaniard]

Shedding is a stressful period of time even when the snake sheds perfectly. I would give him a couple of days before getting worried. If he ate then everything sounds ok; his reclusive nature may just be the fact that he likes his new enclosure better. In all honestly most bps are very shy snakes and they tend to stay in their hides for most of their time.

[dr del]

Hi,

Also it is a good habit to get into to check every shed for the eyecaps.

I now mark not only when they shed but if I could find the eyecaps.

It's nice to get a complete one-piece shed but as long as it all comes off then I wouldn't worry about it too much really.


dr del

[scotty99]

Thank You guys,

I nornally look for the eye scales in the dead skin after ashed, but this was a really bad shed in little pieces. Like you say, he ate ok , so thats a good sign. I did the "sticky bad shed" procedure to get the stuck shed off, should I leave him alone and not bathe him again to get the eye caps off?

Regards Scott

[Spaniard]

Well it sounds like you're not sure if the caps are still retained right?

I wouldn't mess with the eyes and trying to get the retained cap off. There are ways to get them off but you could damage the snake's eye.

The easiest way to solve a retained eye cap is to make sure your humidity is at the proper levels next shed. As soon as you notice the belly get pink I would bump the humidity up to 60-70%.

[scotty99]

Thanks,

The humidity sits around 60-63%, so might make a humid hide with some moss and put that in and take out his cave, when there are signs of his next shed. Is that the way to go? or should i put damp moss in his cave?

[Spaniard]

What are you measuring your humidity with? That could be your problem because if your humidity is at 60% all the time that should be sufficient for a good shed. The humid hide is a good idea; if you had room for an extra hide in the enclosure you can give him the option of one at all times and if not put it in before his next shed.

[scotty99]

HI Spaniard,

I have a digital Exo Terra hydrometer with a probe to measure humidity. I probably don't have enough room for for both humid hide and his permanant hide. I could put moss in his permanant hide, but i use newspaper as substrate, will I not get bacteria problems for the shed cycle with the moss/newspaper? How do you get around that?

Thanks Scott

[tigerlily]

His shyness may be more due to the fact that he's in a new environment and not the bad shed. I would continue to watch his behavior, but give him a few weeks to settle into his new home.