Hello!

I rescued my ball python from an abuse situation about six months ago. When the bp came to me, she had mouth rot, belly rot, injury from escaping her cage-- it's a miracle she's still alive.

Ever since she's come to me she's always had extreme difficulty shedding and if she does not get all the skin off even after a week of trying I usually soak her in water and peel off the skin (very gently and carefully!) because she seems to be unable to do it any other way. Should I not be assisting like this at all?

Also, after this particular shed, I had to assist her a little bit and after I peeled off some of the "skin" on her belly I noticed that there seems to be bleeding under the scales. (I am happy to provide pictures.) Is this something to worry about? Should I rush her to the vet?

Please help. The last thing I want to do is cause more injury to this BP.