Strange Behavior

[MitsuMike]

Hi,

The soaking rehydrated the stuck shed and made it look better alright.

But you realy are going to have to get it off him if you want him to get better.

Once he is out of a good soak like that it might be worth rubbing at his nose gently with a washcloth to see if you can get the shed started.

Normally I would say putting it in a pillow case would start it but I think you said in the other thread that you had already tried that?

The rolling over has me really concerned - you haven't been treating for mites or anything have you?


dr del

No no mite treatment. I have him on paper towels now and just cleaned the cage no and site of mites.
As for the pillow trick I have not tried it. Sooo what exactly do I do with that?
Also I tried rubbing his nose and body and no skin was coming off.

[dr del]

Hi,

Well you take a nice cheap pillowcase (low thread count lets the air through easily ) and soak it in warmish water (about 86-90f ) then wring it out slightly so it is not completely sodden.

Put the snake in it then twist and tie the top ( make sure not to catch the snake when doing this ) and put it back in the middle of his enclosure to keep it warm but not hot and leave it there for 30-60 minutes.

The idea is that the snake will try to push its way out and loosen any stuck shed on its nose/ head.

Of course of the snake just lies there and sleeps then it's just the same as a soak.

If he hasn't started it himself when you take him back out I would think about a little more vigorous rubbing on the "nose meets upper lip" area to see if you can get it started. They actually shed a little bit of their inside lip as well which is the bit you need to get lifted to start.

Once you have a started section it's relatively easy to remove stuck shed but it is a tricky thing to get that starting point.


dr del

[MitsuMike]

^Thanks. I gonna try this tom seeing your supposed to wait 24 hours between soaks.

[j_h_smith]

^Thanks. I gonna try this tom seeing your supposed to wait 24 hours between soaks.

Don't wait 24 hours. Do the pillow thing now. You're snake is stressed. The only thing I would add would be to let it stay in the pillow case for a few hours. Give it time to pull the shed off.

Good Luck!
Jim Smith

[MitsuMike]

Don't wait 24 hours. Do the pillow thing now. You're snake is stressed. The only thing I would add would be to let it stay in the pillow case for a few hours. Give it time to pull the shed off.

Good Luck!
Jim Smith

Done. In a pillow case set in the middle. Ill give him a poke if I check and 30 min he is not moving to make he rub the sides.

[j_h_smith]

Now cross your fingers and toes. Walk counter-clockwise around your dinner table. Then check him and I hope it's just a great big magic trick and you've got a new looking ball python in the pillowcase.

Abra-Cadabra....
Jim Smith

[BPelizabeth]

Well I am glad to hear that it is a shed issue and not something worse! Everyone has given you great advice! He looks really really small....I know that they do get some hydration from eating....and not eating well might have also caused the dehydration as well.

I am not sure what you are keeping him in as I did not see that...but if you are keeping him in a tank.....you might want to plexiglass or aluminum foil off the screen top. Also when I notice they are in blue I put in a humid hide full of moss. That seems to help and since I have been doing this I have had great sheds. I also have an acurite and it stated this week that the humidity was high then it went to like 83%. I really think something was wrong with it ....maybe the probe got wet or something because it did not seem like it was even 60% in there....let alone 84%. I also daily .....spray the tank. Now I go a little over and above as we live in AZ and it is very dry.

Just wanted to give you some of the things I do for the future. I hope the pillow case works out. Poor little guy does look like he is just miserable!!

[MitsuMike]

Well got half his body done and half his head but missed the 1 eye. Doing the pillow case trick again so I can get him out and pretty looking again so he can feed tom. Thanks everyone so far its working great I now just need a proceedure for qtiping the eyes? Anyone....

[dr del]

Hi,

I would actually try to remove the rest while you still can and it's nice and moist. I sometimes spritz mine with warm water from a plant sprayer if it is taking too long to do it.

To get the eyecap start at the front of the head if there is any skin in front of the eye and it will naturally come away as long as you peel nose to tail - just slow down and be gentle at the eyecap.

Check out this video;

YouTube - 8 Ball Pythons - Shedding Lessons

Seems a shame to not get it all done today.

I'm not certain he will eat tomorrow though - it's been a fairly stressful time for him after all.


dr del

[SixSnakes]

I'm not certain he will eat tomorrow though - it's been a fairly stressful time for him after all.


dr del

Agreed. I would give him a day unless you see him responding to you as if you might come bearing food. If he looks interested, try it, but if not, don't because you may just stress him out more.

He looks way better!

I have never done an eyecap, so I won't give you advice there. I have had issues with a corn and retained eyecaps before. In that case, I waited for the next shed cycle, made sure humidity was really up, and it came off with that next shed. I would probably wait until the next cycle myself and once they're in blue, spray or add a humid hide until the snake sheds but I don't know. I have not had an issue with my bps due to the fact I added a humid hide to all their tanks. Hopefully someone came chime in on that one