Couple of shed questions:

[SuddenEclipse]

Hey guys! Althea has been kind of grouchy for the past couple days, which I know is typical shedding behavior. She never hissed or anything, but she just kind of sent me this "vibe." LOL This is my first shed experience ever. Her eyes are glazed over this morning so it sort of confirmed my suspicions that she was in shed-mode.

1) I realize that it is not a good idea to handle them especially when their eyes are glazed because they cannot see well. However, I caught her getting finished drinking water this morning so I picked her up. She was not grouchy anymore. Are they typically more grouchy their first couple days into the cycle when we may not see the obvious signs?

2) I missed the whole pink belly thing, which occurrs even before the eyes glaze. Do their bellies stay pink the whole time until shed? Or is it just the first couple days then the pink goes away when their eyes glaze?

3) I feed her a live adult mouse every Friday. I know not to feed her now (especially live) because she cannot see her prey. So, question is: Friday is really convenient day for me to feed because many times on the weekends I'm not even home, so while I'm busy being busy, she's home happily digesting in peace. Is it safe to feed her when her eyes clear that day before she takes her skin off? Or is it best to just wait till she's finished shedding altogether? Can I wait until next Friday to get her back on our schedule or will she be really hungry? Can I feed her twice in one week if she will eat (maybe a meal after shed, then another Friday mouse to be back on track?)

Humidity is up, plenty of things to scratch that skin off with, this is my first shed and I'm hoping it will come off in one beautiful piece. I predict that by Sunday at the latest she will shed, but I'm new to this. Thanks for your input!

[kitedemon]

Typically a snake in shed cycle is more easily stressed and is also more apt to respond with defensive bites. This is individual reactions, not hard and fasts, generally with these things in mind handling is not a great idea.

Again it is individual animals one of mine goes dramatically salmon coloured and it stays red for some time one other barely changes and clears quickly it is not an absolute.

The problem with feeding during a shed is a potential health issue it is rare but has happened and I believe at least one member has had it happen to them personally.

The skin about to be shed loses some elasticity that the new skin has as we know snakes skin is crazy stretchy. If a meal is fed there is a remote possibility that the meal will cause the shed to get 'stuck' and bunched up at this point as the shed dries it contracts and depending where it is stuck could result in a serious health issue. The safest is to simply skip that feeding but if you do decide to feed anyway feed very small no more than 5% of the snakes weight and 1/2 the diameter so that there is no noticeable lump at all. The safest is not to feed.

[SuddenEclipse]

Thanks for the advice. I'll just skip this feeding and wait until next week to feed. Why risk anything crazy like that happening?