New Ball Python Has Arrived but is In Shed!

[FettuccineEnjoyer]

The day has finally arrived where I obtain my new BP, though there’s a bit of a predicament. When I got him, he was deep into shed, blue eyes and a general apprehension of exploring his new enclosure. This reaction is the opposite compared to when I first met him to check for health concerns. On our first meeting he wasn’t aggressive in the slightest and, after sitting in a ball for 5 minutes, quickly began exploring my body with curiosity. Admittedly, during that experience he wasn’t in shed, nor had he been stuck in complete darkness within my jacket for half an hour on a bumpy road. (He’s not aggressive now by the way, still the sweetest little ray of sunshine) Due to his apprehension to explore, he hadn’t found the humidity box yet, and I’m quite sure that’s a problem. I’ve been extra careful about the humidity, misting the enclosure far more often to ensure his shedding success. Though I can’t do that forever considering I have school during the day. What do I do? Should I try to gently place him in his humidity box or Hope that my mom manages to remember to check the humidity throughout the day?

[dakski]

Congrats on you new BP.

Take a deep breathe.

What the humidity in the tank without misting?

As long as humidity is close to 50-60% without misting, you have a humid hide, and you are misting when you can, he should have a great shed.

I wouldn't mist more than a couple times day because it can lower the temps noticeably - even if temporarily.

If he's in blue that explains his hesitation as does the journey. Give him some space.

Blue means he won't shed for a few days, at least. Not a worry. He has plenty of time to settle and get re-humidified.

Again, deep breathe.

Keep us posted, but basically, let him be for a few days. He will find the humid hide.

[Bogertophis]

The day has finally arrived where I obtain my new BP, though there’s a bit of a predicament. When I got him, he was deep into shed, blue eyes and a general apprehension of exploring his new enclosure. This reaction is the opposite compared to when I first met him to check for health concerns. On our first meeting he wasn’t aggressive in the slightest and, after sitting in a ball for 5 minutes, quickly began exploring my body with curiosity. Admittedly, during that experience he wasn’t in shed, nor had he been stuck in complete darkness within my jacket for half an hour on a bumpy road. (He’s not aggressive now by the way, still the sweetest little ray of sunshine) Due to his apprehension to explore, he hadn’t found the humidity box yet, and I’m quite sure that’s a problem. I’ve been extra careful about the humidity, misting the enclosure far more often to ensure his shedding success. Though I can’t do that forever considering I have school during the day. What do I do? Should I try to gently place him in his humidity box or Hope that my mom manages to remember to check the humidity throughout the day?

Honestly, while I would avoid all handling otherwise, I would gently guide him into his humid hide. Then let him rest there & wait.

[FettuccineEnjoyer]

Without misting at all during the day, the humidity gets down to around 30%, Canada in the winter months is a cold and dry place. Though the substrate I use (coconut husk) is a little old at the moment, since I had needed to stabilize everything before introducing my snake.

[Bogertophis]

Without misting at all during the day, the humidity gets down to around 30%, Canada in the winter months is a cold and dry place. Though the substrate I use (coconut husk) is a little old at the moment, since I had needed to stabilize everything before introducing my snake.

Even if it's low humidity outside because of winter, our home heating (& A/C in the summer) removes much of the moisture in the air anyway. You'll probably need both a humid hide & the right, moisture-retaining substrate for best results with a BP. Some snakes get by just fine with lower humidity, but BPs aren't one of them. But you'll get this figured out.

It's really for the best that your new snake is in shed- he needs time to settle in anyway, & you need to accept that snakes need some privacy when in shed too- this way he's "multi-tasking"-

[FettuccineEnjoyer]

Do you think I should refrain from misting today all together? See if I can coax him into looking for the hide on his own? Or mist it as frequently as needed to keep it at around 50-60%. Currently it’s sitting on the very low end of that spectrum.

[dakski]

Without misting at all during the day, the humidity gets down to around 30%, Canada in the winter months is a cold and dry place. Though the substrate I use (coconut husk) is a little old at the moment, since I had needed to stabilize everything before introducing my snake.

Do you think I should refrain from misting today all together? See if I can coax him into looking for the hide on his own? Or mist it as frequently as needed to keep it at around 50-60%. Currently it’s sitting on the very low end of that spectrum.

OP, I think, from other threads, you set up the tank prior to getting your BP, correct? Was it ever stable at proper temps and 50-60% humidity? I see it is glass, is that temporary? Are you planning on going PVC soon?

30% is DANGEROUSLY low for a BP. It can lead to other issues, beyond bad sheds, which I won't get into now. I understand Canada is cold and dry, but as a keeper, it is your responsibility to ensure a proper and safe environment for your BP.

Misting multiple times a day isn't really an option because misting will negatively change/lower the temps in the tank. Additionally, consistent humidity with occasional spikes when in shed are fine. However, misting all winter is not good as humidity will be dropping and rising, dropping and rising, etc. Not a good situation.

I'm not sure what the correct answer is here. You need to leave him alone, but he won't shed well with humidity that low, and misting could do more damage than good.

Please answer on if the tank was stable prior, without misting, and maybe we can try to figure out what was working then.

To be clear, I am not trying to be harsh, and I know you want what's best for your BP. Please keep us posted.

[FettuccineEnjoyer]

The tank was indeed stable previously without misting, or at least misting far less often. I had set up the tank 2-3 weeks prior to getting him. The substrate has not changed and I think that’s the problem, the amount of water it’s holding at a given time has slowly declined over the course of these weeks. The amount of misting I’m currently doing tends to bring the enclosure down to around 29.7 degrees, I could try turning up the CHE to balance it out at a higher temp. I have alarms set to go off if the air temp exceeds 33C if safety is a concern in that solution.

Also, I don’t plan on switching to pvc any time soon. I just got this enclosure and please understand that me and my family have already spent a decent amount of money on it. Perhaps in a couple years when Fettuccine grows out of his current tank, but not yet.

Should I try giving the substrate a thorough watering? I don’t think changing it right now would be the greatest idea. Considering my BP has hardly been in this enclosure for 2 days.

By the way don’t worry, the time the humidity dropped to 30% was before the snake was introduced, a couple days before I believe.

[Homebody]

Should I try giving the substrate a thorough watering? I don’t think changing it right now would be the greatest idea. Considering my BP has hardly been in this enclosure for 2 days.

I would just keep misting until she sheds. Between the misting and the humidity box, she should have sufficient moisture to shed.

[FettuccineEnjoyer]

No need for that anymore! I came to check on him and found that he had managed to shed perfectly! Everything came off in 2 massive pieces, he even managed to get the eye caps!!!