Bad Shed

[GotBalls?]

Hi all, the last shed my guy went through wasn't so great. He shed everything but the top half of his head and neck, not sure why?? ANyhow, is there anythign i can do to help him shed that last bit or does he have to wait intil the next shed? Had to see his eyes covered up, can't be good for him. Help please?

Nicole

[Artemis]

What is your enclosure like? Do you have a screen top? If so, try covering it with a towel or a piece of plexiglass (not completely, leave a little area for ventilation) and try misting the cage once a day or so to keep up your humidity. When your BP gets close to shed (eyes turn silvery, belly looks pink, etc) you can mist him directly, or soak him in your sink or bathtub in water that is tepid.

If the shed is still bad, when he has shed all he can shed own his own (and this could take a couple days, so give him a fair chance), take him out and put in him in a warm, damp towel, Wrap him up and let him wriggle around in there, and that should help him finish shedding any leftover bits. Retained eye caps can cause serious problems, and you will need to get those off! That can be done by applying mineral oil if it is only the eye caps, and gently using a cloth to get them off. However, if he has retained his whole head piece, I would try the towel method first.

For more long term good results though, bump up your humidity.

Artemis

[smeagel]

put him in a small container, like a shoe box or sometthing lined with wet paper towels. put him in the paper towels and cover him up with a layer of wet paper towels on top. Leave him in there for a couple of hours and then go check on him. He should be nice and clean. For the next time he sheds the problem was that the humidity was too low for him to shed properly.

[mykee]

Great advice above but I would also reccommend buying a book on the captive husbandry of ball pythons. Also, to avoid this from happening again, buy a hygrometer and make sure you have the humidity at or above 80% for the entire time (8-12 days) of your balls shed. Then back to 60%.

[GotBalls?]

Hi all thanks for the tips, I'll try the moist towels thing. Ichecked him this morning and half his head has shed, so he only has on eye cap still on, so I'll do the moist towels thing tonight and hopefully that will get ride of the rest. I knwo WHY it happened, I just didn't know what to do about it. Usually his sheds are fine because I up the humidity when I notice he's about to, but I guess I didn't notice in time for him to shed completely clean.

Thanks everyone!

Nicole