Stuck Shed Advice

VeedubDan · 04-14-18, 03:28 AM

Hey guys, one of my Boas shed during the night and this morning when i checked him hes still got bits of skin all over him. I haven't had him out to fully inspect him yet as i needed to go to work, so i just turned on his light and left him alone.

In the past I've had a shed stuck on my milk snake and I've just put him in a wet pillow case and let him slither through a towel to get it off.

He's a bit big to be putting in a pillow case and he wouldn't really be able to move very much once hes in there anyway, should i still try this? or would fully bathing him be better?

Also is there anything i can do to prevent this happening in the future? its his second shed in about 5 weeks which is unusual. His temps are all good and i keep his humidity at 50-60%. He was sprayed last night before i went to bed too as i had a feeling he would shed through the night. Could this have been the cause? if he was too wet when trying to shed?

StevenL · 04-14-18, 06:48 AM

Time to fill the bath tub with 30 to 32 degree C. water and give your snake a swim. After a period of time you will see skin sloughing off. Gently rub the areas to assist removal. Please don't peel the skin. Do this for maybe an hour if required. If it all doesn't come off, remove him from the tub and put him in his cage and up his humidity to around 75% or so. The next day see if he was able to work the rest off. If not totally successful, back to the bath tub he goes. If a second bath is required the rest should come quite easily and rapidly.

To prevent in the future. Increase the cage humidity to 75% or so the day you see him go in blue. This should give him a good shed. Some people once their snakes eyes clear up after going blue and a day or two prior to shed give them a swim for a while. I've never done this but there is that rare occasion I wish I had.

VeedubDan · 04-14-18, 03:05 PM

Thanks Steven! I bathed him for about 20 minutes today but he started puffing his throat up and got very lethargic, at one point he just laid his head on my knee and stopped trying to climb out of the bath! I didn’t want to stress him out so I put him back in his viv. Most of the skin came off in the bath, there’s just a small patch on his head and neck which I couldn’t get off. I’ll soak his substrate tonight and see if he can sort it out himself. If not I’ll bathe him again and see if I can rub it off tomorrow. It’s a really strange shed, it’s all come off down his sides and underneath but left the top perfectly in place from head to tail! Really strange

VeedubDan · 04-16-18, 04:57 PM

Just an update, the skin still hasn’t completely come off, but it’s getting better by the day. I’m having to gently peel the skin off around his neck everyday, which he doesn’t seem to mind, however the piece of skin on top of his head is completely stuck down! I can’t really bathe his head without drowning him haha. Will it be ok to leave until his next shed? Or is there anything else I can try??

Ronin · 04-17-18, 07:55 PM

Hey hey! Glad to hear you got most of it off, always helps when you have fellow keepers about. The shed on his head should be fine till next shed but if it bothers you a warm towel and just wipe and gentle soak and it will come off. My boys no fan of face touching but he puts up with it long enough usually to get something like that done. Good luck! ��