Bathing BRB

2Gs · 04-17-15, 07:12 PM

Hello All

Tonight we gave my sons' BRB a bath which she seems to enjoy. I read that BRB can be bathed every couple of days? This month is a year we have her & it's our first snake so we are glad to have made it this far with no problems other than her not wanting the f/t mice. We tried & tried but she refuses until the live goes in her tank & she takes it in seconds.

She is getting thick & longer so all is well!

Regards

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-19-15, 03:23 AM

I wouldn't do regular bathing, it's unnecessary and can wash away beneficial oils on their skin, they can maintain their skin by themselves with the proper humidity. I would only bathe it if it gets dirty (sits in its own urates/feces), is having a failed shed, or needs a medicinal soak. Provide a water dish for it to soak in if it so chooses and/or a humid hide. That said, when my ball python used to have bad sheds I preferred to wrap him up in a towel rather than bathe him.

SnoopySnake · 04-19-15, 10:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigsnakegirl785

I wouldn't do regular bathing, it's unnecessary and can wash away beneficial oils on their skin, they can maintain their skin by themselves with the proper humidity. I would only bathe it if it gets dirty (sits in its own urates/feces), is having a failed shed, or needs a medicinal soak. Provide a water dish for it to soak in if it so chooses and/or a humid hide. That said, when my ball python used to have bad sheds I preferred to wrap him up in a towel rather than bathe him.

^^^Agreed.

prairiepanda · 04-19-15, 01:14 PM

Every two days seems really excessive, and as others have said could have a negative effect on the skin. But if she seems to enjoy it, then it wouldn't hurt once in a while. The advantage of a "bath"(with no soap of course) over just soaking in the dish in their enclosure is that they have an opportunity to actually swim, which is great exercise. For the ones that actually like going in the bath, I give them a few minutes of swim time every couple weeks. It's a good workout for them, and you can tell; it's important to pay attention and not let them get exhausted. The ones who don't like the bath get prolonged supervised roam time instead for exercise. All my snakes have dishes in their enclosures big enough to soak in if they choose, though.

2Gs · 04-19-15, 02:08 PM

Thank you all for your advice. Here is her home with more plants to follow this week. We notice at night she moves around more than the day time & likes to climb & hang on the plants. The heating pad is stuck on the right side of the glass & keeps the temp about 75 degrees with 80% humidity using a water spray bottle for the cypress mulch

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-20-15, 12:40 AM

It should be underneath the enclosure, not on the side. Either taped to the bottom of the tank, with a thermostat probe in between the pad and the tank, or taped to the surface it's on and laid on top. You can have one on the side if you also have on the bottom, though. But the only pad you have cannot be on the side. Heat pads do not provide ambient temps, so they must be able to lay on it.

2Gs · 04-20-15, 12:52 AM

Hello BSG785

There is 2 heat pads in the tank, one is underneath toward the right side & one on the right side glass. We thought 2 heat pads may be a bit much so it is unplugged. The heat pads are the square black pads that stick to the glass, We bought them at Petco.

bigsnakegirl785 · 04-20-15, 09:06 AM

That should work then. Do you have them hooked up to thermostats?