Need some serious help.

[Aaron_S]

Originally Posted by lady_bug87

Oh I forgot... You can use diluted pedialyte (I think its 3:1 water to pedialyte) to soak the animal to help rehydrate

While pedialyte is not harmful it's not necessary.I was going to say once the shed comes off it'll look way better but the OP already stated as such so it should be a-ok with proper husbandry from now on, barring any unforeseen issues. I'd keep the animal in a simple bin, offer it food and it's hydration shall bounce back.

Here's some general information for others.

Ball pythons come from the savannahs of Africa. Which is rather dry. Furthermore, their favourite hiding spot is an abandoned termite mound. These are not usually found near water so these snakes go prolonged periods of time without any. They will reserve what they get in their prey or go out looking for it if absolute necessary.

[jarich]

Originally Posted by Aaron_S

While pedialyte is not harmful it's not necessary.

Agreed. This is a weird thing that seems to pop up a lot more lately. Pedialyte is not useful in a bath as the raised salt and mineral content actually hinders osmosis. It was designed for ingestion by dehydrated patients of diarrhea who were also loosing salt and minerals. When your body is already low in salts from diarrhea or vomiting, then plain water can actually further reduce these salt concentrations and cause hyponatremia. If the animal is dehydrated simply from being in too dry an environment or other straight water loss, then plain old water is the best thing for it.