Helicopter mom

Emmykinns · 09-14-18, 07:53 AM

Hi friends! New ball python mom here whos both super excited and nervous. I got Jasper from a breeder and I believe he's about to go into his first shed with me. Maybe I'm just panicking early and he'll be ok but his eyes have been milked over for the past few days though he's been eating just fine. Thought I'd at least drop in and see what others had to say!

**EL Ziggy** · 09-14-18, 08:00 AM

Welcome to the forum Emmy. Nice looking BP! If your temps and humidity are dialed in all you have to do is wait and he should shed in roughly the next 7-10 days. You can just sit back and watch nature take it's course. He's going to look even nicer after he sheds. BTW, how are you heating your enclosure and controlling your temps? Can you post a pic of your setup? Best wishes with the new addition!

ClockwerkBonnet · 09-14-18, 06:57 PM

Welcome to the forum! We're glad you're here.

craigafrechette · 09-15-18, 04:04 AM

Happy to have you on board! Welcome to the forum and the wonderful world of snake keeping!!!

Ziggy gave some good advice and offered some good questions.

I just wanted to follow that up with:
How often are you handling Jasper? And how long have you had him?

1202 · 09-15-18, 07:37 AM

Welcome helicopter mom. You are gonna love how they look after a shed. All is good. Keep your temps good and humidity. I usually up the humidity a little around shedding time to ensure a one piece success. If your lucky you'll get to witness it from start to finish. Happy snake keeping.

Emmykinns · 09-16-18, 08:04 AM

Thanks so much guys! He's starting to peel now so I'm just letting him do his thing. Since he's so small he's currently in a 15 gal with aspen bedding and plenty of plants to hide in. I have a day and night lamp set up on a timer plus a small heat pad stuck to the bottom of the tank. If I'm home in between classes then he's usually out on my bed while I do work, so I'd say at least 2-3 times per day of handling. He's so good when he's out and is so curious with everything that is around him!

Emmykinns · 09-16-18, 08:09 AM

Thanks so much guys! He's starting to get flaky so I'm letting him do his thing. I currently have him in a 15 gal with a day and night lamp set on timers plus a heating pad stuck to the bottom outside glass of the tank. He's on aspen bedding and has a rock structure on the left for his cool hidey hole and currently has a bunch of toilet paper rolls and fake plants for the warmer side. I take him out and keep him on my bed while I'm doing work, so he's being handled maybe 2-3 times a day. He's always super good and is so curious about what's around him, it's too precious. I plan on getting him into a 20-25 gal tank here in the next few months once I see he cannot stretch out comfortably in this tank.

bigsnakegirl785 · 09-22-18, 03:02 PM

If his shed is flaky, he's got a stuck shed. I would probably soak him, or wrap him in a warm, wet towel to help him get his shed off. If you soak, I would put him in an enclosed Sterilite tub with ventilation, line the bottom with wood chips or something else absorbent, and fill with (luke!)warm water to just above the chips. This way it's less stressful than just throwing them in a bath tub until the skin comes loose, and the warm-ish water will evaporate inside the tub, raising the humidity enough the skin will soften. Should take 15-20 mins.

I usually wrapped my bp in a bath towel soaked in warm water. I'd take him out and re-wet with warm water as the towel got cold, and then rub him with the towel to free his shed.

This is a short term fix, though, so you will want to get a digital hygrometer and check your humidity. If his shed is coming off flaky, his humidity is inadequate. You want about 50-60% minimum, I kept my bp at about 70%. You want the shed to come off all in one piece.

Congrats on the new guy, and good luck! You never really lose the helicopter bit. haha