Shedding?

Unsung-melody · 09-11-12, 03:06 PM

For the past 2 weeks, little Cleo has refused food. I noticed her skin looked paler, felt tighter, so I assumed she was just refusing the food because she was about to shed. Then sunday, my assumptions were confirmed, or so I thought, when I checked on her and her eyes were clouded. I have kept the humidity at about 65-70% for the past few days. Today, when I checked on her, her eyes were perfectly clear. Her skin still seems tight and pale tho. Is this normal? There are no pieces of loose skin anywhere on her or in the enclosure.

MoreliAddict · 09-11-12, 03:15 PM

Keep the humidity up, she will shed soon. Once she does, she will most likely eat for you...

gareth.hooper · 09-11-12, 03:17 PM

This is normal. They clear up when shedding is imminent.
She should shed any day now.
I would perhaps just spray the cage down a bit more to pick up the humidity little, even spraying her a little.

Once shed check that she has shed fully, if not a soaking in some tepid to Luke warm water to soften the broken shed, help peel off as needed.

But first let's just see how the shedding goes.

Unsung-melody · 09-11-12, 03:18 PM

I hope so. I just didn't know if it was normal for her eyes to get cloudy and then clear up before she sheds.

gareth.hooper · 09-11-12, 03:25 PM

To help the shedding along I used to keep a cleaned and scrubbed brick in with my burmese and removed when they were done. Anything a little course would help though.

Nothing worse than seeing a frustrated snake trying to get that skin broken to start the shed when all there is are smooth objects in a very simple efficient setup.

bigsnakegirl785 · 09-11-12, 04:09 PM

Yes, it's normal for a snake's eyes to clear up before they shed. Should only be a few days after they clear for her to shed.

ballpython1717 · 09-17-12, 05:20 PM

my pastel ball python is shedding with me for the first time. how do i know when he is done? as i take out pieces of old skin from the terrarium, does it matter if i leave behind a couple of small scraps or should everything be gone?

jaleely · 09-17-12, 08:19 PM

here is a link to a great thread (with photos) that i found a while ago about the shedding process:
The Shedding Process

I recently learned that snakes also shed their tongue skins!

When your snake sheds, check the shed itself (maybe unrolling it) to make sure the specticals...or the eye caps...the lenses/scales that cover the eyes, have been shed as well. If not we can go from there, but if it's a good shed, all will be well and everything will be removed properly.

How Does a Snake Shed Its Skin? | eHow.com

Unsung-melody · 09-17-12, 11:44 PM

She shed everything perfectly!!

Lankyrob · 09-18-12, 03:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ballpython1717

my pastel ball python is shedding with me for the first time. how do i know when he is done? as i take out pieces of old skin from the terrarium, does it matter if i leave behind a couple of small scraps or should everything be gone?

The shed should come off all in one piece, occassionally it may get snagged on someting and rip but even then two big pieces should be found.

If you are finding lots of little pieces then your humidity or husbandry is well off course. What humidity do you keep the snake at normally and when in shed?

ballpython1717 · 09-18-12, 03:49 PM

normally i keep it around 60% but during the shed i have been trying to keep it around 80% but it greatly varies during the day. i have a mini humidifier on top of the tank that goes off on a timer but by the time i get home which can sometimes be around 8:30 it is empty