Reptile & Amphibian Forums

We just got our ball, and for the last 3 days, I have put her in lukewarm water twice a day, to help with her shedding and eyecaps. I will drip water over her eyes with my fingers and let her set in the water about 5 minuets at a time. I was advised to try to tape off the eyecaps, which I tried once, but was probably too gentle,( I did it very gentle/gentle, not gentle/firm.) Now, sometimes she will like look right in my face, and smell me with her toung sometimes, but then she will slightly open her mouth while she is looking at me. Is she mad at me and gonna eat me?? LOL LOL LOL I am a little nervous sometimes around her, and she certainly knows it, but I try to onbly handle her when I am not. When I hold her, she wants to get close to me and look in my face..........I have NO idea what she is thinking........Can anyone help with tips on BP behavior??.......I know if she bites me, I will be freaked out on snakes for good. She is mostly my sons, but I always help with with all the pets to make sure things are right...

The first thing I would suggest is never ever use tape on your snakes eyes as you could easily damage them, permanently. Next I would suggest not giving your snake a bath twice a day as you are only stressing it out. If its in shed just mist the cage with water once or twice a day until it sheds. Let it get the shed off by itself. Snakes normally don't need help shedding. If eye caps are stuck after the shed you can mist it down more in the cage and they usually get them off on their own. If they are still stuck you can gently wipe the eyes with a moist towel. Using tape is terrible advice.
Mandy

Balls do not normally open their mouths when they feel threatened. I would be concerned that he has an RI (respiratory infection) and it would probably be a good idea to get him to a vet.

Hi New,

If your snake is going through a normal shed cycle, it should not need to be soaked - just keep the substrate moist or mist it once a day. If it has old shed stuck to the animal, then you may need to soak but twice a day seems like alot.

As far as eyecaps go - one or two layers should come off on their own with the next shed. However, snakes can accumulate ten or more layers, and with many layers I have not had luck dislodging the caps simply by elevating humidity. If the snake has multiple layers of eyecaps you might need to resort to tape or tweezers, neither of which will hurt the animal if you work gently and carefully. I try tape first and use tweezers as a last resort.

I only try to remove layered eyecaps immediately after the animal has shed out (that way I know I will not be pulling away the "current" eyecap with the old ones.)

I am a little concerned that you say your snake looks at you with it's mouth open slightly. While this could be a sign of stress, often when their mouth is open it means they are using it to breath (in other words could have a respiratory infection). See if you see any drool around the mouth or nose. Also try to observe whether you see it breathing from its mouth when at rest in its enclosure. Lastly, check for popping and wheezing sounds when it breathes.

Is your animal eating? How big is it?

Good luck!

Christy

Also, don't hold the snake every day; too much handling can stress them. ESPECIALLY if it's in shed. And if you just got it, you should let it alone to settle in to it's new home. Try feeding it in a few days. If it eats, give it a couple days to digest, then gently take it out for a little while.
Read books, this forum, lots of internet info on ball pythons, join your local reptile society, and ask lots of questions here.
It used to freak me out when my snakes wanted to get in my face, too, and I still direct them elsewhere if it's a newer snake, but now with the ones I've had for a long time I let them. It feels like they're tickling my cheek with their tongue. Give yourself (and your new snake) time to get acquainted, you'll both be much less stressed if you don't push. You've got plenty of time to get used to each other.
But as stated before - if your snake is breathing with it's mouth open, get to a vet right away.
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1.0.0 Mexican Kingsnake, Vincent
1.0.0 Graybanded Kingsnake, Boris
2.0.0 Ball Pythons, Pete & Johnny
2.4.0 Bearded Dragons, Bela, Sally, Marigold, Caijun, Phoenix & Spook
0.0.15 beardie eggs in the incubator
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1.0.0 Pushy Lovebird Baxter