Reptile & Amphibian Forums

HI guys. Kind of a newbie. I have had BPs for about two weeks now. My first one got sick and had to be sent back after a week. I have had the replacement one for about 10 days now. About 3 days after i got the new one he took on a blue hue and some of his scaled became a little flakey,so i assumed he was going into shed. Its been almost a week since,and he does not have cloudy eyes and there is no difference,he still looks very dull and is still very blue looking.his colors are dull. I know hes got a shed hiding in there somewhere. Anything i should worry about? Putting in a moss humidity box tonight for him,will make it up after typing this.

Also, Id like to tell you about the cage i have for him so you can tell me if im doing anything wrong, if you dont mind. I know you guys hear this alot. But its better to hear from people who know then those who dont. Hes about 24 inches,and is in a 15 gallon long, with the felt sort of carpet stuff on the bottom(had dirt for my other, but such a pain) a 65 watt nocturnal bulb on one end, and a UTH as well(doesnt get too hot) its about 87-90 on the hotter end and about 82 on the cooler end. The water dish is on the hotter end,and the water evaporates in about 2 days because of the bulb. There is a hide at each end, and he switches which side he sleeps on often. Ive got background on 3 sides, and a play log with holes all over he sometimes slithers through. A fake plant in the back as well he climbs on a bit. Anything i should do differently? Humidity is about 45-50 in his tank. I feed him every thursday, and hes taking prekilled mice. Let me know what you think. I have more then one cage carpet,and i change it each time it is spoiled of course.
Should i put the humidity shedding box thing at the cool or hotter end?

I have a question about Respitory Infections as well.
How to prevent them? Mine may have a slight one right now. i was holding him for about 20 mins and only heard a popping noise twice. No nasal discharge,and it was only when he exhaled. what procautions can i take now to make sure this doesnt escalate? Im kind of confused,does higher or lower humidity cause Respitory infections?

If i can i will post a pic of my snake,and my set up if youd like. Thanks you for any help that is offered.

My snake makes the same popping noise but I have yet to determine if it is a respitory infection. If I find out otherwise, I will post my findings. If you find out, please post.

Ooh, so it doesnt always mean thats a respitory infection? It was only 2 pops, nothing compared to me other which was determined to have an infection. i hope it is nothing.

ill be as helpful as i can, but since i only keep one ball python now, and alot of indonesian pythons (carpets scrubs blood and white lip), im very used to hearing "popping" noises. all of my carpets do it, with the bigger ones its more of a low hiss, with the smaller ones a tiny pop. my baby ball, which is number who knows out of many ive worked with, will occasionally make popping sounds, or let out low hisses. either way if youre not used to it its very unnerving! but i guess 4 feet of blood python hissing up a storm could throw some people off (thats when i just smile and finish hauling that bad girl out). youll get used to it, and you might not hear it all the time.

on shedding...it usually takes about a week to 10 days from the time you first see them going blue. their eyes, and to a good extent their pattern, usually clear up 1 to 3 days before they shed. if the humidity isnt high enough, i keep my humidity for my high humidity snakes at 50 to 60% except for the summer, where in ny is usually much higher. for a ball your humidity is fine, id suggest the addition of a moss box, more so the animal can choose to be more humid if it likes. i like to offer my snakes a few choices of places to hide, and with my more arboreal snakes, places to climb...

good luck

Jaymz
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Jaymz
"got a bowlin ball in my stomache, got a desert in my mouth. figures that my courage would choose to sell out now..."