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Skin on last two inches of snake's tail won't come off: I got some answers earlier on this topic and it was suggested to dip my fingers in water and let his tail run through my fingers until the skin comes off. The second suggestion I got was to soak his tail in mineral oil for one hour and then try to rub it off. Well, the first method only got a little bit of skin off, but not all. The second method had the same results, but he still seems to have a lot of dead skin left on him. Unless it's just a natural discoloration in his scales and they just look wrinkley all the time, then everything is ok. But it's kinda hard to tell if it's that or if there is some skin still on there. Do any of you have any suggestions for this issue?

One thing I do is put the snake in a container with some wet paper towels for several hours. This always seems to work

I have had this exact thing happen a few times and all I did was get a small container that could hold water, take the snake and hold him while keeping the end of the tail submerged underwater for at least 5 minutes or more, and then carefully unravel the skin towards the tail end and BAM! Done!

Now, some snakes may not be as easy in this situation, but I have had perfect results with this method.
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Genesis 1:1

That's what I did the first time, only I soaked his tail for an hour and still got no where.

Really? That is strange.

Is there more than one layer on there, that you would know of?
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Genesis 1:1

I kinda thought the same thing. The scales are a crusty brown looking color, and it's about 8-10 scales on each side of the tail. I did the soaking thing with paper towels for an hour and a half tonight and loosened some skin on the belly scales but it still wouldn't come off.

Just put 2 or 3 layers of paper towel on the bottom of the cage, spill a glass of warm water in there, put the cage on a heat pad overnight and the skin should come off with no problem..

Can you post a pic of the tail?

Also, do you have a light on the cage.. and if so how many hours a day do you keep it on?

~ Mike Russo

I can get a picture of his tail, but I don't think it will show up too well. Like I said, I'm not sure if I got the skin off, but at the same time, it looks like I did.

And yes, I do have a light on the cage otherwise it's too cold. The humidity averages about 50%-55% without misting. On the day he shed it was actually higher that day at about 65%, and I didn't mist it or change it manually.

I'll give the paper towels and other methods a go.

Ok then, here is my opinion.. Lose the light today, it is drying out the enclosure and causing your shedding issue.. Then buy yourself a good sized heat pad and place a hide box directly over it.

I also have trouble understanding how the humidity level in your enclosre using a light bulb for heat is 55% without misting?? Are you 100% sure about that? Could your humidity gauge be incorrect?

~ Mike Russo

It is possible that it is incorrect. I'll check local humidity later (it's been raining all day, so it's at 100% right now). Oh, and I forgot to answer your question about how long I use the light... I've been using it for about 10-12 hours per day.

Just kidding

you need to get the skin off or you could risk loosing the tip of the tail. Soaking, rubbing, scotchtape, whatever you want will eventually work.

Bring out the duct tape!!

JK
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake possible mix (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

Yeah really! It seems almost bad enough... are you serious about duct tape?

Don't use duct tape!

Scotch tape sparingly is just an idea to get an edge started.

If you are soaking and rubbing that much than I think there is a bigger problem going on. Skin should come off much easier than that. can you post a picture of this?

I tried to take a picture of it last night, but it was too out of focus and wouldn't show up. But I tried the scotch tape and finally had some results!

I soaked him for 2 hours last night and then spent about an hour working on his tail with the scotch tape. I think I got 95% of the skin off that was left. The last 1/4 inch or so of the tip of his tail still has skin left on it and there are 3-5 scales on either side of his tail that are brownish that wouldn't come off... but some did, as there were more brown scales than that when I started, and I think those must be stuck from a couple of previous sheds. Anyway, I'll have to work on the tip and those some more. But I noticed that the further up his body I went (toward the head) I was still pulling loose skin off. I think at that point I was pulling off new skin that didn't necessarily need to come off, but I wasn't sure. Mainly it was the belly scales that were looking a bit odd. Should his belly be white or yellow, being that he is mostly white? Because a lot of it is yellowish.

Anyway, thanks for all the help thus far, you guys. Almost done!

I was kidding. I thought I indicated that. >_
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake possible mix (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

I wasn't sure if you were kidding or if you were serious! I'm new to this business, so I'm about as gullable as anyone could possibly be right now.

I tried dipping my fingers in water and running his tail through my fingers and that got some of the skin off, but not all. Next, I tried the mineral oil 1 hour soak method with little results. I soaked him in a small tank with a damp paper towel for 1.5 hours last night and the skin that I was suspecting started to flake a bit, but it still hasn't come off. So I just started soaking him a few minutes ago. I'll keep soaking him for a few days for 2 hours at a time, and we'll see what happens. I'll try the scotch tape, too.

Someone suspected that it was skin left over from a previous shed and I'm beginning to think so too. It's discolored and his tail just feels a lot more stiff than the rest of his body. Also, it seems like his tail immediately past the vent is smaller or looks constricted. I would also tend to think that the skin not coming off as easy as the rest of the skin did would be a sign that it is left over from a previous shed. Not an expert obviously as this is my first snake and I've only had him 10 days! But that would be my best educated guess as to what's going on.

I have no idea how old he is exactly (I forgot to ask the breeder) so I don't know how many times he has shed. I know he's not a hatchling, so he's probably a few months old.