Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Our rescued Black Rat shed for the first time last night. Previously we had estimated him/her to be just under 4 feet. I measured the shed this AM and (depending on how much it's stretched) it's between 5'0" and 5'2".

We officially have a pretty big Black Rat Snake.

Just wanted to share.
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1.0 Abino Striped Cali King
0.1 Amel Corn
0.1 Anery Corn
1.0.1 Black Rat
0.0.1 Eastern Garter
1.0 Normal Ball Python
2.1 Bettas

Well,....to be quite honest, the length of a shed skin in regards to a snake's length means absolutely nothing. This is a common misconception that is made by many people.

As this photo depicts,..each scale on the shed has a length of skin on the front and back of it underneath each and every scale where it is attached to the body of the snake. When you account for every one of these additional lengths of skin, PLUS the stretch of the shed skin itself, it DRAMATICALLY increases the length substantially.

I would say the snake is actually still in the four foot range.

best regards, ~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

I measured a skin that was 38" and the next shed from three weeks later was only 32". So either my snake shrunk (it grew 2" or the second shed didn't stretch as much. My brother's kingsnake threw a shed that was 50% longer than the snake itself.
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The Reticulated Rattler

1.0.0 Great Plains Ratsnake
1.0.0 Corn, Lavender Aztec het for Amel
0.1.0 Black Ratsnake
0.0.1 Texas Rat (tame)
1.0.0 Broad Banded Water Snake, Hypo
1.0.0 Black Bassador Retriever
2.1.0 Godchildren, 1 Evil, 2 possible hets

Yes, a fresh moist shed will stretch like a rubberband, and be incredibly misleading as to the actual length of the animal.

Also, as you are well aware, a snake "pelt" that is removed from a slaughtered snake will also stretch to an extremely disproportional length(and width) when pulled tight and tacked down for curing. Large boa and python skins will end up MANY feet larger than the actual animal was, just as this photo proves on this live Reticulated Python.

best regards, ~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Hey Guys.

Thanks for all the input and info. Let me go ahead and apologize for my rookie mistake and any that I will most likely make in the future. I tend to get a bit overly excited with these things. I've become quite enamored with snakes in the last year (much to my Wife's dismay) and tend to be more like a kid at Christmas when it comes to them.

Bare/Bear with me. I'm learning.

Thanks again.
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1.0 Abino Striped Cali King
0.1 Amel Corn
0.1 Anery Corn
1.0.1 Black Rat
0.0.1 Eastern Garter
1.0 Normal Ball Python
2.1 Bettas

No need to apologize!,....I certainly understand how things can be deceptive regarding snakes. I've been into them for several decades, and am always learning more about them.

It's an interesting journey of knowledge the entire way!..

best regards, ~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

measuring the shed is a common mistake and I'm sure there's a hundred people doing it right now. No need to apologize for doing something that most of us here have done before.

If you're looking to measure a snake, one easy way is to place it in a large sterilite container and watch it for a while. Often, the snake will stretch out along the edge while exploring it's new environment. You can mark the position of the tail when the snake's nose gets to a corner and measuring from the mark to that corner will give you about as accurate a measurement as you can hope for when dealing with a live snake.
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The Reticulated Rattler

1.0.0 Great Plains Ratsnake
1.0.0 Corn, Lavender Aztec het for Amel
0.1.0 Black Ratsnake
0.0.1 Texas Rat (tame)
1.0.0 Broad Banded Water Snake, Hypo
1.0.0 Black Bassador Retriever
2.1.0 Godchildren, 1 Evil, 2 possible hets

There is (or was) a downloadable program called "Snake Measurer" that I used for a few snakes, a while back, which seemed fairly accurate, to me. To use the program, you need to have a digital camera, and take an overhead photo of the snake next to a ruler or measuring tape. You put in the measurement increment, and then draw a line of points down the mid-dorsum of the snake, from tip of the nose to end of the tail. The entire body needs to be in the picture for an accurate measurement.

-Toby Brock
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Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research

>>Our rescued Black Rat shed for the first time last night. Previously we had estimated him/her to be just under 4 feet. I measured the shed this AM and (depending on how much it's stretched) it's between 5'0" and 5'2".
>>
>>We officially have a pretty big Black Rat Snake.
>>
>>Just wanted to share.

I don't see anything wrong with this statement. You never said the snake was 5', or more, just that the shed was. Unfortunately, a shed skin is normally quite a bit longer than the actual snake. I've found sheds to measure around 20-25% longer than the actual snake. Your 60 inch shed probably comes from a snake around 48 inches. Just my 2 cents...

Just a quick suggestion that may or may not work for you.
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Put the animal down quietly against a blank wall in a large empty room, an empty hallway, or a large room with all the furniture moved to the other side.
It works best if the floor is smooth like tile or linoleum, or like here, laminate flooring.
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If things stay quiet, the animal will often straighten out and crawl along the wall right where the wall and floor come together.
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You can place an object down the wall on the floor, like a copy of Ditmar's Reptiles of North America and when the snake reaches it, mark the spot where the tail is, then measure.
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This takes patience and is not "dead-on" accurate. It works consistently with Boas and pythons, but can work with Rats and Kings if they don't panic.
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Good Luck,

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Regards, Bill McGighan