Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hey i got my snake about 4 weeks ago now and hes in much better condition now, but about 2-3 weeks ago he shed for the first time while I had him and he shed in about 100little pieces and i found out this was cause he was dehydrated. ive had damp cloths in his cage, a larger waterbowl and sprayed his cage down once a day to help. and so now im wondering how I can tell if he is hydrated without waiting for his next shed.

also im switching him to small rats (hes 18-19'') and im wondering how many i should give him and if 1 would be fine each 5 days because ive been giving him 2 hoppers every 5days.

The bad shed doesn't indicate that your BP was dehydrated, just that the himidity was TOO LOW at the time of shed.
As long as you have fresh water available, and he's feeding well, and you maintain a minimum 50% relative humidity, your snakes hydration status will be fine. During sheds, particularly in the 1-2 days after his eyes clear BEFORE the shed, then up the humidity by spraying with warm water, and he'll produce good sheds. Scott J. Michaels DVM

...yes that would be appropriate for him or there abouts. SJM

also, if the eyes appear to be dry and dimpled, spray down the cage...and if you want better water holding material than a towel, and better cosmetically looking, get some terrarium moss. dampen it and put it in his hide.