Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok so here is the problem. He was shedding in tiny little pieces. I dont know what i might be doing wrong because when he shed the time before last it was a nice long one piece shed. He is in a 20 long aqarium with screen lid. I have a huge water dish plenty big(about 10 inches in diameter) in the center of the tank half on the heat pad and half off. The temp on the side with the pad is 88-90 degrees F. The cooler side is the temp of my bedroom. bout 72-74(some where in there). I always keep the water dish with plenty of water in it and he drinks quite often as well. Since i have had him, in last august from a hatchling, i have never seen him in the water dish soaking. Now since, the shed has been over for about a week or two and i soaked him in warm water to losen the skin then checked him every day for a few days till all lose pieces were off. A few pieces i had to help him out with a bit. I want to prevent this from happening again but i dont know that i am doing anything wrong. Never had a problem before at all. he has never even turned down a single meal that balls are notorius for. what do you think? Also i am not sure if his eyes shed they look a little different and not as clear as they used to. It could just be me though. kind of like a little indent on them. very small have to look very very close. I usually look for the eye sheds but it was impossible do to the fact that the shed was in hundreds of little pieces over a few days long. Has anyone ever had this problem before? And also what can i do. Is it possible that when i used snake oil it dried him out? I have read, after i used it, that it is actually bad for them. i only did it once. Just need some input cause he is my boy and want him to have healthiest life possible. Thanks.

well if all the shed hasnt come of him yet, just soak him in the bath of a bucket and pick the last few bits off.

if the spectacle (eye cap) is still retained leave it till the next shed and it should come off.

i have problems keeping the humidity high enough in my racks so when it comes to shedding i put a tupperware box filled with spagnum (spelling) moss which has been soaked in hot water, cut a hole big enough for the snake to fit in, in the lid, and leave it in his cage when he is shedding, i have had no problems with shedding since i started this, they usually shed in the humidity box.

hope this helps

Screen lids are extremely difficult to maintain a proper humidity level with. I honastly would suggest getting a different style cage but if this is not a possibility then you may want to cover 3/4 of the screen with something to help block it off and lessen the area that the humidity can escape from. You can use aluminum foil or syran wrap or duct tape. If you use tape make sure that it is impossible for the snake to make contact with the adhesive side of the tape. If you take these measures then you should see a noticeable improvement in the humidity levels and if you increase the levels to around 75% or so during the shed cycle you should notice much improvement with its next shed. Hope this helps, Todd