Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I posted this on the ratsnake forum but I know it is busier here so thanks for the help:

How long should I wait before I get worried about a bad shed? My new baird(hatched 7/01/04) started to shed last Monday and has not really lost any skin yet. It started to peel then and is still there. It is getting loose and you can tell she is trying but it isn't coming off. I have soaked her everyday since thursday for about a minute. I have also added another large water dish into the cage and covered half of the screen top to try to up the humidity. Right now I have her in a small critter keeper with warm damp paper towel shreds. Anything else I can do? I tried to help pull it off with a damp towel after being in the keeper but it seemed to still "grab" when I pulled on it. I wasn't too worried since people ask all the time but I've tried all of the tricks I remember. Any advise would be great.
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0.0.1 Amel Motley Corn (Cosmo '03)
0.1 Baird's ratsnake (Sugaree '04)
1.1 Shepherd mix (Dylan 5yrs, Porter 20weeks)

Well, as I was typing my question I got the results I needed. What finally worked was adding more damp paper towels on top of her. I then put the keeper into a tupperware container with about an inch of warm water. I then put a towel over the the whole thing. The container fogged a little i nthe water. About 5 minutes later there was a "deposit" (which I hadn't seen yet) and the shed was hanging off her. I got her out and let her run through a wet paper towel and it came right off. She was very restless when I took her out. Was the water too hot you think? Just don't want to think this was a good idea if it was bad for her. Hopefully I won't have to deal with it again though.
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0.0.1 Amel Motley Corn (Cosmo '03)
0.1 Baird's ratsnake (Sugaree '04)
1.1 Shepherd mix (Dylan 5yrs, Porter 20weeks)

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0.0.1 Amel Motley Corn (Cosmo '03)
0.1 Baird's ratsnake (Sugaree '04)
1.1 Shepherd mix (Dylan 5yrs, Porter 20weeks)

Well anytime my snakes start going into a shed cycle I will always provide them with a humidity box which is just a tubberware container with a hole cut in the side and some moist paper towel. All my snakes go in them and have good sheds.My corn and king will stay in the humidity box for a day or two before coming back out.

When they do have a bad shed I will take a large cloth dish towel and wet it with warm water and ring it some so it's damp and warm. I'll then place my snake it a sweater box or clear plastic storage container with the wet towel over the snake for 20-30 mins. What I usually do is make the towel like a hide box just bunch some of it up and leave an opening. The snake will usually stay under there for the whole time I leave him/her in there.

When I check the snake most of the old shed has come off on the towel and what ever is left comes right off with a quick wipe of the towel. You can also hold the snake with the towel and while it's moving away it will usually shed the remainder of the skin.

I just did this with a yellow rat snake I just got a few weeks ago. He has been a little stressed out and even though he had a humidity box,water dish and all he still had a dry shed and didn't get it all off. 20 mins with the warm dish towel and all the old shed was off and he ate two small fuzzies right after.

Just wanted to thank you for the info that yours ate after getting the shed off. I put mine in the closet with a pink after reading your message and just checked on her and the pink is gone. Nothing feels beter than the first time your new snake eats. She was the same as my corn--third time was a charm. Thanks again because I was going to wait a few days.
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0.0.1 Amel Motley Corn (Cosmo '03)
0.1 Baird's ratsnake (Sugaree '04)
1.1 Shepherd mix (Dylan 5yrs, Porter 20weeks)