Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I live here in Aguascalientes Mexico, after leaving Britain, where i have purchased a Male Ball Python which has been wioth me for the last year. Unfortunatly the Herp help and Vet service for reptiles here is zero.

My problem is this:

My snake has been eating well and has never showed any problems up to now however he has developed a flakey type of shedding only on the top of his head (see photos below). Normally i do not have any heat assistance in his tank as it puts him off his food (we live in a hot country) and now as it is getting colder i have turned on his heat mat. His warm end is 30 degrees celcius and 25 at the cold end

Also i am not sure if the salty water here might be affecting hime as it does contain a high salt level. Should i be using bottled water ???

Any help would be most appreciated

thanks again

Andy

First things first, yes it would be much better for the snake if you used bottled water instead of tap. Varius salts in the water could cause problems with dehydration and could also cause an electrolyte imbalance. These salts may severely dry out the animals skin which could also impare shedding. Also salt crystalizes and if he goes for frequent swims or submerges his face to drink, then it may be the crystalized salt that you are seeing. I wouldn't worry about it too much unless the problem persists after changing his water to bottled water. But I would deffinatly reccomend doing that. Hope this helps and good luck.