Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi All,

My sons bought a BP (dubbed Ozzy) on fathers day (tho not for dad 8-), after they had purchased and set up the environment. The warm side runs high 80's to low 90's the cool side high 70's to low 80's during the day. Ozzy alternates between the hides on either side and he basks when the mood strikes him. His first feeding went extremely well and for his second feeding we feed him two mice, since the woman at the store said he was ready to move on to two when they had bought him. So we tried and he took them both very willingly.

The past few days at night or very early morning we have seen hmi soaking in his water bowl. Not sure how much time overall he has spent in the bowl tho. I have not seen him in the bowl at all during the day. He has no signs of parasites, my 13 year old son checks him daily. Yesterday we noticed that his belly was pinkish. Now here is where I am confused. On http://www.kingsnake.com/ballpythonguide/index.html it says that the first sign of shedding is that the belly takes on a pink color. YET in The BP Manual it says that an early sign of scale rot is a pink color on the belly. Which is it??? Any advice is greatly apprecitated.

Thanks!

It sounds like he is going into a shed. If his belly is evenly pink from head to toe, then he is in shed mode.

Sounds like you have very essential looked after. Keep up the good work Dad!

MJ
Markus Jayne Ball Pythons

I would say since he's starting to soak a lot that he's coming up on a shed. How do his eyes look? If his eyes start to get cloudy then it's definitely an upcoming shed. Sometimes that is their way to prepare themselves for the shed that is coming, by soaking. Mine doesn't do this but a lot of them do. Just keep a close eye on him. If his skin stays like this and the eyes don't cloud over, and he doesn't shed within the next week or two, then you may need to take him to a Vet to have him checked out to be safe. But I still think a shed is coming for your new pet. Others here have more experience than I do so they'll give you some good advice as well. Keep us posted!

First thanks to all replies so far!

His eyes have not gotten cloudy yet. But we are looking for it. I certainly hope this is the sign of his first shed (at home, that is). It's only been two weeks that we have had him and we are all loving his presence and would hate to see anything happen to him.

Sounds to me like he is ready to shed, however, you should watch for mites (they are about the size of a pinhead) and also make sure the temps in your cage are not too high (they sound fine to me), because high temps or mites will also make a bp soak. If he is abou to shed, he should go from pink to blue in a few days, and he will stop soaking on his own. I hope this helps.

Christy

Thanks for the advice! We are quite sure he is mite free. I tend to bow to my 13 year olds knowledge (though he is still learning) and he says Ozzy is parasite free. One of the reasons I allowed them to buy Ozzy is because Wil (my 13 year old) researched all pythons focusing on BP's for 6 months or more before the purchase. He is really committed to Ozzy and hopes to breed one day. Both of my sons would visit a local reptile "petting zoo" called Curious Creatures 3 or 4 times a week. I am confident that this is not just a short lived interest.

Thanks again for all the reassurance and advice,

Concerned Dad

I just wanted to say one thing:

Congrats on raising a kid who does all the research before getting a snake! A lot of people buy BPs without doing research and basically consider them throw away pets. It's so rare to see someone who takes as much time learning BEFORE they get a pet. I know I didn't.

Yay for you and your son!
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-Irish
Email: animistdragon@sbcglobal.net
AIM: VoodooDragon137
YIM: [same as Email addy]
3.3.1 Ball Pythons

yup, be careful or you just might wind up with a responsible kid!
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proud mama to:
1.0.0 ball python
0.0.1 albino florida kingsnake
1.0.0 leopard gecko
0.1.0 colombian rainbow boa
0.1.0 bearded dragon
1.1.0 colombian redtailed boas (on the way!)

Thanks for the kind words Voodoodragon. He certainly made me proud and there was no way I could tell him he couldn't persue this hobby with all the time he has invested.

....both are true, but in your case I strongly suspect he's going into a shed. Scale rot occurs from 1) burns 2) snake laying in wet filthy cage. It sounds like your set-up is fine. Just remember to keep the humidity up in the days prior to its shed. Scott J. Michaels DVM

thanks.

Ozzy seems fine, definitely no mites. He seems to be getting duller in appearance, yet his eyes still have not clouded over yet. He also seems to be growing quite fast, we have only had him for just over two weeks and his girth and length have increased somewhat.

Thanks again to all for the reassurance and advice!

Got a call this morning from the wife. Ozzy's eyes have clouded over so here comes the first shed at home. This brings another question.

I have read that you should'nt feed during a shed. Is just while his eyes are clouded over or till he sheds completely?

thanks again!