Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I took my ball out today and noticed his belly (which is normally a creamy color) had a pinkish hue to it. He had been laying on the warm side of the tank, and that has an undertank heater. Do snakes turn pink when they burn just like us? What should I do to keep this from happening? Even with the lamp and the undertank heater it's only about 86-88 on that side.

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from under tank heaters.

And yes it will be pink or red.

As mentioned she could be going into a shed cycle.

How are you checking the temp??
The air temp in the cage could be 86 deg, and the UTH could still be too hot. They don't generally heat the air in a tank that much.
I usually check the hot spot with a temp gun or the probe from a reliable indoor/outdoor thermometer.

Do you have the UTH on any temperature control device??
i.e. a thermostat, rheostat, or dimmer switch.

TomChambers

The UTH is actually a human heating pad that has a 1-5 setting from low to high. I keep it on one or two depending on the ambient temperature in the house (I live in Maine and even with the heat on it can get a little cool inside). It's really just warm to the touch, not hot at all, so he can lay over it comfortably. I've only had him for about a month now, he's 3 years old, and he's had an iridescence about him since then. I thought he would shed already. How long does it take a snake that old to start shedding? Also, I'm trying to switch to live food, since I've never used f/t, any good ways to teach him?

Usually about 10 days for a complete shed cycle.

I find shedding is proportionate to growth and food intake.
In the summer when they consume more they grow and shed more frequently.

Most older Balls will slow down, or completely stop eating for periods of the winter, and in turn don’t shed as often.

As for your other question about F/T, if he already eats F/T, that would be a good thing.
I wouldn’t switch him back to live. JMO

As far as live goes, you drop one in and if he's hungry he will do the rest.
There isn't much switching over, they tend to like live.

Hope that helps
TomChambers