Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey, ever since i got my kenyan sand boa, she has been having trouble shedding. she is still very young, probably 5 months or so. Ive only had her for 2 sheds though. Each time she sheds it looks like her old skin gets stuck to her new skin and rips off some of her new skin underneath :S so right now she has half of her shed still on and the part where its off she has several cuts (on her belly). Im pretty sure that its not because of humidity issues because i spray her tank when she's shedding and give her baths with warm water and a drop of mineral oil to aid the shed. I keep her on Calci-Sand with the warm side kept at 90-100 and cool side at 70-80. Any comments would be great
thanks everyone

i am not an expert.. but here is what i have had luck with problem sheds..

when i got Freckles, she was in a shed, but still had old shed on her.. i soaked her in a shallow bin of water kept warm with heating pad on low... she LOVED that soak.. when i picked her up, she started to work against my hand to get that old skin off.. it worked well for Freckles, as all the shed (s) came off..

i have also used a moistened wash cloth for other rescues with shed issues after a nice long soak..
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Cilene
2 kenyan sand boas
2 redfoot tortoises
3 box turtles (florida, eastern, ornate)
2 sulcata tortoises

I would switch to aspen bedding and provide a humid hide (tupperware) with moss. I would not spray the cage, but make sure the moss stays damp.

-Chris
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Christopher E. Smith
Contact
Captive Bred Herps
Wildlife Research & Consulting Services, LLC

ok thanks guys i guess ill try soaking her for a while longer since i already moved her to a newspaper bedding