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Was her shed okay?

Skyespirit86

Skyespirit86

New member
I'm an animal care student, and my first snake has her first shed today (the first one with me, anyway). I have done everything I thought was right, and it echoes very strongly in my mind, what my teacher at college said, that if the skin comes off in bits then it points to bad keeping. Her skin did come off in a bit of a mess. The shed skin was tatty and had broken into several bits, and some of the ventral scales had split off and were strewn around the tank. The eye caps came off with it- I checked.
There was a little strip along one side that remained stuck to her, and a tiny bit on the end of her tail which hadn't come off. I rubbed them and they came off easily though.
I misted her tank several times a day after her eyes went clear, and I put rocks in the tank for her to rub on, and the temperature is 80-85 F. What could I have done wrong? Or was it fine, and she just managed to break it up by rubbing over things?
 
Well first don't panic or beat yourself up. It sounds like you did well. Usually when the snake sheds in bits and pieces, it's because the humidity is too low. Misting helps but I don't like to do that. Wet substraight is a breeding ground for everything. A better option would be to put a moist hiding place in for your snake. Use moist moss or paper towels. Your snake will use it as he feels the need.

I was always taught that snakes rubbed on rocks to get the skin off and that may be true in part, but I don't think it is a big thing. None of my snakes have a rock to rub on.
 
You didn't do anything bad as "bad keeping" makes it sound.
Your humidity just sounds low,which should be around 40-50%. Do you have a gauge for that?? I forget whats it is called. In the winter and depending on the type of heat your home has, the humidity with be lower than other time in the year. But misting in one trick of the trade another is to make a humid hide. Thats just a moist moss or paper towels or such in a container that your snake can crawl into during a shed cycle. And if your snake has a little shed left on it, try letting your snake crawl through a damp wash cloth as your hold it and see if that helps.

Good Luck
 
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