Newbie snake owner and new forum member! :-)

So my snake is in shed and he has been in his warm hide for days, definitely not as active as he usually is. I should just fight the urge to take him out and handle him, and just let him be until he sheds right?? or is it ok to take him out? ...not liking this anti-social side of him...

Leaving him in peace is best. At the moment, he can't see properly because he'll shed the scales over his eyes as well. They're extra-nervous at this time as they'd be vulnerable to predators in the wild.

He's not being anti-social, he's just trying to survive - don't take it personally!

Im just playin, but I will leave him alone and let him take a shed in peace how long from first cloudy eye day until he should do it, normally? thnx

While we're on the topic of shedding.... does anyone have a good day-by-day timeline of the events/stages of shedding? All the one's I've searched endlessly for have been kind of wishy-washy. Or, is it the case that every snake is different and they all shed a little differently? For example: how many days they are sluggish at the beginning, how long the "blue" phase lasts, how long the subsequent clear phase is before the actual shedding, etc.

I'm guessing it must be a very individual thing?

Yes, it's very individual. I have a hard time telling when my corns and Rosys really "start" to shed. The corns go sluggish for two or three days usually, then their eyes cloud up for between two to five days, clear up and get active for two or three days and then actually shed. But it varies a little bit by individual and often by different sheds of the same snake. The garter snakes I had were very easy to tell when they were going to shed. Their whole body would get progressively duller for a week or two before they entered the sluggish state. They gave a lot more of a visual warning.

so my snake finally began to shed today, but Im a bit concerned...I just got home and he has only shed half of his body (from head to mid body) and he doesnt really look like he's still "trying" to shed (rubbing against things, etc).

I read that sometimes it is necessary to get a few pieces off here and there if it is not a complete shed, but half his body seems like too much to try and take off myself. Anyone experinece this before?? what should I do? thanks!!

If it helps anyone, here's what I did to help the snake shed the rest of the skin:

I took a large towel and soaked it in warm water and then wrung it out well. I placed the warm & damp towel on the floor folded in half. I got the snake and placed it in the middle of the towel and folded it over the snake, covering most of its body, but not his head. Then, as he slowly began to move forward, I applied very light but firm pressure on the towel over him - making him have to work his body out of the towel.

I immediately saw that the skin had moved down evenly about an inch. I repeated the process about three times and then I gently picked up the snake and with my thumb and index finger put pressure on his body (like you would to keep him from moving too fast in your hands), but on the ring of skin that was peeling back.

He began to slide very easily out of his skin as I held it while he moved through my fingers. The whole other half of his shed came off in one whole (half, lol) piece! He looks so shinny and fresh, he ate and he's gooooooooooooooood.

Successful 1st shed :-)

Yay for shedding!

Changed Sneak's water and checked on her tonight. As I suspected, she's in blue! We hadn't seen that yet, so that was cool. But put her back before too long. Tonight would have been feeding time, but I'll hold off until she sheds just in case.

I misted her tank a bit after changing her water to help with her shed. She drank droplets off the side of the tank (Cute!!), and we also got to watch her gulp quite a bit of water from her bowl. Fun!

So, anyone know how much their eyesight is compromised when they're in blue? I'm guessing they're not completely blind, but I found it fascinating to watch her move around because she seems so much more cautious when she moves. Definitely looks like she's finding her way more by touch.

I'm no pro, but I've read that it is reduced significantly and can make them more on edge. Mine got foggy eyes first for 2 days, then blue eyes for 1 maybe two days then completely cleared and became a liiiiittle more active for four days.

Based on forum recommendations, I let him chill from the moment he began till he shed yesterday. He was crawling all over me yesterday, lol, much more active then - worth the wait.

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