When my anery is in shed, she strikes anything that moves. But she doesn't open her moth, she just punches with her nose. Last night I held my new snow for the fourth time and I think he has started a shed cycle. He looks a bit more like a pearly gray than a pearly white and his eyes have a cast to them. He also bumped into my pinkie as I examined him. I think adult snakes shed in reaction to change; like when they move to a new home, or when seasons turn.