| Author |
 Topic  |
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
 Posted - 07/10/2010 : 09:12:51
|
Shedding and dealing with shedding problems
Shedding is one of the exciting parts of having a snake, especially if you get to witness it but it can also be a very nervous time for you, the owner, the first time it happens.
It's a natural process that all snakes go through roughly every 3-4 weeks as a growing youngster to every 3-4 months or so as an adult. The best thing is to leave them to it  and let nature take its course. If however you are expecting problems (following a previous poor shed) you can use some of the methods below.
Knowing your snake is 'in blue'
You will know that your snake is due to shed as its colours will dull, particularly on the belly to begin with. Then its eyes will go cloudy and its colours even darker, this is what we call a snake going blue. At this point it will hide away as its eyesight is compromised and will feel very vulnerable. With most morphs it is easy to spot when they are going blue, but it is not as easy with amels and a lot harder with snows and blizzards due to their light colouring....you may not even realise it until you find a shed skin in the viv  ! The only thing that might alert you to it is a change in your snake's behaviour.
Their eyes remain cloudy for a few days and then they will clear up and their colours will return to normal. This has confused many new owners who have thought their snake must have shed and searched the viv in vain  ! But it will actually be 4/5 days after they have returned to normal before they shed, although this differs with every snake and can differ between sheds. One of my snakes took nearly 2 weeks from the point where his eyes cleared up to when he shed  !
Signs of shedding
The signs you need to look out for that your snake is beginning to shed is it being a bit more active, rubbing its head along the sides of its viv, hide, any branches, etc. This happens because it is trying to loosen the shed from around its jaw....and once that has loosened then it can happen very quickly! But be warned....I am convinced there is a corn-conspiracy  ! They seem to wait until their owners leave the room and then slip out of their old skin and slither round quite happily in their new bright colours showing them off when their owners return to the room....with their old skin lying forlorn in the corner . Seriously though, a lot of corns shed at night and I know a lot of members haven't had the chance to see their corns shed....despite keeping them for a number of years. So I really do hope you get lucky and get to see your corn shed  .
What is vital once it has shed is checking the shed skin for the eye caps and tail tip....as if these are retained they can cause problems. If the shed is not a clean one there are ways to deal with it.
Retained Shed
The first thing to do is try not to panic. Dampen some kitchen paper or a small towel with lukewarm water and let your snake wriggle through it, holding firmly so that the skin comes off. Take care to make sure that the tip of the tail also comes off with the shed, after running through it a couple of times the skin should have come off. If so then check the head piece to make sure the eye caps have come off.
Quite often most shed can come off by themselves, another couple of days in the viv could sort it out. You could swap the usual hides for damp ones so the snake HAS to use them, then put the usual hides back in after a few days. You could also change the usual hides for moss hides:
How to make a damp hide
Moss
If the retained shed has been resolved that's great, if not then the few days in the damp hides will have prepared your snake for a good bath. Some snakes don't mind being bathed, with others it stresses them out....so it is only by knowing your snake can you know whether to try this method first or leave it as a last resort. What is most important is that you limit the stress on the snake.
The bath can be done in a RUB, sink, washing bowl or bath, whatever is a good size. Put a digital thermometer in it to make sure that the water is between 27 and 28oC. Put enough water in that it is just deep enough to cover the snake's body. You can put a bit of fairy in too, it will help get the water underneath the skin it has retained. Let it swim in it for a couple of minutes or until the temps drop to around 22oC. You can run your fingers gently down your corn's body when it's having a bath just to make sure that the water is really getting at the retained shed. The water should have helped to loosen and dislodge the skin. It may have no desire to be in the water, and may try to escape as much as possible, so be prepared for a fast snake as well . When you get you snake out get a dry towel and let it wriggle through it but apply a bit of pressure to it - it usually helps to encourage the retained shed come off.
Another method, less stressful than the bath and good if there is a lot of retained skin, it to put a damp towel or pillow case in a tub and place the snake in, covering it with a damp tea towel. By leaving your snake like this, for approximately an hour or so, you are helping to hydrate the skin and that, in turn, will help the snake to remove the remaining shed itself, rubbing against the towel/pillowcase. If there is still some retained shed when you take your snake out, it should come off more easily when you let it wriggle through a damp tea towel.
You can see an example of this in Vambo's epic first shed ....thanks for letting me steal this Auld Baldy .
If the retained shed is serious and it looks as though your snake hasn't been able to release the skin from around its jaw, once soaked start from the edge and just peel it off using the towel. If this doesn't work, if you can get the tip of your nail over the lip of their mouth, you can start the shed from where it's meant to start from....but this is something that should only be done by someone experienced.
Retained Tail tip
It is always vital that the tip of the tail comes away each shed as if there is a number of unsuccessful sheds where the tail tip is retained it can act like a belt, creating a tight hold around your snakes tail and cutting off the blood flow.
By following the tips above you will hopefully be able to remove any skin that is retained on the tail tip.
Another method to try if it is only the tail tip retained is to soak the layer of shed off with warmish water and cotton wool, doing it very gently and it is very important that you dont pull at the tail.
If this is a problem that has been there a while, with a number of retained tail tips building up and stopping the blood flow, it may be that there is nothing you can do about it and your snake's tail may end up dying and dropping off. This is a worst case scenario and if it does happen it isn't a major thing, a few forum members have snakes that have slightly stumpy tails and you wouldn't even notice.
Retained eye caps
It can be hard to tell if your snake has retained its eye caps. The best way to be sure it hasn't is to see them on the shed skin. You may not notice them immediately, it can look like holes, but you will feel them. If you cannot find enough of the head of the shed to be sure then examine your snake's head very carefully. If the eye caps have been retained there should be some sign on retained shed immediately around the eyes.
You can let it soak in a container (with a lid with air holes) filled with water (of the right temperature) or give it a damp hide.
It is very easy to damage the eye if you are not 100% certain about what you are doing. If you are still concerned that the eye caps are retained then it is best if you get help from an experienced snake keeper or reptile vet.
Helping a snake prepare to shed
If your snake has had trouble shedding before there are a number of things you can do to help it.
Once you see it go 'blue' you can add an extra water bowl into its viv on top of the heat mat. Don't just move the original water bowl as your snake will not want to be drinking warm water. This will help raise the humidity. As far as I know this will only work in wooden vivs as in faunariums there is too much ventilation so the extra humidity is lost.
You can mist your snake's viv once a day in the morning, nothing more than that as you don't want to cause the humidity to rise too much as this can cause respiratory infections.
Once its eyes have cleared you can add a damp hide which will also help. In a wooden viv you can put the moss in the warm hide but in a faunarium you would need to put it in both hides to help it loosen its skin.
Handling and Feeding while your snake is blue
It is a personal choice about feeding and handling during the period of them going blue and shedding. I am one of those owners who has chosen not to feed or handle. To my thinking they are very vulnerable at this time as their eyesight is compromised, so in the wild they would be hidden away....not out looking for food. I also know that missing one meal isn't going to make any difference. BUT this is my personal choice and I know lots of members do feed their snakes - and some snakes will feed while blue but others won't. I also don't handle during this time, as even once their eyes have cleared they are partially blind and I want to avoid as much stress for them as possible (probably the hardest time for me as I get withdrawal symptoms from not having my snake time !!). Again, as with feeding, some snakes will tolerate handling during this time and others won't. You need to decide what you feel is best for your snake during this time (and your snake may decide for you !), there is no right or wrong.
Measuring your snake
You may think that measuring your snake's shed is a good way to measure its length, but you need to keep in mind that when a snake sheds the skin is stretched and therefore the length of the shed skin is a lot longer than that of the snake. It is thought that the shed skin will be approximately 10% longer than the snake itself, but this is far from accurate. I always measure my snakes' sheds, but keep in mind it's only an approximate length. I have now used string to measure the snake itself, running the string along the snake from head to tail....NOT an easy thing to do and best done with an extra set of hands. Kellog's sheds measured around 5'3", so taking into account the 10% stretch I averaged his length to be 4'9"....if my maths is right  ! His actual length is 4'8", not much different from his 'shed length'. Silvi' sheds average 4'4", so therefore she should be 3'11". Her ACTUAL length is 3'3" !!! VERY different to her 'shed length'.
The most accurate way to measure your snake is to use the Snake Measurer , this thread explains How to use it . There is also an interesting discussion on Measuring your snake , giving other suggestions as well.
I hope this has been of some help and also hope other forum members will correct any mistakes I've made and add their own tips to this thread as well (and thank you to the many forum members whose advice I have learnt from to put this thread together!).
xxx |
  
   |
Edited by - Kellog on 24/05/2013 11:19:21 |
|
|
Lewy
The Corn Snake Admin
United Kingdom
2874 Posts |
Posted - 07/10/2010 : 10:16:22
|
| Stickied! GOOD STUFF! |
Lewy
THE CORN SNAKE.co.uk Team
 |
 |
|
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 07/10/2010 : 10:31:00
|
quote:
Originally posted by Lewy
Stickied! GOOD STUFF!
Wow, thanks for the quick response and for what you said Lewy, really appreciate it .
xxx
|
|
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
85 Posts |
Posted - 12/10/2010 : 22:45:56
|
Just wondering. Aries eyes have cleared from the "blue" now , so I'm guessing the next step is for the actual shed. However, I noticed he pooped in his substrate so in an effort to not touch it with my bare hands I went at it with a yellow rubber glove to pick it up. Well while going around fluffing the aspen he struck at me . Could that have been due to the huge mysterious yellow gloved hand that was in his proximity? I'm just a tiny tiny bit nervous that he would do it with my hand ungloved were he can smell my scent, but I'm sure he was scared of it. Do you think he knows my scent by now? I'd hate to have him stike at me, knowing that it IS me. (*when not wearing a glove, ha ha ha) |
|
|
|
|
gmac
The Scottish Admin
United Kingdom
5319 Posts |
Posted - 12/10/2010 : 22:53:46
|
| he will just want to be left alone, he wont have all his faculties about him, and him being young, will feel threatened by anything at the moment so will strike out in defence, if he didnt do it before he will probably return to normal after shedding. |
 |
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
85 Posts |
Posted - 12/10/2010 : 22:58:00
|
quote:
Originally posted by gmac
if he didnt do it before he will probably return to normal after shedding.
Well I'll hope for the ladder! He never did it before and he is usually very, very calm soooooo. Big yellow unscented glove + shedding = nervous striking snake |
|
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
85 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 20:14:40
|
| Aries eyes have cleared, and have been clear for about two days he hasnt shed. should i be concerned? i searched threw his bedding and under his hides but no skin, and he doesnt have that fresh look of a shed snake. any ideas? |
|
|
|
|
gmac
The Scottish Admin
United Kingdom
5319 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 20:16:19
|
| nope nothing to worry about, perfectly normal |
|
|
|
|
DannyBrown91
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
3070 Posts |
Posted - 13/10/2010 : 20:27:25
|
| Nice post kellogg. Very informative, im sure it will help alot of people. |
0.0.1 Ghost Corn - Casper
0.0.1 Diffused Corn - Reggie
0.0.1 Amel Corn - Candy A.K.A Baby
1.0 Commom BCI - Rocky
0.1 Japanese Akita - Sasha
Location: Liverpool |
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
85 Posts |
Posted - 14/10/2010 : 02:50:20
|
Is it possible for a corn to go into shed but never actually do it? Aries eyes cleared, and I actually handled him tonight and his skin looks shiny but the weird thing is there are is no skin anywhere inside his enclosure. So I'm wondering if they can decide to stop or reverse this process? I thought I read somewhere that someone else had a similar experience. |
|
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
85 Posts |
Posted - 14/10/2010 : 03:21:12
|
| Oh just a note to the previous post, before I got a hand on him I noticed that he "yawned". So maybe he hasn't shed yet? I read that sometimes they "yawn" to loosen the skin on their head. Dunno. Little confused. Definitely haven't found any skin yet though. |
|
|
|
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 14/10/2010 : 10:07:26
|
If you read through my original post you will see that my Silvesta went 2 weeks from the point of his eyes clearing to him actually shedding, so going for 3/4 days while he is clear is nothing to worry about. I think the average is about 4/5 days but all snakes are different.
The fact that he is yawning could very well be a sign that he is getting ready to shed and loosening the skin around his jaw....so hopefully you might get to see it !
xxx
(Mods - have just realised that where I put 'blue' its come up wrongly in the original post....can you correct it for me)
|
|
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
85 Posts |
Posted - 14/10/2010 : 14:19:36
|
| Hello all! I retract all statements of uncertainty earlier. LOL Aries had a clean shed at some point last night while I was sleeping. Little bugger! I wanted to watch but guess he didn't want me too! This was my first shed with him so now I will know what to expect next time. Thanks for your assistance all! And just a side note, he was back to his relaxed self afterwards. He let me pick him up without being skiddish or striking so I'm pleased with that as well. I think I'm going to get him sexed this weekend so we'll find out if he really is a he. Will keep you all posted. Have a great day! |
|
|
|
|
Kazerella
The Corn Snake Admin
United Kingdom
3093 Posts |
Posted - 14/10/2010 : 16:10:18
|
quote:
Originally posted by Kellog
(Mods - have just realised that where I put 'blue' its come up wrongly in the original post....can you correct it for me)
Sorted Kellogg- where did you get that funky apostrophe from anyway |
|
|
|
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 15/10/2010 : 03:20:55
|
So pleased Aries has done a clean shed for you....and not at all surprised he did it while you were fast asleep, I am convinced they do that on purpose !!
And its great news that he is back to his normal laid back self, proving that his striking behaviour was down to being blue. As you said, at least now you know what to expect for next time
quote:
Originally posted by Kazerella
quote:
Originally posted by Kellog
(Mods - have just realised that where I put 'blue' its come up wrongly in the original post....can you correct it for me)
Sorted Kellogg- where did you get that funky apostrophe from anyway
No idea Kaz....but you know me and computers, we dont get on !! Thanks for sorting it out for me.
xxx
|
|
|
|
|
gingerpony
Queen Bee
United Kingdom
10455 Posts |
Posted - 15/10/2010 : 10:24:42
|
quote:
Originally posted by Kellog
If you read through my original post....
as ever, there's quite a lot to read through Ju
are you able to do a condensed version? |
cornsnakes, ratsnakes, bullsnakes, boas and day geckos
Location:Leeds/York/Selby area |
|
|
|
Kellog
the nice one
United Kingdom
7308 Posts |
Posted - 05/11/2010 : 02:13:52
|
quote:
Originally posted by gingerpony
quote:
Originally posted by Kellog
If you read through my original post....
as ever, there's quite a lot to read through Ju
are you able to do a condensed version?
Sorry for not responding to this sooner GP, havent been on in a while....and sorry for the length of my original post, I thought I had got it about right but obviously not.
As I cannot access my original post to change it, I have contacted admin to ask them to edit it into a 'condensed version', taking out all they consider unnecessary.
My apologies again.
xxx
|
|
|
|
|
Carson1915
Egg
United Kingdom
75 Posts |
Posted - 19/12/2010 : 20:43:15
|
| Carson just went blue today so this has helped quite a bit in Preparing me for him shedding, i has a feeling it was soon ashe had really darkened in the last few days |
Admin - Signiture image too large - please resize
1 Wild type Corn - F - Carson
1 bearmese Mountain Dog - Boston
Wishlist:
Royal Python
Hognose
Iguana
|
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
61 Posts |
Posted - 20/12/2010 : 10:35:19
|
| very informative =) |
|
|
|
Carson1915
Egg
United Kingdom
75 Posts |
Posted - 22/12/2010 : 09:37:34
|
| Wee bugger waited till i was asleep before shedding! Need to check her when i'm home from work |
Admin - Signiture image too large - please resize
1 Wild type Corn - F - Carson
1 bearmese Mountain Dog - Boston
Wishlist:
Royal Python
Hognose
Iguana
|
|
|
|
Cornflake1
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
2 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2011 : 19:56:57
|
| * MOD edit, this is a pointless post if youare going to post can you please make it constructive or at least relevant |
Bethany Carruthers
5 years experiance
2 cornsnakes - still own
1 rainbow boa- has been sold
|
Edited by - gmac on 08/01/2011 20:08:59 |
|
|
|
Topic |
|
Shedding and dealing with shedding problems
