Incomplete slough?

[putchi]

I have a female BHP who has lost just her "belly" scales. The rest of her skin feels and looks dry. I have only had this snake for about six weeks so this is the first time it has shed any of its skin since I have had it. The snake is eighteen months old; it is in a plywood cage with newspaper as substrate. There is also a wooden log for her to hide in and a wooden "ladder" she can climb.

I am going to treat this as an incomplete slough for the moment. I have put a half brick in that has edges that she can rub against. I will also let her soak in some warm water.

If anyone has any other ideas what this could be or what else I should do then I would welcome their advice.

 

[Aslan]

I would just be treating it as an incomplete slough - I treat mine the same as you have suggested - I soak them in warm water and then either use my hands or a towel to slowly roll the skin off them...

 

[putchi]

Thanks Aslan. I have had snakes for a long time but this is the first time I have had this occur. I thought I would check with others in case I had misdiagnosed a serious problem.

 

[Troyster]

Be VERY careful removing retained shed yourself.If it were me i give the snake a warm bath for half hour or so keeping an eye on the water temp.If possible sit the tub in which you are bathing the snake on a heat mat to aid in keeping the water at the correct temp(28-30).Then instead of removing the retained skin yourself id place the animal into a pillowcase that has be soaked in warm water and leave it in there for an hour or 2 before checking on it and let the snake remove the skin itself.

 

[neisha018]

I watched new breed vets with Steve Irwin and on of the pythons at Aus zoo had an eye scale that didnt come of with her shed they used a piece of sticky tape and used it to remove the scale I dont know how well it would work with a lot of scales but it may be worth trying

 

[Ewan]

Don't use sticky tape. It will cause more problems. It maybe ok to do it with an eye cap if you are accurate however it is not a suitable method for any other areas.

As advised soak in luke warm water for an hour or so. Adding a few drops of olive or vegetable oil can help loosen the skin.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Oil actually acts as a barrier for water, it won't help in loosening the skin and may actually prevent the needed moisture from doing the job. (If you put oil or grease on your own skin and run water over it, the water is repelled). Just a couple of drops of detergent is far more useful for wetting out adhered skin.

There is no problem removing the softened/loosened skin yourself if you want to. If there are no underlying problems (this would be unlikely) the skin should come away easily if you put the snake on the lawn or carpet and just let it slide through you fingers. The longer you've left the skin attached, the longer you may need to soak it, because it sort of dries on. You could safely leave the animal in a lukewarm bath (enclosed plastic tub) for at least 24 hours if you need to, and longer if needed. Just make sure the water can't get too cold.

It may have adhered skin because the basking spot heat is too concentrated, and drying the dorsal skin so the shedding becomes a problem, or the air in the enclosure is too dry.

Jamie

 

[jahan]

Also as Jamie said"or the air in the enclosure is too dry".An unsealed plywood enclosure will suck up any moisture in the air.