How tuff are they?

[Mysnakeau]

How tough is a snake's skin? I mean, can they be easily injured?

When I want to get Opals out, sometimes she is stretched out in her hollow driftwood which is uneven, not sanded smooth. She feels rather heavy to try and get her out and I am afraid of spiking her on a splinter or edge of the driftwood. If I can't just lift her straight up then I am afraid to attempt it at all, in case I hurt her.

And what about when it comes to unwrapping them from a chair, their branches, or whatever. When I try to unwind her she has such a tight grip that its almost impossible to move her. If I used a bit of force, how easily could I "pull" something out of joint or tear her skin?

I presume, like yabbies, just before or after shedding their skin would be really soft. Would they be much more prone to injuries? If so, how long does it usually take for their skin to get back to normal.

[tszue]

nothin to worry their skin is as tough as nails unles it gets pecked by a magpy then you would have somethin to worry about

[waruikazi]

I treat all of my snakes like they are babies, i'm very gentle. But they are pretty resiliant creatures. as far as getting out of her hollow log i'd suggest cutting it down the middle so that you can open it when you want to take he out and just keep it shut with some twine. Much safer for the snake IMO.

[J.D.P]

there preety tough but it proberly wouldnt take much to do some damage to them

[mertle]

it helps if you unwind the snake tail first from the chair atc. that's what I have been told anyway

[Magpie]

Tickle their tail or unwind it manually, never use force.

[Pythoninfinite]

Yeah Kathy, they are pretty tough, but as Magpie says, if you can release the tail you can usually get them to move. Just make sure you don't drag them backwards against the scales also, always try to make sure that any unwinding is done "forwards" to avoid damage to the scales.

Jamie.