Another Woma question

[Rach85]

Hi everyone,
My woma has has a few sheds with me now, and they all have been really bad. Ive taken a look and fixed any husbandry issues, made sure temps are right, given him/her a bigger water bowl and put it in the warm end while he's in shed. will be getting a hygrometer asap. This last time I misted the tank lightly, but once again he had a really cr@ppy shed. he had bits hanging off his head, his body hadn't shed at all after about 1cm behind his head, his eye caps were both still on. So I said righto Alice, into your tub. and after soaking him for a while, and a combined team effort, he's now all gorgeous with no retained shed, including eye caps.

But my question is, is bad shedding a common thing for woma's? I have 3 other snakes, and have never had an issue. Or are some snakes just prone to it? He just seems like he's not good at it. and absolutely hates being soaked. He hisses and mouth gapes and I hate stressing him out, especially if its something i'm missing. Thanks in advance, Rach

 

[PythonLegs]

Got wood? I have a big water python who used to be a bad shedder, since I added a bit of driftwood to his enclosure he manages a lot better.

 

[Rob]

My aspidites (woma + 2 BHPs) all have trouble sloughing, yet my Diamond and Childreni are fine.

The air in our house is really dry because we have reverse cycle aircon, so that is the likely cause of my issues.

Some people have said that misting their snakes at morning and night whilst in shed cycle ensures they have no issues. My snakes do not like being misted at all. Next, I will be looking at closing their vents up a bit to see if that makes any difference.

Here is my thread I made about correcting a bad slough, although it sounds like you've done that yourself already.

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/general-reptile-discussion-42/bhp-assist-shed-pic-heavy-190702/

 

[Ramsayi]

Hi everyone,
My woma has has a few sheds with me now, and they all have been really bad. Ive taken a look and fixed any husbandry issues, made sure temps are right, given him/her a bigger water bowl and put it in the warm end while he's in shed. will be getting a hygrometer asap. This last time I misted the tank lightly, but once again he had a really cr@ppy shed. he had bits hanging off his head, his body hadn't shed at all after about 1cm behind his head, his eye caps were both still on. So I said righto Alice, into your tub. and after soaking him for a while, and a combined team effort, he's now all gorgeous with no retained shed, including eye caps.

But my question is, is bad shedding a common thing for woma's? I have 3 other snakes, and have never had an issue. Or are some snakes just prone to it? He just seems like he's not good at it. and absolutely hates being soaked. He hisses and mouth gapes and I hate stressing him out, especially if its something i'm missing. Thanks in advance, Rach

It's as much as an issue with womas as with any other type of python.It is usually down to enclosures which by their very design causes low humidity.
Most pythons don't mind soaking provided the water temp is ok.The correct temp when soaking should feel cool to your touch,if it feels warm,even luke warm it is too hot for them.

 

[saintanger]

bath it in warm water and rub gently with fingers or soft sponge anything that does not come of keep bathing everyday even pop it in a big enough container slightly warm water and a rock if they wanna rest. make sure its not to full as they need space to breath and put a lid with holes. i never leave mine in more than 1 hour and if the water is getting too cold i put a hreat mat under the container.

 

[Rach85]

@ PythonLegs, do you mean to rub against? Because there is a lot of rough surfaces for him to rub against.
@ Rob_N_Son, yeah I did see that thread, Ive been doing a lot of searching on here for ideas, but maybe the fact that it is winter, and while our wood fire is at the other end of the house, maybe it dries the air out enough to cause issues?

 

[Robynne]

Hi everyone, I have a question, My male woma hasnt eaten for 4 months, since I got him, I have offered him rats, but he just isnt interested, but when I let him outside he goes straight to my chicken house and seems to be very excited, he goes into his hunting mode, I dont know if I should try him on a baby chick, dead of course, as the beaks are sharp. I think the fella I got him off fed him live, but I cant do that. I have tried just about every trick in the book. I know they go off there food but am getting worried about him. Hes active and healthy and loves getting out of his enclosure, so health wise hes all good. Ive rubbed the dead rats with live rats for the smell, nothing, ive jiggled it around to make it look like its alive, nothing. I have split the rats head, which is really grose but someone mentioned that so I tried and nothing again. What else can I do.

 

[disintegratus]

First, I'd suggest starting a new thread on the subject, after using the search function to have a look at what other people have tried

I feed day old chicks occasionally to my lot, and I've never had a problem. You have to remember that these are essentially wild animals, and have evolved to consume whole prey. If it makes you feel more comfortable, you can snip the beaks/other pointy parts off, but to be honest, I don't think it's necessary. I also feed day old chicks (and rodents) to my ferrets, again, never had a problem, and they eat the whole thing too, there's never any bits left over.

 

[Robynne]

Hi, I finally got my boy to eat, I offered him a quail and he took it straight away, so turns out hes not a rat eater, cant blame him.

 

[PythonLegs]

@ PythonLegs, do you mean to rub against? Because there is a lot of rough surfaces for him to rub against?

Yep..I have a bit of mangrove root in there, big boy wrestles that thing when he's in shed...works really well if you give it a soak when the snake goes blue and then put it back in the next day.

 

[Rob]

Yep..I have a bit of mangrove root in there, big boy wrestles that thing when he's in shed...works really well if you give it a soak when the snake goes blue and then put it back in the next day.

Interesting. So it retains moisture for a while ? I might have to try some with my aspidites.

 

[buffcoat]

You can try a humidity box (I use a tupperware bowl with a hole cut in it) filled with damp sphagnum moss in it. Or you can try getting a pillow case damp and put them in there and let them do the work. I live in a relatively humid part of the States (50% or better) and I still use a humid box for my BCI. My JCP and corn have never had issues

 

[GhamMagsBaird89]

My girl hasnt had a Bad shed yet But she was taking awhile to get there i didnt wanna Mist her down at all so when shes in her hide i go in and mist the whole enclosure every 6-8 hrs after 24 hours of doingh this she had a great all in one shed nicely wrapped in some Gumleaves