Please Help Kenyan Not Shedding/Eating

[mekayp]

I got a Kenyan Sand Boa about two months ago, and he has not ate since I have gotten him. The real problem is he has some shed stuck on his head and one eye cap left on him. I have read up on this problem extensively and nothing has worked. I am really worried about him, and am afraid I am going to loose him. None of my other snakes have had this problem yet. I have dealt with bad sheds, but none like this. Here is what I have tried:

Upped humidity in his cage to 40%
Made sure hot side is 95, cool side is 80,
Changed substrate from sand to now paper towels
Soaked first every other day, then daily
Tried Shed ease
tried contact eye solution
tried mineral oil
tried scotch tape
Put a shed box in his cage
put damp paper towels in a hide
tried the damp sock trick


I have been worried about stressing him out to much, so this has been done over the last two months. I have just progessively tried different things as one didn't work over a few days time. My fear is now he seems to be loosing muscle definition and looks like he is going back into blue shed.

Any help would be appreciated. I am really loving this little guy, and would be in tears if I loose him. I have spent lots of time with him. :hmm:

[mykee]

"Upped humidity in his cage to 40%
Made sure hot side is 95, cool side is 80,
Changed substrate from sand to now paper towels
Soaked first every other day, then daily
Tried Shed ease
tried contact eye solution
tried mineral oil
tried scotch tape
Put a shed box in his cage
put damp paper towels in a hide
tried the damp sock trick
"

Lol...
You got us.
I almost believed you for a minute...
This is a joke, right?

[alessia55]

How old is your snake?
What was he eating before you got him?
What have you tried feeding him? How often have you offered food?
Have you been handling him?
Post a photo of his enclosure.

You can leave the stuck shed until his next shed cycle. If kept in the right conditions, he will shed properly, including the stuck shed from the previous cycle.

Snakes can go a long time without eating, if they are healthy. Depending on the health the sand boa was given to you in, and assuming he is being housed properly, you shouldn't have to worry. He'll eat eventually.

Edit to add:
Humidity should be kept low. I'm not a sand boa person, so I don't know if 40% is too high.
Hot end should be 95-105F, cool side 79-83F.

[youngster]

....scotch tape? What exactly did you do with the tape?

[mykee]

"Edit to add:
Humidity should be kept low. I'm not a sand boa person, so I don't know if 40% is too high.
Hot end should be 95-105F, cool side 79-83F.
"
Nope and nope.
1. Sand boas should be kept at around 60% humidity normally and 80% or so during a shed.
2. 95-105 is far too hot for a sand boa. 90-95.

[alessia55]

Nope and nope.
1. Sand boas should be kept at around 60% humidity normally and 80% or so during a shed.
2. 95-105 is far too hot for a sand boa. 90-95.

Glad you caught that. I got those number off of a sand boa breeder's website.

[CK SandBoas]

I truly hope the scotch tape and the eye contact solution is a joke, because i can only imagine the damage done if you used scotch tape on the stuck eye cap:(

I would put the humid hide in with him, and let him be. The stuck shed should come off with his next shed. Honestly, the snake is probably already stressed out, if you've tried all that in a short amount of time.


How old is your Kenyan? If he is a young one, after he sheds, offer him a live pinky, that should entice him to eat. Young Kenyans are stubborn eaters, not all of them will take f/t right off the bat.

And if you could post a pic of his enclosure, and of the snake, that would help.

[mykee]

Alessia, that just goes to show that even though people have websites, doesn't mean they know anything.

[jaleely]

My sand boas spend a lot of time in a moist moss filled tupperware. They also live in dry (washed dust free) sand. They have rough wood hides on top of the sand, and they slither all over. I have not had any shed problems since introducing the moist "sauna". My male never had issues, but my large female was always rubbing her eyes, due to retained eye caps (I got her in January). Finally figured this trick out, with some advice from a kenyan breeder. She loves that moist tupperware, and has been doing amazing for the past four months or so!

Mykee clearly you don't understand the internet. Anyone who owns a website knows everything about anything. Duh.

[alessia55]

Alessia, that just goes to show that even though people have websites, doesn't mean they know anything.

True. It just happened to be the website of a reputable sand boa breeder I know. *shrugs* Who knows. That's why we have a forum so that we can discuss those sorts of inconsistencies ;)

[jaleely]

I was told lower humidity for sand boas as well, when I got mine. I upped it, and upppped it...and was afraid to go higher than 50%. Turns out they actually do enjoy quite a bit of humidity. Everything I'd been told and had read about said to keep it very low.
I think the guy i got mine from, who told me that, is a great guy and a super breeder, but he must have more ambient humidity than he realizes.

[mekayp]

Thank you everyone for the help. He finally completely shed. I am going to try and feed him tonight. He looks happy for the first time since I got him.

Oh, and btw, my local pet store, scales and tails, tried the scotch tape on his eye cap. I have since then read mixed messages on diff websites about it all. The contact re-wetting solution was something my vet told me about for my ball python when he had stuck shed on him. (It worked for him).

Truth be told the whole sand boa care seems crazy to me. When I got him I did research on him, to see how to best keep him. Since then I have been continually reading up on him. Some websites say 95-105 for temp, others say 85-90 (for the hot side), some say humidity at 25-30, others say 50-60. Some say Keep him on sand, others say coconut, and some say potting soid or aspen bedding. The whole subject of sand boa's seems to be up for debate. Will someone who owns one please tell me about their temps, substrate, humidity, and all. Thanks

[shaunyboy]

viscotears removes retained eye caps with no ill effect

heres a link

Viscotears Gel for Dry Eye Treatment - 10g (http://www.google.co.uk/products/catalog?hl=en&q=viscotears&psj=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.,cf.osb&biw=1135&bih=659&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=16804607568876518598&sa=X&ei=Da_TT7TKB5S5hAfpmaHUAw&ved=0CKQBEPMCMAE)

i will pm you a thread on how to use it mate

cheers shaun

[mykee]

I keep my 30 or so Kenyans EXACTLY as I keep my 125+ ball pythons:

50-60% humidity
90-95 degree hot spot
78-80 ambeint air temp
Beta chip bedding

[jaleely]

^^^ Same as mykee for my two sand boas except I now use washed, kiln dried, dust free sand for substrate.

[Aaron_S]

Alessia, that just goes to show that even though people have websites, doesn't mean they know anything.

ZING!


Nothing else really needs to be said here but "yeah but what others have said".

I keep my rough scale sand boas like KSB. So simple.

[Aaron_S]

....Mykee clearly you don't understand the internet. Anyone who owns a website knows everything about anything. Duh.

I am glad you pointed that out to me. I had no idea that's how it worked. I always heard that these things called "books" are useful too and that information can be learned from them. Why waste my time reading when I can have the internet tell me everything?

[jaleely]

Exactly. ......waaait a minute.....

[mykee]

Ha! Hahaha!!