Pre-shed soaking? - Page 2

stephanbakir · 12-08-11, 10:28 AM

Some snakes just like the water... my male retic is in his water bowl a few times a day, every day. No mites.

shaunyboy · 12-08-11, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kayla90

I find with my carpets you have to pay attention to their skin colour. Their eyes don't really change colour, they just lose brightness and go a little dull which can sometimes be hard to notice unless you pay a lot of attention to their eye colour from the beginning. So when you notice their whole body colouring is a bit off they are usually in shed.

^^^^^
agree completely mate

i have a black and white diamond jungle,that when going into shed,her white has a pink tinge to it.

my irians dull down and look drab

i've found my diamonds to be the hardest to tell if they're heading into shed,as their colours don't change all that much

cheers shaun

shaunyboy · 12-08-11, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephanbakir

Some snakes just like the water... my male retic is in his water bowl a few times a day, every day. No mites.

i agree completely stephan

but its worth ruling out mites once and for all,since the snake is also off its food and defensive biting

it may be nothing and its going into shed thats causing all the problems

only time will tell

cheers shaun

stephanbakir · 12-08-11, 10:48 AM

I agree, just tossing in a potential answer to reduce the bad/good ratio in the post :P Hopefully putting the OP's mind at ease.

CK SandBoas · 12-08-11, 11:01 AM

My Ball Python will spend 2-3 days in his water when he is going into shed, and then will then spend an equal amount of time between the hot spot and cool spot before he finally sheds. I remember the first time he spent more than a day in his water, i checked for mites, because i had read it could be an indicator of a mite infestation.

Hope everything turns out for the best

Norm66 · 12-08-11, 11:05 AM

Wow, thanks again everybody. If he's still in the water I'll pull him out and inspect for mites.

Norm66 · 12-08-11, 11:12 AM

Hmmm... the VPI mite article leads me to believe that it is vaguely possible, but unlikely that I wouldn't have noticed mites for 3 weeks. Assuming I read it correctly of course. I'm still checking when I get home though.

Jay · 12-08-11, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norm66

Hmmm... the VPI mite article leads me to believe that it is vaguely possible, but unlikely that I wouldn't have noticed mites for 3 weeks. Assuming I read it correctly of course. I'm still checking when I get home though.

They are tiny buggers an hard to spot sometime untill you have a breakout. Check the head, they love to hide in the eyes and especially that smal slot under the jaw.

stephanbakir · 12-08-11, 11:24 AM

Cloaca is a bad spot for em too.

KORBIN5895 · 12-08-11, 11:35 AM

You will also find white poop on the head if it has been soaking.

shaunyboy · 12-08-11, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norm66

Wow, thanks again everybody. If he's still in the water I'll pull him out and inspect for mites.

when the snakes in the water,the mites head for the eyes and nostril area to stop themselves from drowning

take a white coloured cotton bud and wipe around the eyes and nostrils,you should pick up a few mites if they're there mate

give them a squeeze between your finger tips and they will turn into little blobs of blood

happy hunting

all the best shaun

shaunyboy · 12-08-11, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norm66

Hmmm... the VPI mite article leads me to believe that it is vaguely possible, but unlikely that I wouldn't have noticed mites for 3 weeks. Assuming I read it correctly of course. I'm still checking when I get home though.

they're tiny little things,full stop size.................

Norm66 · 12-08-11, 02:54 PM

Well, there aren't any mites. I looked in water dish, I looked under, over all but inside the snake and I even did the cotton ball thing on his head and came up clean. The only thing I found on him was a relatively nasty disposition. LOL. Actually, he struck a couple times at me but I got my feeding hemostats (cleaned after use of course, I really need to get a small snake hook at the next expo) and used them as a snake stick and once I got him picked up he wasn't any problem at all except when I wanted to rub his head with a cotton swab of course. Still, I'm not bleeding, the whole thing was done in a matter of a few minutes, the water dishes got washed and filled, I fluffed the substrate and got him back in there. He's sitting on his hide now but looks like he might head back to the water dish.

So I guess my thread title was correct then most likely. Just soaking pre-shed.

Thanks for all the help guys. You make the stresses of snake ownership a lot less stressful than it would otherwise be and I really appreciate it.

Norm66 · 12-13-11, 06:10 AM

Crazy little thing is still in the water. I got him out last night for cage maintenance/fresh water long enough for him to dry off and his skin looked dry but after a few minutes hanging out under the basking lamp to warm up he went right back to the water and was still there this am. I double checked for mites in the water bowl too....none.

Any idea what's going on? Being wet almost a week just can't be a good thing...or is it normal and I'm just being impatient? It's certainly been known to happen.

Lankyrob · 12-13-11, 06:13 AM

Is it possible that it is something in the substrate/enclosure that the snake "doesnt like" so it is avoiding it by staying in the bowl? Just a random thought with NO substance