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Help me with eye caps!!

Posted By:

Don and Allens Balls

So the female ball python I got the day before yesturday is pretty dehydrated and still has her eye caps on her...I soaked her and she still has them on. Any ideas?


Points:	100
Topics:	Skin , Eyes
Tags:	Eyecaps, Eyes, Shedding
Species:	Pythons > Pythons > Python regius
Administrative:	Show/Hide

Member Comment

8/30/2010 2:37:03 PM

scubadiver

Use a small piece of scotch tape just over the eye cap.

Member Comment

8/30/2010 3:26:37 PM

OutkastBoa

Peroxide! Make a mix of 25% to 75% warter. It makes snake shen bubble up then ya got something to grab a pull easy at! Or just poor it over the eyse caps a few times then pull. Both has worked well for me in the past! I use sweater boxs now so I no longer have a shed prob. My sweater boxs are just plastic containers with spectrum moss in them kept damp!

Member Comment

8/30/2010 4:51:12 PM

2Nyce_Tech

Ide go the box of moss route. Thats what ive done in the past - some moss and a few woods chips for a day (and some shed aid), then can then 90% of the time take them off by them selves.

Accepted Answer

8/30/2010 4:53:37 PM

dalvers63

I would leave her alone. Make sure the humidity is correct (50-60% normal with a bump to 70% during shed cycle) and see if they come off with the next shed. You want to be careful as it is easy to damage the eyes if you've not done this before.

If they don't come off with the next shed, then I'd suggest soaking her in a tub with 80F or so water and a towel or washcloth for about 45 minutes. If she doesn't remove them herself by crawling around you can then use the damp towel to gently rub her eyes from front to back. This will often loosen them and you can gently remove them.

Having seen someone with a ball python who's eyes were damaged because someone thought there were eyecaps to remove and there weren't, I always err on the side of caution unless the eye is obviously infected or seriously damanged.

Member Comment

8/31/2010 12:02:15 AM

BigCountry

ok just experiencing this with a rescue bp i have ...let me mention the eyes caps on one side he had 2 retained and on the left side was one ...i put him in aspen in a 20 gallon breeder, misted him down and then covered the tank up with a cotton towel to keep humidity in ...i misted him down every other day to keep the humidity nice and moist in there ...2 weeks later he shed off the eye caps and a full shed ....you could tell he was super stoked he could see, he was watching everything ...there are many ways to remove eye caps but i would try to keep the snake moist, that pretty much is the key ...be careful pulling or taping his eyes so you dont pull it out ....it will work its way off sooner or later

Member Comment

8/31/2010 12:42:48 AM

shellboa

Scotch tape can have bad results especially if you don't soak or anything first. I agree with Deb in that the best route is leave it alone until the next shed and just offer the moss box or do a good long soak. Short soaks can actually make the issue worse and trying to remove them with your fingers or tweezers is asking for infection. One other method I have had great success with is using a little dab of mineral oil on a q-tip and applying it to the eye area. If the eye looks puffy or discolored then you need a vet.

Member Comment

8/31/2010 1:33:11 PM

masterfulpoopsie

IMO Wet a paper towel, wet the area around the eye and just gently move your finger in the towel over the eye, in the same fashion the snake would shed, if theres an eye cap this will either make it come off or loosen it enough so the snake can get it off.

Member Comment

9/8/2010 7:54:33 PM

missphire

my RTB had this same problem a while back. she shed once and they stayed on so i put some wet papertowel in the bottem of a ziploc container just big enough to fit her in and then put a lid on it and let her soak in there for a good forty five minutes and gave her a bath in warm water. the next night she shed again and they came off in that shed. make sure your humidity is slightly higher than normal during the shed. and just keep an eye on your snakes eyes! lol

Member Comment

2/2/2011 3:15:19 AM

abi21491

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