[Skin] Patch of skin not to far behind nostrils, won't shed!!!!

[DiamondBoa]

Hi guys,

So, my boa had just shed and I went in today to clear out her skin. I then come to notice a patch of skin still left on her nose. It's about a quarter inch behind her nostril, in comparison to say the middle of our nose bone.

When she was very young, a mouse bit her here and left a scar that healed rather well. She would always shed fine in this area, but at times a patch would be left behind that she would eventually rub off or I would take care of it with warm water and shed ease, then massaging it off.

However, this time, this is a super stubborn patch a skin that I feel if I were to massage off, would almost be like us peeling off a fresh scab exposing a raw flesh underneath. I massaged at it a bit and it's so tightly packed, I'm afraid to go any harder with it.

Suggestions? I hate seeing her like this but, I was thinking wait until next shed to see if that helps break it?

update: I was just able to get some pictures of here, see attached please. It really doesn't look to bad from the photos, but it's really in there.

[VincenzoFebbraio]

Re: Patch of skin not to far behind nostrils, won't shed!!!!

Use baby oil on a q-tip and lightly rub it on the patch of stuck shed. Baby oil is natural mineral oil and is 100% safe for your snake. This will moisten that shed, which Will allow you to lightly massage it off. Let it sit for about an hour before you attempt taking it off. Hope this helps!

[bebowebb]

Re: Patch of skin not to far behind nostrils, won't shed!!!!

Another method you could try would be to handle your boa in a warm wet cloth. This should moisten the leftover shed while giving a rough enough material for the boa to slide through. The contact between the moistened skin and cloth surface should help the skin loosen and come off.

Some folks even recommend placing the boa in an appropriately sized warm/moist bag to get the same result.

If it is not that big of a deal, you can wait until the next shed cycle and be sure to increase the humidity level at that time. Very good chance that it will come off with that next shed.

[DiamondBoa]

Re: Patch of skin not to far behind nostrils, won't shed!!!!

Great recommendations guys and I appreciate you both stepping in to quickly help.

This oddly, seems more of like a scab than just a loose stubborn loose piece of skin. As I mentioned earlier, when she was younger, she took a good bite to that spot from a mouse which always left a small little scar. It has healed and I think once, if ever had an issue there with shedding. I applied the warm towel method as suggested by you bebowebb and off it came with no problem at a previous time a while back.

I noticed she was getting ready to shed, so I upped the temps a bit and consistently misted her enclosure throughout the day, each day.

I took her back out today to try your method with the baby oil Vincenzo Febbraio and dabbed a bit on and around the area, let it sit, reapplied, let it sit, reapplied and worked at it a bit rubbing my finger around and it's STUCK on there, just like a scab.

A bit of it came up and I dabbed a bit more of baby oil only to find a little red/blood on the q-tip, so I stopped immediately. Checked her to see that she was ok and nothing was leaking etc and in need of immediate assistance (vet)...but I could tell it definitely irritated it badly and seems like it's not meant to come off?

[VincenzoFebbraio]

Re: Patch of skin not to far behind nostrils, won't shed!!!!

I would put a little neosporin on it to help it heal because it's an open wound if It's bleeding. Keep the affected area clean and I'm sure everything will be fine.