Reptile Forum, Reptile Classifieds - CaptiveBred

[premierpython]

Hi all,please help.I went to check on my Royal pythons tonight and noticed something unusual with my 100% het female albinos eyes.

She has what appears to be retained eye caps? but they are exactly the same size,color and location on each eye!The unaffected portion of each eye is smooth and clear.Is it a membrane? I would attempt to remove it but I am not sure what it exactly is and I don't want to damage her(she set me back£500.00)

The gloves are vital ! She is also very head shy I don't want to stress her with excess handling,she has a great appetite.

I checked her when she last shed 2/6/6 and her eyes were cystal clear and smooth,the skin rolled into a donut so I couldn't examine it ;-(

The enclosure is maintained at least at 60% rh and I have put her in a damp cloth bag for 30 mins but this hasn't helped.

Any help/experience or reassurance would be greatly appreciated
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Better smeg than dead!

[Dan]

Easiest way to find out is get a damp cotton bud and see if it will move.

Start at the front of the eye and place the cotton bud on there rub it lightly at first applying a little more pressure each time until you see it move so you know how hard to press. From there do the same again as hard as you need to (after first exercise you'll know) and rub slowly from the front of the eye to the back. If it is a retained eye cap (as it looks) then it should rub off.
2 points to note, firstly if it isnt a retained eye cap you will do no damage, don't worry about the scale moving, it doesn't hurt her. Secondly if you are unsure if she has been humid enough lately then give her a warm bath for a good half hour/ full hour before starting as it will help remove ti when you put the cotton bud on.

BTW, while i don't agree with wearing gloves with a royal if you feel unable to do so without the gloves get someone else to hold while you use the cotton bud. That way if something goes wrong (ie one of you gets spooked then you can't drop the animal)
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TFA

The future is bright, the future is a net like pattern.................

I'm NOT an expert, so if you don't want to know my opinion don't ask!!

[premierpython]

Thanks Dan,I am afraid she will injure herself or become too stressed too eat if I attempt to go anywhere near her eyes/head she is surprisingly strong for her size and thrashes around wildly.Do you think they may come off with the next shed? Also is it usual that both eyes have exactly the same size piece left on,this has never happened before.

I value your help,thanks.
_________________
Better smeg than dead!

[Dan]

Don't worry about her injuring herself and certainly don't worry about her not feeding. It took longer for me to type out my reply than it does for the process.
It would be best of you removed them now, you don't want them on there for the next shed really, especially if you are uncertain about handling her.

It's worth noting that she is a lot stronger mentally than you are giving her credit for. Something like this is VERY unlikely to put her off food. That said, even if it does then it wont take much to get her back on to it if she stops through the shock of being handled.

It's also worth noting that now is as good a time as any to start handling her so she can get used to it. As i said don't worry about her not feeding - i honestly believe you are worrying far too much about that.

Tell you what - i'll do you a deal, you do this and if she stops eating i will personally come down/up to where ever you are and get her going again. If your close enough i'll even come over and help you with the job if you're close enough - can't say fairer than that
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TFA

The future is bright, the future is a net like pattern.................

I'm NOT an expert, so if you don't want to know my opinion don't ask!!

[premierpython]

Dan,that is a very kind offer,you are a gentleman.I will attempt the cotton bud method tomorrow night.

I will post again and let you know how I got on.

Just a little about why I am so concerned/worried.I had a royal python die when I was 18 and I have never really got over it.I know it's wasn't my fault but I have felt guilty ever since.It took a lot of courage for me to invest back in these great small pythons after my loss,and the nightmare of it happening again haunts me.

Thanks again for the help,cotton buds and elastoplast (but no gloves!) on standby for tomorrow night.
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Better smeg than dead!

[mike h]

royals need a lot more humidity than people think. Sometimes if the humidity is not high enough the eyes can look crinkled? If you remove try to remove it when its not a retained eye cap you can seriously damage the eye.
What i personally do, others do it different.
Make sure the humidity is high(royals live in high humidity burrows)
Put a load of spragnum moss in the hide. Use a plant pot dish Tupperware dish etc to put the moss in(This keeps the newspaper/substrate dry but makes lots of humidity) Put some moss in a tub in tank/contico etc. (are you using a wooden viv which is absorbing humidity?)
Use a Tupperware/butty box to create a high humidity hide. simply cut a big hole in one end and part fill damp wringed moss.

: buy from chemist HYPROMELLOSE eye drops. and put on eyes 2/3 times daily.
when it goes into shed go over the top with moisture to the moss. Fill the tank with wringed moss. (well amybe not quite fill) This should move it without doing more trad methods like sticky tape.
MOST IMPORTANT buy and read The complete ball python by kevin McCurly.

I have been through this, worried panicked, then did the above and clean beautiful shed.

[premierpython]

Thanks for your help Mike,this relay is a great forum with lots of help full knowledgeable people.

The complete royal python has been on my wish list for ages now,I dropped enough birthday hints but they all fell on deaf ears...

The Viv's I am using are all handmade (I am C&G qualified carpenter), waterproof ply coated with 3 coats water based low odor acrylic varnish,this gives them a wipe clean finish and they hold humidity really well.

I am going to give Dans method the first try,but I will certainly make a note of what you have said and save it for future reference.

Thanks for taking the time to reply to my post.

I will post the results (and resulting bite photos) tomorrow evening.
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Better smeg than dead!

[premierpython]

OK..deep breath ,just got back.Took her out of her viv and have noticed she is "blue" and only a few days from shed.She gave a few half hearted strikes then settled down.

I gently rubbed each eye in the direction Dan suggested but the skin/cap/membrane? was very firmly attached and unlike skin was supple and stretchy.I would have expected it to be dry and brittle like a shed skin???.Dan?

I tried a moist cotton bud on both eyes as I gently wiped the offending area a tiny bit more became visible above and below the eye,in fact all around the eye but it would not come off.I swapped to a dry cotton bud for more grip,but it still wouldn't shift.

I can't bring myself to use tweezers or sticky tape in case it is a membrane that may have become exposed due to her being dehydrated during the pre-shed cycle (something I think I remember reading on line somewhere?)She has plenty of fresh water to hand and high humidity as well.

I think I will concentrate on keeping the humidity as high as possible over the next few days to ensure she gets the best conditions to shed.

I hope the skin sheds intact this time so I can examine it closely.I will keep you all posted,thanks for the help so far....
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Better smeg than dead!

[Scott W]

if she's coming up to shed again leave her, just raise the humidity right up, even put a high humidity hide in there (ice cream tub filled with damp moss or failing that damp newspaper is ok).

If you get the humidity right and she is well hydrated she should shed fine.

good luck.
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[Dan]

You could also give her a 10-15 min bath dailly from when the eyes clear up until she sheds, this will help no end.

Good luck
_________________
TFA

The future is bright, the future is a net like pattern.................

I'm NOT an expert, so if you don't want to know my opinion don't ask!!