Re: Indigo eyes

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Posted by VWillis on March 12, 2001 at 18:28:49:

In Reply to: Indigo eyes posted by Steve on March 12, 2001 at 17:04:12:

: I have a pair of indigoes,they eat ok but when they have eaten,they rub there eyes on the cage floor is this normal,as the females eye looks sore,is this normal behaviour for this type of snake,as i am new to Eastern indigo snake keeping.
: Ps The Females eye is clouded,even after just sheading.
: Hope you can help steve

Steve, It sounds to me like they may not be shedding their eye caps. This is fairly common with Indigos if they don't have enough humidity while in shed. Some provide a rubbermaid box big enough for the snake to get into for humidity. Some cypress chips, damp paper towels, moss etc. will hold the humidity up in the box. I use an 8 quart rubbermaid box with the lid on. I cut an opening about 4"x5" in the corner of the lid. Then I take a butane lighter and melt the edges of the hole so they are not sharp. Put the material you want to use in and put the lid on. Keep it damp and the snake will use it when it wants to. Since I have provided this set up during shed I usually get whole one piece sheds with both eye caps. As for a snake that has retained it's eye caps, when I had this happen I took a wet paper towel and held it over the snakes eye for several minutes. Then take the towel and gently stroke the eye from the back to the front. If the eye cap is there it will usually reveal itself as a little flake at the corner of the eye. If you see this, continue to apply the wet paper towel and stroke the eye alternately. Usually the moisture will loosen the eye cap and it may come off or partially come off. Be patient it may take awhile. I have used a small pair of forceps to get ahold of the corner and pull it off, but use caution. It may sound like a hard thing to do with a nervous Indigo, but I have found that they usually settle right down when you get the wet towel against their eye. I am fortunate that my wife, who was originally terrified of snakes, now knows exactly how to help me if I need her to hold the snake while I remove an eyecap!! I appealed to her nature to help an animal in distress. She now thinks I should have been a doctor. Seriously, though, retained eye caps can lead to serious problems as the old cap keeps the eye from "breathing" and can lead to blindness. I hope this helps. Maybe someone else has some help also, but this has worked for me. VWillis

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: : I have a pair of indigoes,they eat ok but when they have eaten,they rub there eyes on the cage floor is this normal,as the females eye looks sore,is this normal behaviour for this type of snake,as i am new to Eastern indigo snake keeping. : : Ps The Females eye is clouded,even after just sheading. : : Hope you can help steve : Steve, It sounds to me like they may not be shedding their eye caps. This is fairly common with Indigos if they don't have enough humidity while in shed. Some provide a rubbermaid box big enough for the snake to get into for humidity. Some cypress chips, damp paper towels, moss etc. will hold the humidity up in the box. I use an 8 quart rubbermaid box with the lid on. I cut an opening about 4"x5" in the corner of the lid. Then I take a butane lighter and melt the edges of the hole so they are not sharp. Put the material you want to use in and put the lid on. Keep it damp and the snake will use it when it wants to. Since I have provided this set up during shed I usually get whole one piece sheds with both eye caps. As for a snake that has retained it's eye caps, when I had this happen I took a wet paper towel and held it over the snakes eye for several minutes. Then take the towel and gently stroke the eye from the back to the front. If the eye cap is there it will usually reveal itself as a little flake at the corner of the eye. If you see this, continue to apply the wet paper towel and stroke the eye alternately. Usually the moisture will loosen the eye cap and it may come off or partially come off. Be patient it may take awhile. I have used a small pair of forceps to get ahold of the corner and pull it off, but use caution. It may sound like a hard thing to do with a nervous Indigo, but I have found that they usually settle right down when you get the wet towel against their eye. I am fortunate that my wife, who was originally terrified of snakes, now knows exactly how to help me if I need her to hold the snake while I remove an eyecap!! I appealed to her nature to help an animal in distress. She now thinks I should have been a doctor. Seriously, though, retained eye caps can lead to serious problems as the old cap keeps the eye from "breathing" and can lead to blindness. I hope this helps. Maybe someone else has some help also, but this has worked for me. VWillis

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Re: Indigo eyes

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