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I have a chondro that rarely sheds himself. Rarely. I think once on his own, and it's been a year.

Below is a reprint of my photographic journey of shedding a chondro. I'm not sure if yours is in the same situation, but this is what I have to do every month or so.
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I have one baby chondro who doesn't know how to shed. No matter the humidity, he simply will NOT do it on its own. This shed here is probably a couple of weeks old on him, and he's getting all crinkly.

So it's time for Dr. Florian's "How to Shed A Baby Chondro, Part 1"

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Step One: Find a Chondro That Needs Shed


This might be more difficult than you'd expect. Most of them will at least shed the snout. Or the full head. But rarely will they just skip it. This guy here is prime. Note the wrinkly skin. It's time to party.

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Step Two: Try to Peel Back The Lips

If the skin is moist enough, use your thumb to peel back the lip. This guy was kept exceptionally humid prior to the shoot, but still not enough. The skin was NOT peeling off effortlessly enough, so back in the tub he goes.

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Step Three: Forced Hydration

What I've done here is to make a Chondro Mummy of sorts. Take one paper towel, get it wet, and envelop the Chondro in it so he can't get out. I'll typically leave a "pocket" in there for him so he can crawl around, but make sure it can't escape. This guy, I left in for about 6 hours to cook.

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Step Four: Check on Your Snake

I checked numerous times to make sure he was okay. After a while, unwrap your Egyptian soldier for duty.

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Step Five: Your Arsenal

You will need a Chondro, a Water Bottle, and some sort of refreshment. Tonight I'm slummin with Goose Island Honkers Ale, a nice mellow ale from Chicago. Tweezers optional, but I couldn't find mine.

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Step Six: Peel!

I simply use my thumb and fingers to peel the skin back. It should come off pretty easily at this point. If you are tearing it frequently, give the snake another wrapping, and wait a while. You don't want this to be piece by piece, you want to get it to peel, and continue to peel off.

Watch the eyecaps, make sure they come off. At this point, the eyecaps should come off with the rest of the snout.

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Step Seven: A Job Well Done!!

If everything went well, you should have the top of the head off. Through all of the working with this animal, the bottom has started to fall apart from the sides. This is a good thing.

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Step Eight: Peel the Bottom!!

Do the same thing with the bottom, it should come back relatively easy.

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Step Nine: Onto the Neck!!

The neck is a very difficult area, especially if you have a bitey angry chondro. If you can get them to squirm forward, use that pressure to your advantage. But most likely they will be backing up. Try with your thumb to roll the skin back on one side, and then repeat with the other side. Once you're past the neck, reverse your grip so that the snakes head is facing your palm. This will give you more room to roll back the rest of the body.

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Step Ten: Spot Check

Check out the Chondro to make sure that you didn't miss any spots. This is where tweezers come in handy. Check the heat pits, around the cloaca, nose plugs, and make sure you got it all. Be careful with those tight areas, but pluck them if you can.

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Step Eleven: Feed!!

When it's all said and done, your chondro will be hungry. I would suggest waiting a day as this is HORRIBLY stressful for both keeper and kept. But if you feel the urge, offer them a little snake scented human: They go crazy for that stuff.

Enjoy!