But snakes can be extremely unpredictable and aggressive when shedding, so doing this can be risky, even with a normally docile friendly animal. There are other methods to assist that do not require hands on.
They can be harmful especially if their eyes are covered in old skin. It throws off their perception of the world thus making them very skeptical of what’s around them. Thus wanting to attack something they would not normally attack.
I heard you shouldn't help but it seems more like the snake is using his hand to peel the shed off rather than the man pulling on the skin, I don't think it'll cause harm
It depends on the circumstances. There are times snakes will experience what's known as a bad shed or a dry shed, when, whether due to a lack of humidity or other reasons, the skin doesn't all come off at once.
When this happens, you can give the snake a bath in Luke warm water, and use a damp cloth to gently grip the snake and let IT pull itself through, much like the guy is doing in the video. The humidity will help soften the old skin, and allowing the snake to do the movement helps prevent pulling off skin that's not ready to come off (although I've not encountered a snake that doesn't shed it's skin all at once). It can be unhealthy and dangerous for a snake left with pieces of skin it can't get off. Typically, as long as the snake is healthy and the humidity is correct, and they have something to rub up against, most snakes shouldn't have an issue removing skin themselves.
As an added note, I believe the "old skin" covering the eyes is referred to as an eyecap. It's a scale that, at least in ball pythons, becomes cloudy a few days prior to shedding (a phase that's known as being "in blue," because the eye attains a clouded milky-blue color). Usually this is when snakes are at their most vulnerable during a shed because they can't see well at all, and can become quite defensive.
If all goes well, the eyecap should come off on its own, although I have heard of situations where this had to be assisted when the snake was kept in very poor conditions or in bad health. <- this is something that probably should be done by a vet familiar with reptiles.
Snakes tend to be decently stressed when they're getting ready to shed anyway, but, if it comes down to it, leaving old skin on during a bad shed can cause health complications.
Final note:
As far as this gif goes, the snake looks to be in decent health, the skin seems to be coming off without much resistance, the guy isn't tugging at the skin, and the snake isn't in any visible sign of distress, so I don't see how this would be much different than if the snake were rubbing itself against a rock or any other object during a normal shed.
Admittedly I'm not an expert, this is just from my own experience dealing with them,
That was super interesting! Question : what happens if a bit of skin can't come off? Does it get included into the new skin and somehow rot/infect? Or does it harden or ... ? And does it happen often in nature?
ps : I think the piece of skin on the eye you're referring to is the nictitating membrane, or is it another?
When this happens, you can give the snake a bath in Luke warm water, and use a damp cloth to gently grip the snake and let IT pull itself through, much like the guy is doing in the video. The humidity will help soften the old skin, and allowing the snake to do the movement helps prevent pulling off skin that's not ready to come off (although I've not encountered a snake that doesn't shed it's skin all at once). It can be unhealthy and dangerous for a snake left with pieces of skin it can't get off. Typically, as long as the snake is healthy and the humidity is correct, and they have something to rub up against, most snakes shouldn't have an issue removing skin themselves.
If all goes well, the eyecap should come off on its own, although I have heard of situations where this had to be assisted when the snake was kept in very poor conditions or in bad health. <- this is something that probably should be done by a vet familiar with reptiles.
Snakes tend to be decently stressed when they're getting ready to shed anyway, but, if it comes down to it, leaving old skin on during a bad shed can cause health complications.
As far as this gif goes, the snake looks to be in decent health, the skin seems to be coming off without much resistance, the guy isn't tugging at the skin, and the snake isn't in any visible sign of distress, so I don't see how this would be much different than if the snake were rubbing itself against a rock or any other object during a normal shed.
Admittedly I'm not an expert, this is just from my own experience dealing with them,
ps : I think the piece of skin on the eye you're referring to is the nictitating membrane, or is it another?