Vet Q&A-Reptile

My baby turtle won’t eat and his belly’s turning blue kinda what do I do???

Thanks for reaching out about Patrisha and including a photo. The dark spot on the plastron is probably due to the thin shell and internal organs underneath. Hemorrhage under the shell can also appear like this. Check and correct husbandry especially water and environmental temperature. A veterinary visit could help assist with diagnosis and treatment. Offer a baby food via a syringe might give calories. Good luck.

So my bearded dragon has been eating her foot,three toes are bitten off and she is eating to the foot now.we have taken her to the vet but all hey did is give her antibiotics(shots too)but its just getting worse.she is fed 16 crickets a day 8 with calcium in the morning and her tank is up to 100 during the day and 80 at night.

Thanks for reaching out about Harley and including photos. Infections can cause skin necrosis and pain, and maybe that is why he is chewing on his foot. Pain medications and a bandage, in addition to the antibiotics would be recommended. Not all antibiotics treat all infections, so maybe another choice. Occasionally amputating the affected foot above the diseased area will stop the spread. A second veterinary visit is recommended to help. ARAV.org website can be searched for local reptile veterinarians. Good luck.

Cat has a large mass on side of neck. Is clearly not acting herself. Normally very loving and now she does not want me to pick her up. She is pregnant. We live in country. There are snakes around here.

Poor Brownie! This looks like it could be an abscess, a tumor of some kind, or possibly a snake bite. Not wanting to be touched or handled is common when cats are in pain or not feeling well. This definitely needs veterinary attention, so I would recommend taking her to the vet for an exam today if possible. He/she can palpate the swelling to help determine what it is. If it's an abscess, it may need to be lanced and flushed out under sedation, and she will probably need antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication as well.

My wood turtle has not eaten or pooped in the week that I have had her and I am worried if she is not comfortable or may have something wrong with her

One of the most common reasons for a reptile to have a decreased or absent appetite is because of husbandry. I would recommend starting there, and ensuring that the husbandry is as perfect as possible. Often times, even seemingly minor things can make a big difference for a reptile. For example, it looks like your turtle has a glass enclosure from the picture (I apologize if this is not the case), and often this can be stressful for them as they don't understand the concept of glass. It is recommended to keep them in opaque/non-see-through containers, such as turtle tables or large Rubbermaid containers for example. Alternatively, this may also be a problem that started before you acquired Hades. Reptiles can take a long time to get sick, and then when they show their signs of illness, it can seem to come on suddenly. Due to this, I would recommend taking Hades in for an examination with a veterinarian, as this is a good idea for any new pet, including turtles! At the visit, your veterinarian will go over the husbandry for Hades, and can make recommendations. Additionally, they may recommend radiographs (x-rays) to look at bone quality, as metabolic bone disease is very common in reptiles. They may also recommend blood work and/or a fecal sample as part of a wellness exam to look for any signs of infection, anemia (low red blood cells), to look at organ function, and to evaluate the feces for parasites. If you would like to try husbandry changes first, and want to talk about Hades further prior to your veterinary visit, I would be happy to do a consult with you. I hope this gives you a place to start!

My yellow belly slider (turtle) has green on his belly I was rinsing his shell and when i touched it up by his head (on belly) he snapped at me my boyfriend said maybe he just didnt qanna be held but I've had my turtle for 5 years and hes never tried to bite me out of water NEVER

Thanks for including the pictures. I would be concerned that the shell discoloration on the plastron (lower shell) is a clinical sign of an infection or bruising. On one picture, there appears to be several areas where the shell is discolored (grayish). If it appears green to you, see if you can scratch it free with your fingernail, it could be algae. Algae build up on the shell is often a sign of water quality issues. If the discoloration seems to be deeper, it might be an infection and painful, and why he tried to bite. If this is the case, a visit to a reptile veterinarian is recommended.

My snapping turtle had a tape worm. I cut it off as close to the anus (don't remember what its called) as I could. The turtle pooped a little bit more out and I made sure to get it out of the tank asap. A week later She started to poop out another one and I pulled it out of her completely. Another small piece came out next poop. Its been over a week, two water tank changes and there seems to be no sign of tape worm. Is it possible that it is gone completely?

Depending on the parasite, your turtle may be fine...or may still be infected but not have any adult parasites. Certain parasites require an intermediate host to complete the lifecycle. Ideally, you should submit a stool sample to your veterinarian to definitively diagnose or rule out infection. if your turtle is positive for parasites, a dewormer can be administered. You may need to repeat it in several weeks.

I just read an article about sulcata tortoise care hoping to gain more information about what the best things to feed them are and saw that one of them is grass hay. Would that be the type of hay you normally feed guinea pigs?

Yes, it is the same type of hay. I recommend Oxbow brand. You can use orchard grass, timothy, oat or a combination of them. Just do not use alfalfa hay. ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/oxbow-orchard-grass-hay )

My leopard gecko (about 3 months) dropped his tail during the night and had had a black dot on it. it won’t come off when I rinse it and I have asked leopard gecko owners and they thought it was a piece of loose substrate and not a scab. I’m not sure what to do

It could be some dead skin. Leave it be for now. Do not pull on it. Keep the stump clean and dry. You can use a diluted Betadine or chlorhexidine (Hibiclens) solution to gently clean it once or twice a day. Dry thoroughly afterwards and keep him on paper towels until he heals. Do not use any sand or wood chips or gravel which can stuck to the stump and introduce infection. You can dab some triple antibiotic ointment on it after cleaning. Keep him warm and as stress free as possible.

My leopard gecko wont eat mealworms. What should I do?

Check temps in the cage. Low temps can affect appetite in reptiles. If temps are normal, make sure the mealworms are appropriately sized, no bigger than the space between the eyes. You can also offer freshly molted mealworms which have less chitin and are easier to digest. Other options include crickets, dubia roaches and phoenix worms.