Vet Q&A-Reptile

I have a gargoyle gecko all OK last two years but very recently lost weight to point I can see his ribs, his legs and feet are weak. Has wood chip substrate Cork board walls hollow logs and branches. He eats phelsuma mix and locusts mist once day or every other. Approx 25c with heat mat which is turned off at night.

Bump the temperature up to between 26 and 28 C. It's a small change, but 25C may be a bit to cool for Gargoyle geckos. Low temps can affect appetite and activity. The heat mat should be on one half of the tank. Lights can be turned off at night, but the heat source should stay on if nighttime temps drop. Makes sure the diet contains adequate amounts of vitamin D3. Without it, he is at risk of developing metabolic bone disease (MBD). A recommended diet is Repashy Crested Gecko diet. It is a powdered diet that can be reconstituted as needed. It can be found online or in most pet stores. The locusts fed should be gut loaded 24 hours prior to feeding. If he has a healthy appetite, submit a stool sample to your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles to diagnose intestinal parasites. An exam with an experienced herp veterinarian would be strongly recommended to diagnose metabolic bone disease and to begin treatment. Supportive care may be indicated in light of the recent rapid weight loss.

My dogs paw/ leg is swollen. He couldn't walk earlier and he wasn't very responsive. We gave him a Benadryl and he walked a little bit and ate a small amount. He's sleeping now. What could be wrong with him besides snake bite?

Poor Casper! I'm sorry to hear that he's injured. Without being able to examine him, I'm afraid it's hard to say what might be wrong. You're correct that the swelling could certainly be due to a snake bite. Other possibilities would include an insect bite or sting, a fractured bone in his paw or leg, an infected wound or abscess, or some other type of injury. Many of these problems can be quite serious and even life-threatening, so I would recommend taking Casper to an emergency vet tonight for treatment. The vet can examine his leg, and may also take x-rays or do other testing if needed to determine what's wrong and get him started on appropriate treatment.

My bearded dragon is skinny and wont eat

Inappetence and weight loss in a bearded dragon are very concerning signs. I am not sure what you are feeding your beardie or what his environment is like, but incorrect husbandry can sometimes contribute to illness in bearded dragons. It is very important that you take Liz to a veterinarian as soon as possible. You can find a veterinarian who specializes in reptiles on www.arav.org. If there is not a reptile veterinarian in your area, you can call the local veterinarians to ask if they will see reptiles. Good luck! I hope Liz is feeling better soon.

Bearded dragon not eating

Loss of appetite is a very vague sign and can occur with almost any illness or injury. Feel free to repost with more information but a full vet check would be recommended if you cannot identify any further clues

My Leopard Gecko has shed stuck on the surface of her eye, (not on her eyelid). Is there anyway to safely remove it at home, or should I take her to the vet?

You can place her in a small plastic container with moist, warm paper towels for 30 minutes. Make sure there is adequate ventilation and make sure Pebbles does not get chilled. Afterwards, you can use a Q-tip moistened with sterile saline to gently wipe away the retained eye cap. Do not force it. If it doesn't come off, see an experienced herp veterinarian. Always provide a moist hide for her in her enclosure when she is in shed to prevent retained sheds.

I have a leopard gecko and he has a very large mass I guess we're his testicles are

The mass needs to be checked and analysed as there are many conditions and types of tumors that could look like that, it could also be an infection or an abscess. . take Bob to the vet, they will perform a fine needle aspiration on the growth and send it to the lab for analysis. when the result comes, the vet will advise what needs to be done according to the diagnosis.

I have a 7 mo bearded dragon, 18", male. He won't eat any bugs except wax worms now. No crickets, so went to dubias and phoenix worms. Nope, not anymore. Mealworms make him sick. Healthy, eats salad fine, poops daily, drinks water daily. Worried about proper nutrition. Was told Dec hatch date but wonder if older than told. 40 gallon tank, uv zoo med 5.0 long, heat 150 watt bulb, repti carpet, temps 90s hot and 80s cool sides.

As he matures, he will eat less protein (prey) and more greens. You should limit the wax worms though due to their high fat content. If he is regularly eating greens, continue to offer a healthy salad as well as a commercial beardie diet. Prey can be fed every other day. Make sure prey is appropriately sized. If they are too big, he won't eat. Be sure to gut load them to maximize nutritional value and dust with a calcium supplement and multivitamin several times weekly. Drop temperature across the tank to about 76 F on the cool side and 86 F on the warm side. The basking spot can be set around 90 - 100 F.

Some of my box turtles have a whitish film covering some scutes in border of carapace and on plangstom. Is it Dysecdysis and how to cure.

You didn't include a photo so I'm not sure. Certainly this whitish film could be due to dysecdysis, though it would be unusual, given appropriate heat, diet, UVB light exposure, and a clean environment, for multiple turtles to develop shedding issues at once. If you're sure your husbandry is ok I would worry about "shell rot", or an infection over the scute. Treating this type of infection involves thorough cleaning of your enclosure(s), it will also involve treating each of the turtles. Depending on the cause of the infection (fungal, bacterial, or algal), your veterinarian will be able to determine the infectious agent (if this is in fact shell rot) and provide you with the proper shell cleaning agent. Good luck with your turtles, I hope this was helpful!

My leopard gecko lost he's tail and I think it is infected how can I tell if it is and what can I do

Usually infection is associated with any swelling, heat, redness or discharge around a wound. It would be more helpful if you could post a photo. If it is infected, the only thing you can do at home is to soak the tail in a dilute betadine solution (1 part betadine to 10 parts water). Do this twice daily for 10 minutes at a time for the next 7 days. If no improvement you will need to take him to a vet for an exam. It is not recommended that you apply any wound cream/ointment on the wound. I hope this helps. Best wishes to you and Lala.