# Shedding Problem or Scale Rot?



## puppythetegu (Aug 13, 2020)

Hello, I have a year and a half old Red Argentine Tegu. He is in a 6x3x3 cage, 110 basking temp and 80-85% humidity. He has always had a hard time with sheds and I try to bath him every day as he goes into them. But I noticed an odd split in his shed skin. I have an appointment with his regular vet next week but I wanted to ask here to see if anyone knew if this was just a rough shed or scale rot. The hot side of the cage is a more dry so its not like he is just sitting in moist soil. Any suggestions on how to keep him more comfortable until his visit would be appreciated. His diet is a mix of weaned rats with vitamins and a little bit of fruit (blueberries are his favorite), and he has been eating / exercising just fine.

Thank you and i will include a photo:


----------



## rantology (Aug 13, 2020)

That definitely looks vet worthy, I'm glad you have an appointment. Between now and then I'd try to put a little disinfectant (Betadine ) on it once or twice a day if you can. Could be scale rot but it looks a bit too pink and fleshy to me..Scale rot is often brownish/blackish and "rotten" looking I thought - and is also is more prone to ventral areas. Maybe a skin infection of some kind? Or possibly mites? The vet will be able to tell you.


----------



## puppythetegu (Aug 13, 2020)

Thank you for taking a look! Yes its very odd. Does not look like scale rot pictures I have seen on the internet and also is on top of tail. I do have Provent-A-Mite, but given that he's not been exposed to any other reptiles since I have gotten him I am not sure if it would be wise to go ahead and start treating him or not. I do not see any mites on his skin either which is why I assumed it would be a fungal / skin infection. I will go ahead and treat with betadine until his appointment next week.


----------



## Dingotrin85 (Aug 18, 2020)

Keep the thread posted on what the vet says.


----------



## Cookie (Aug 19, 2020)

I have a red also who came to me with shed so bad it was like picking dandruff off of her. She is about 14 in. She is shedding fine now and the solution was a substrate of spagnum moss which I keep slightly moist and vitamin B complex. I grind the pill into powder and then roll a roach in the powder and give it to her and she has been having full sheds since I started doing this. As for the skin infection, when I was tweezering off her shed I would sometimes pull of live skin that would come with the dead, it was so stuck. It actually looked a lot your tegus problem. I hope this helps.


----------

