Zilla looks bad, please help

[Aardbark]

She came out this afternoon after sleeping for a few days, and she looks terrible. Im very worried for her.

She lives in a 6x4x2.5 foot cage. The temps are 75-80 on the cool side and 90-95 on the hot side. Her basking spot stays at about 100-103 (which is UVB bulb)

Her humidity in the cage is 50-60% I know its suposed to be higher, but thats as high as it gets with the mister at full blast.

I am useing cyprus mulch. And her diet is mainly of ground turkey. She wont eat anything else. I sprinkle it always with Calcium and Vitamin Supliment. I also give her a bath about twice a week.

She hasnt shed since october, but she did hybernate from November till Febuary. After taking these pictures, I did pull off some of the loose shed, but most f it was very resistant, and not full scaless came off, only partial scales.



Please help, she looks so bad. She doesnt seem to be bothered by it, but I dont want anything bad to happen to her.

 

[ilovelizards]

It look like she is shedding to me and they is no need to worry.Also a bath will help if she dosnt have water she can submerge herself in.

 

[Aardbark]

Thanks for the reply.

Shouldnt they come off as full scales though? She never shed partial scales before, and never had those dangly dry scales either.

 

[m3s4]

I'd let her soak in a tub full of warm water for as long as she'll stay in it.

Maybe turn the shower on for 10 minutes with the bathroom door closed to up the humidity to a nice, high level then let her soak in 3-4 inches of warm water.

This is what I would try if it were me. I'd also try and help her peel. Toes - near her nails and the bottoms as well as her tail especially.

 

[dustintp]

He looks like one of mine does each year after hibernation. Mine comes out looking like he needed to shed about half way through hibernation and has just partial scales loose on his face like yours. looking back at my notes it happens every year. I usually give him baths and rub him down with mineral oil, the shed comes off in a lot of small pieces after a couple weeks but he doesn't have any problems after that.

 

[Aardbark]

Thanks for the ideas guys.

I have very hard water, is that bad for her?

 

[Dana C]

Hard water is fine. I have VERY hard water and have seen no ill effects. In fact it is a hell of a lot better than softened water for them and you.
I bath my Tegus daily for a little or long while depending on the time I have. They have a nice long soak in the bath tub, usually have a BM, want out and eat a ton in the bathroom.
The pictures of Zilla makes me think she is just shedding and that a warm soak everyday will make her a happy camper. Like M3s4, I help them shed by peeling off loose skin. At first they sort of fought it but came to understand that it was a good thing and now stand still for it. I do most of my helping while they are in the bath tub.

By the way, hard water is that way because of mineral content including calcium hardness. Hard water usually tastes better and is better for your Tegu and you. Bottled waters are usually "sterile" in the sense that they have largely been stripped of calcium, iron etc.

 

[Aardbark]

Thanks Denna. Yea my water is so hard I have to get a new shower head every year, because the holes get cloged with minerals. Unfortunitly it tastes horrible. Also, she has never had a bowel movment in the tub, even if I rub her belly. She waits till I put her down on my carpeted floor, lol.

I do acualy peel her loose scales off, and she lets me do it with no fight at all. Its like she knows that its to help her. Maybe it feels good.

 

[m3s4]

Sounds like she'll do just fine.

However, since she won't go to the bathroom in the tub and she likes to go on the floor, you can buy yourself some very cheap "potty pads" from any grocery store.

They're cheap, about 2'x2' and you can set her right on top of one, let her go then fold up pad and dispose I keep a full container of them just in case.

 

[Dana C]

Thanks Denna. Yea my water is so hard I have to get a new shower head every year, because the holes get cloged with minerals. Unfortunitly it tastes horrible. Also, she has never had a bowel movment in the tub, even if I rub her belly. She waits till I put her down on my carpeted floor, lol.

I do acualy peel her loose scales off, and she lets me do it with no fight at all. Its like she knows that its to help her. Maybe it feels good.

I actually think it does make them feel better. Gordo holds it until he is in the tub and Eva, who is much younger makes it about 1/2 the time. I can always tell when Gordo needs to go as he is right at the cage door, gets right into my arms but is very squirmy. I draw a warm tub of water 3-4" and rush him into it. I have to change the water then so if he wants to go back it he can. Sometimes as soon as he is in the water, he hits the "pose" and lets fly. He then is calm, life is good and he is ready to eat.

 

[tresh]

My Ammy just went through her first shed in months over the last few days, and she had some issues as well. Her tail still looks horrible. Thankfully, after a bit of oil, lotion, leaving her in the bathroom overnight with the humidifier on full-blast, she's shed most of the old stuff off, but it was fun trying to get the dead off of her sensitive areas like her feet, lol.

 

[Strange_Evil]

I agree,soaking does seem like the best option. You can also add a humid hide to the cage,and more rocks to help aid with shed. For the humid hide just get a container with a top,and fill it with moss and the substrate you have in the cage,spray it down and your tegu will have somewhere to retreat to when she needs to shed. I use a humid hide and soak,of course along with a great diet and my tegu hasn't had one bad shed,all toes and tail tip.

Not sure if someone asked this,but what type of hygrometer are you using?

 

[Aardbark]

Its bad when I dont reply to my own thread, lol.

Thanks for all the advice guys, she is looking much better. After a few soaks, some of the scales on her face became more loose, and I was able to peel them off with some tweesers. She doesnt fight it at all, and lets me pull scales off of her, anywhere on her body. There are definitly more that need to some off though.

She hasnt had a full shed yet though, the only old scales that are comming off, are on her head. The rest of her body looks fine, with no signs of shedding. Do tegus normaly shed all at once, or in sections? And on that topic, her tail I think looks bad. Its much more grey then the rest of her body, and even feels a little rougher to the touch, but I dont know if thats how its suposed to look, or if its a bad shed that is stuck on to her. Also at the base of her tail, she has a single ring of whiteish/greyish scales. Any ideas?

Tresh, I like the poop pad idea. Now if only I could get her to use it, lol.

Srange Evil, Im not sure what you mean by a hygrmeter. Do you mean what do I use to measure humidity? I have one of those cheap ones that you can get at petco. Yes I know it sux, but its all I can afford atm.

---

The ring

The discolored tail

 

[AP27]

From the picture it just looks like her whole tail up to that ring of scales is getting ready to shed.

 

[dragonmetalhead]

Kodo has that same issue with the tail. Up the humidity in the tank, soak, and I strongly recommend getting some oil and slathering the tail up. Did that for Kodo and within a day he was peeling like a bad sunburn.

 

[Aardbark]

Ok, I will do that. What kind of oil is the best?

He tail has looked like that for months with no real change. I may be remembering wrong, but I think even in her last shed (october) she didnt shed at all on her tail. However, in all the times that she shed since she was a month old, she allways shed her body and tail sepretly at different times. A month appart.

 

[dragonmetalhead]

Vegetable, canola, or mineral oil will all work fine. Do it in the tub, because it makes a major mess.