Unexpected and heartbreaking. :(

I don't even know how to begin this post, really.

The crocodile skink that I just got less than two weeks ago ( here's the thread with all the info on her: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=69046 ) passed away unexpectedly today.

I was going to do a major cleaning on the tank today, but when I opened it up and pulled her out, she was dead. (I know they play dead; but this time she really WAS dead.) :( I've scheduled an appointment with the vet to have a necropsy done and find out what happened. Everything was exactly the way it should be. Her cool side was at 74* and the warm side at about 79*. She was eating regularly and moving about - thermoregulating and swimming frequently. She was doing everything normal, healthy lizards do. :confused:

I don't know what caused her death, and it makes me nervous because I don't want it to be something the snakes may have caught. Even though I've only had her for 11 days, she meant a lot to me; she was helping me to get over a life-long fear. I tried to do everything right for her. It was just ... unexpected. :tears:

Oh sweetie! I am soooo sorry... I'm sure it wasn't anything that you did. :licking:

Oh gosh. I am so very sorry for this troubling loss. =( I'm gonna guess that it wasn't your fault though. Animals are just very fragile. Anything could have happened.

Sorry about your loss. :( *hug*

Hi,

Sorry to hear this. :(

And everything seemed to be going so well. Wild caught lizards can be a nightmare to work with and any stressors can tip them over the edge if they haven't settled and got some reserves behind them.

I have seen the stress of a move from bad conditions to perfect conditions cause an animal to go back before they de-stress and start to get the benefit of the new environment.

The fact she was eating well for you kind of argues against this to me though - would be intrested to see what the necropsy comes back with.

Don't let this discourage you though as you have come so far already. :please:


dr del

I bought a skink a long time ago that died in my hands. It was only 3 days after I bought it and I thought I had everything right.

I think it was probably the move, sometimes fragile animals like this can't survive such a stressful thing.

:[

I'm terribly sorry for your loss. I know how excited and happy you were with her. :hug:

:( Im so sorry for your loss... I hope its nothing that can be passed to your snakes :(

I have also learned the hard lesson about WC creatures.. my tokay passed away not long after i got her.

Oh man. Sorry to hear about ur loss.

Very sorry for your loss...

Thanks guys. It's rough but these things happen, and I'm no newbie to animals and people passing on. Time really does heal all. :(

Dr. Del - I don't know about "eating well" but she *was* eating. I think she probably ate about 10 crix (+/-) during the time that she was here. I had ten more sitting in a container for her. I let those go outside last night. I live in Florida so the weather is perfect for them. I actually enjoyed raising the crickets, even if they were stinky... :P

I am SO sorry to hear this. :tears::tears:

Well I got the necropsy results back. The vet couldn't really find anything conclusive. She said that the lizard had an empty stomach but that didn't really mean anything, and that her liver was slightly large - but again, that didn't necessarily mean anything. She also said that there was water in her lungs, but that could have happened after the time of death. (The lizard had died in her pool) In humans, it's apparently impossible for water to get into the lungs after the time of death. I don't know why, but it is; something about reflexes and muscle control. If the same is true of lizards, that would mean that she was alive when water entered her lungs - thus, she drowned. But this seems extra silly considering it was a skink - a water lizard. The vet couldn't find anything else - no trauma, no parasites, no diseases, no poisoning, no mistreatment, no nothing.

I'm truly at a loss. It would seem that my lizard committed suicide... :confused:

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Originally Posted by Mindibun

Well I got the necropsy results back. The vet couldn't really find anything conclusive. She said that the lizard had an empty stomach but that didn't really mean anything, and that her liver was slightly large - but again, that didn't necessarily mean anything. She also said that there was water in her lungs, but that could have happened after the time of death. (The lizard had died in her pool) In humans, it's apparently impossible for water to get into the lungs after the time of death. I don't know why, but it is; something about reflexes and muscle control. If the same is true of lizards, that would mean that she was alive when water entered her lungs - thus, she drowned. But this seems extra silly considering it was a skink - a water lizard. The vet couldn't find anything else - no trauma, no parasites, no diseases, no poisoning, no mistreatment, no nothing.

I'm truly at a loss. It would seem that my lizard committed suicide... :confused:

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Wow, that's really odd. And sad too. Any chance it could have been age? If not age what about the shock of a new home? It sounds like this species is pretty sensitive as it is.