Help! What the heck is wrong here!!!

[ZEKESMOM]

I noticed last week what I thought was stuck shed on the top of Zekes nose last week....looked dry and puckered. Did not worry to much as I was having humidity issues with his last shed due to the light source that I "had" to use until my husband fixed the electric for a normal light. Anyways he was due to shed last night or today. I checked this morning and he had shed last night. The crap that was on his nose is still there and looks bad to me!!!!

I tried soaking him in the sink and softly rubbing a wet towel on the area....not really any luck...I am calling tomorrow to a vet but in the mean time do any of you have any idea what this is??? is it just badly stuck shed..it looks like a sore right between his eyes where the blushing meets the dark color..maybe it has always looked like that and I have never noticed. Any clue, advice is GREATLY appreciated.

[JLC]

Hey Lisa...


I went through something sort of like that with Kisasa recently. She had a dry patchy looking spot on the top of her face, kind of like yours, but down a bit closer to the end of the snout. I figured it was just that...a dry patchy spot that would shed off. Well...it came off when she shed, alright...along with a nice little chunk of flesh. After her shed, she had an open sore right at that spot. We went right to the vet.

The vet concluded that perhaps a rat had scratched her nose a week or two prior and it hadn't healed completely...then when she shed, because it wasn't fully healed, the shed skin took some freshly healing skin along with it. (Kind of like we pull healthy skin off as well as dead skin when we peel off sunburns.)

She (the vet) gave me some callogen ointment to put on the little sore that will act like a second skin and help the healing process complete before she sheds out again. Won't know for sure if it's working until that happens, though.

I don't know if you're looking at the same kind of thing...but your picture looks like Kisasa did before she shed.

[ZEKESMOM]

thank you Judy I am still calling the vet tomorrow and going to set up to take him in on Friday...I hope....did you have a herp vet that you used here in Tucson? I was just going to call the Small Animal Hospital that claims they treat reptiles.

[JLC]

I never needed a vet in Tucson, so I didn't get to know any personally there. But here's some listings:


Debra Baldwin, Carol Krugh,
Thomas Miller, John Vagnetti,
Totten Warfield
Valley Animal Hospital
4984 E. 22nd St
Tucson 85711
602-748-0331


James Jarchow
Sonora Animal Hospital
410 W. Simmons Rd.
Tucson, Az 85705
(520) 888-8988.


Michael Samuels
Central Animal Hospital
3113 East First Street, Ste. C
Tucson, AZ 85716
520-323-9912

[ZEKESMOM]

Thank you Will keep you posted.

[JLC]

Please do!


I'm sure it'll turn out to be nothing serious at all....but, in my opinion, the peace of mind in KNOWING it's nothing serious is worth far more than the cost of a vet visit.

[Alice]

Good luck! Please let us all know what the vet says.

[ZEKESMOM]

update....took Zeke in to have his nose looked at this morning....the spot on his nose is a scabbed over wound. We finally concluded that the injury occurred while in his old tank(just switched to a new tank 2 weeks ago). The top of the old tank had plexi on the top that he kept popping no matter how many books were on top...figured that while popping the plexi and sqeezing through to freedom he cut his nose coming out of the tank. I feel like crap over that, but atleast now he is an escape proof tank(I hope lol) The vet said because it is scabbed and did not "open" with his shed 2 nights ago that we are going to leave him be except for some neosporin once a day just to help the healing along. Was told that if with his next shed or at anytime really if the wound to were open to bring him back in....so I am feeling good that he seems to be on the mend Also sitting dead on empty he weighs in at 466.66 grams at 10 months old!!!! Thanks for all the help Judy

[JLC]

My pleasure, Lisa! Glad to hear it's a minor and easily explained issue. Mysteries when it comes to the health of our babies are scary things!

[frankykeno]

Awww poor Zeke. Glad to hear the vet thinks he'll be fine and it's just a matter of some topical meds, time and a few sheds.