Eastern Bluey scale rot help

[Manda1032]

I have an eastern Bluey who was given to me about three years ago. She came to me in a bad way, very thin and covered in 3 month old scars from a dog attack. Since then I managed to heal most of her scars and put weight on her. She has a stump with one toe but other than that and being a fussy eater she seemed fine.
With the heat wave we had up here in QLD she came out of brumation early and she also shed her skin. Problem is her new skin wasn't quite ready for her shed. She shed her feet and body but her head hasn't yet. I think that because of this shed her problems started.
We moved her entire enclosure a week after her shed to where I live now. Her enclosure, along with most of QLD was very dry and dusty. When I picked her up I noticed the bottom of her feet were very pink, I was a little concerned and checked them and nothing appeared to be wrong with them and dismissed it because she has a very vibrant pink underside to begin with. Big Mistake on my part. Because we set her back up (BTW it's an outdoor enclosure, tin sides etc) and put her plants back in and it's dry.... we watered the plants!
So now she has scale rot on her feet and despite my best efforts, appears to be spreading.
I've read publications (Bluey books etc) on how to treat it and the moment I spotted it She came inside, is on paper with heat, no water and is painted with Betadine twice a day. I even went to the trouble of painting each infected area with a different swab to try to stop cross contamination but like I said it has spread to the sides of her mouth.
I want to take her to a vet but therein lies the problem, none of them in Kingaroy have much if any experience with reptiles. I know she will need something like baytril injections but I'm hoping someone here can help me with how much baytil, how often and for how long. Can anyone also tell me what this thing looks like when it's starting to heal? Her feet are still very raw and look slimy. She is the quietest, sweetest bluetongue and I do love her dearly. If only I could get her to eat!
Thanks for any help.
I'm hoping to get her to the vet on wednesday if possible

 

[Manda1032]

Come on, I'm not the only Blue tongue owner who has had this problem!

 

[kupper]

i think a vet trip will shed some more light on the situation and put the critter in a dry clean enviroment until wednesday , mayeba tub with paper towel as the subtrate

 

[Manda1032]

She has that, she also has heat and is being treated with betadine. After going to every Vet practise with my problem I finally found one who is willing to see her and do a swab of her feet to see which bacteria is causing the problem and then go from there. I just wanted to hear what other people have had done to there's and I know I'm not the only person who has had this issue

 

[miss2]

heya
i have never hasd this problem ** touch wood** but hope u find out how to make her better

 

[karasha]

is there any chance that the vet your seeing can consult with a reptil specialist over the phone? sounds like your doing the right thing, is it possible that the stress of moving her could have cause this?

 

[Manda1032]

She has never had stress problems before. and the move from Townsville to Nanango was the worst. a 16 Hour trip turned into 26 hours and the temperature difference affected me too! I only moved her because she was out and about. Un fortunately she couldn't stay with my folks forever!

 

[Andrais]

maybe a pick would help?
Blue Tongue Skinks - Welcome to BlueTongueSkinks.NET ! go to this site they have a MASSIVE caresheet, this was the site i learned most of my infomation about blue tongues. Personally i have never had issues with scale rot but from reading around the place a good idea would to keep the little guy/girl warm and dry as scale rot usually develops in damp, moist condidtions ( watering the plants most likeing eurupted the infection more) If the betadine isn't working i suggest take her to the vet ASAP and get some stronger antibiotics and cream for it.
From reading your post u said she wasn't eating? this is very critical as not eating will slowly deteriate her immune system. Try tempting her with fresh chicken or snails (make sure these have not been poisoned) if u can't get her to eat your last resort will be to force feed him. When i had to force feed my male blue tongue i used a siringe, and feed him heinz baby food. Simply open the mouth and squirt the babyfood into the mouth and let her do the rest. If she spits it out again then try squeezing it down the throat, but make sure u got put it down to far as u could choke her and seriously damage her. If your not confident in doing this then i would get a vet to do it first and show u or someone with expirence with reptiles. I hope it all works out for you and he gets better! cheers
Andrea

 

[Andrais]

i already posted and didn't realize

 

[Manda1032]

She is a very fussy eater, she only ever eats cooked chicken and pasta. I forgot about baby food tho and will try her on some. She still isn't eating but had a supervised drink earlier on today so I will try to get her to drink again tonight. The betadine is definately not working so she gets a swab taken tomorrow to find out which nasty is causing this. The problem is there is no vet within a 250km radius that has any reptile qualifications.

 

[jinjajoe]

maybe a pick would help?
Blue Tongue Skinks - Welcome to BlueTongueSkinks.NET ! go to this site they have a MASSIVE caresheet, this was the site i learned most of my infomation about blue tongues. Personally i have never had issues with scale rot but from reading around the place a good idea would to keep the little guy/girl warm and dry as scale rot usually develops in damp, moist condidtions ( watering the plants most likeing eurupted the infection more) If the betadine isn't working i suggest take her to the vet ASAP and get some stronger antibiotics and cream for it.
From reading your post u said she wasn't eating? this is very critical as not eating will slowly deteriate her immune system. Try tempting her with fresh chicken or snails (make sure these have not been poisoned) if u can't get her to eat your last resort will be to force feed him. When i had to force feed my male blue tongue i used a siringe, and feed him heinz baby food. Simply open the mouth and squirt the babyfood into the mouth and let her do the rest. If she spits it out again then try squeezing it down the throat, but make sure u got put it down to far as u could choke her and seriously damage her. If your not confident in doing this then i would get a vet to do it first and show u or someone with expirence with reptiles. I hope it all works out for you and he gets better! cheers
Andrea

Definitely follow this instruction from the care sheet through to the syringe..... & try to get the thickest part of the syringe in her mouth not just the thin delivery point to reduce mouth leverage (they bite the syringe pretty hard !!) after syringing a couple of times the Bluey should start eating of her own accord as she re-develops her taste for food....

 

[notechistiger]

I'm sorry, but cooked chicken and pasta is a very poor diet. She should be having greens and insects and sufficient vitamin supplements (calcium included), or dog or cat food as an alternative to insects if she will not eat them.

 

[Andrais]

I'm sorry, but cooked chicken and pasta is a very poor diet. She should be having greens and insects and sufficient vitamin supplements (calcium included), or dog or cat food as an alternative to insects if she will not eat them.

she said that this is all the bluey would eat @ the moment, that diet is fine for now, aslong as she is eating something, but as she gets better then yes it would be wise to put her on a diet of dog or cat food, leafy vegetables and the occasional insect...

 

[notechistiger]

I took this to mean that cooked chicken and pasta is all that it would eat (as that it what it says):

She is a very fussy eater, she only ever eats cooked chicken and pasta.

 

[Manda1032]

I'm sorry, but cooked chicken and pasta is a very poor diet. She should be having greens and insects and sufficient vitamin supplements (calcium included), or dog or cat food as an alternative to insects if she will not eat them.

I know this, but try telling her that! I have tried everything including canned dog and cat food...she just doesn't eat it. She won't even eat tomatoes, banana's or strawberries. All the things my beardies eat she won't!

So I went to the vet and got charged 75 bucks for someone to say that she isn't that sick (her eyes are now sunken and she sleeps) I can't find an infection but gave me Prednoderm cream. He rubbed it into her red raw feet and a lizard that barely moves thrashed about so much, it was clear to me that she was in great pain. I tried so hard not to cry but I did in the car. He ran a cotton tip over one of her feet and smeared a slide and said there was nothing there. I don't earn a lot and can't afford the petrol to brisbane or toowoomba as well as the vet consult. That $75 was suppose to be my weekly food.

 

[notechistiger]

Perhaps, if this is going to become a problem for you (eg. money issues) than it would be better to give her to a more experienced owner (at least with blue tongues) who can get her to a proper reptile vet (or simply another one for a second opinion), or who may have experience with this kind of thing beforehand? What is best for her, not for you?

As for the food, have you been giving her calcium supplements, at least? And UV light? You're doing a great job for what sounds like a very difficult blue tongue.

 

[Manda1032]

Perhaps, if this is going to become a problem for you (eg. money issues) than it would be better to give her to a more experienced owner (at least with blue tongues) who can get her to a proper reptile vet (or simply another one for a second opinion), or who may have experience with this kind of thing beforehand? What is best for her, not for you?

As for the food, have you been giving her calcium supplements, at least? And UV light? You're doing a great job for what sounds like a very difficult blue tongue.

Ok, now don't get me wrong but I have owned animals since I was four! And just because I have been very VERY fortunate to not have encountered any such problems with any of my reptiles doesn't make me incompetent. I have worked with animals and in the pet trade for almost 10 years and anyone who knows me knows I know my stuff very well. And just because I have had 2 years of utter misfortune doesn't mean I should have to give away my animals. It's also not my fault that the nearest competent vet is a 2-3 hour drive away. Believe me, If money was never an issue I wouldn't be discussing my problems in this manner. Like all people here I'm on the net to learn. There are only so many things you can learn from a book, like all the simptoms of diseases with birds etc. While I may never experience things like OPMV I can learn and read about other peoples situations, problems, outcomes etc to better educate myself and others. While self diagnosing etc shouldn't be encouraged there are times where time is of the essence and a 2 hour trip is darn long for an animal in distress and probably won't make it it's great to learn how to stabilize the animal before you move it.

So in other words You want her come and get her! Realize I know what the vets are like here, they are the first to admit they know nothing about reptiles but will gladly take your money. I wanted help from those people with experience in this, not ridicule from people who don't understand my situation. And yes she has uv, always has....it's called the SUN. If you read my post properly it states she lived outside. And I am fully aware of calcium AND Vitamin supplements, after all I get staff discounts!

Incase no one has noticed I have had a VERY Bad day and now I'm standing outside, near the fence in 9 degree temps typing cause it's the only reception I can get in hicksville!

 

[notechistiger]

I wasn't saying that you were incompetent. I was asking, if you read my post, if it would be better to give her to someone who can provide for her, if you are no longer able.

Don't get snappy because you don't like what you read (although I do understand that there are many misunderstood posts over the internet). I was not "ridiculing" you in any of my posts. Her diet is poor (and I have no doubt that you have tried other wise). I am pointing out an option that you may not have considered beforehand, which may give her a better chance at survival.

 

[Andrais]

In some way i agree with Note.
I know its hard to give up animals, in the past i have had to give up one of my beloved blueys named Wrigley simply becasue i didn't have the money to afford a nice enclosure for her. But in the end she went to a loving home with a lady on another forum and i think that was the best thing for her. You have worked hard, and i think your doing a great job, and yes sometimes life can be pretty unfair and cruel but sometimes whats best for others might not be best for the ones you care about most. Maybe you have a friend that could help you out? and simply return the favour later on along the track? or is there anyone in your area that can look after her until she gets better? There are always thing around you can do to make sure she has a brighter future, and sometimes that means letting go. In order to be responsible owners that care about our animals we need to put them first before our emotional feelings, and yes that can be hard but in the end of the day it will be worth it. I hope it all turns out good,
cheers
Andrea

 

[Manda1032]

I am loking after her. My problem is that I cannot find a competent person who knows how to diagnose her ailments to point me in the right direction for care. That's why I asked here and am not getting any help here either