Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok now I have finally gotten her to eat a mixture of kale, collard greens, peas, and dandilions. Pretty happy about that! But I just can't seem to win because now she seems to have the skin on her sides becoming really hard. I have never seen this before and have no idea but, maybe you all know more about it. Please help. Thank you so much!

Is the skin hard, or the sides of the belly? If the skin is rough and dry it could be signs of an upcoming shed, if the belly is hard it could be signs of impaction and possible husbandry issues.
HH

It isn't her stomach. It's her sides, like the part where their skin is usually a little wrinkly, it has just turned really really hard. Does this happen when they shed?

Does she have a cagemate?
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
0.1 Collared Lizard (Rorschach)
2.1 Green Anoles (Bowser, Sprocket, Leeloo)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

Yes she did have a cage mate, a male uro, up until a couple of weeks ago when I seperated the two of them.

I agree with the train of thought that it's possibly scar tissue, were they seperated because of agression?
HH

That was what I was thinking. Repeated biting along the flanks can lead to a hard scar tissue forming, even if the skin isn't broken.
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
0.1 Collared Lizard (Rorschach)
2.1 Green Anoles (Bowser, Sprocket, Leeloo)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

I agree as well. That is what it sounds like. Unless they were not seperated for aggresion but i would say it had a factor.

They we never agressive towards each other. I just seperated them so that I could gage about how much each one of them were eating. Even on her back, anywhere that there is a wrinkle, her skin is hardening.

Well, if you're sure it's not aggression-related, then a vet visit is definitely a good idea. Maybe it's a really nasty shed, who knows, but better safe than sorry.

Definitely check around for a good reptile vet. If you have a herp society in your area, you might contact them to see who they recommend. I would trust that more than a pet store recommendation, since pet stores probably have to factor cost in much more than quality.
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
0.1 Collared Lizard (Rorschach)
2.1 Green Anoles (Bowser, Sprocket, Leeloo)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

Is it possible for you to take a picture? From what your saying its still hard to guess what your issue may be . The folks on this forum are very educated in their uros, so a picture can make many minds add their observations into this conversation.

Happy Herping,
-Paul

I don't know much about it so I can't say for sure, but I know a guy who had a similar issue with his Uro, and it turns out it was somehow related to kidney failure. He waited till it got really bad to take her to the vet, and he ended up losing her.

Not saying this is the same thing, but if it continues to spread I'd say a trip to the vet is in order.
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1.0 RES, Spunky
1.0 African mud turtle (P. castaneus), "Francois the Tortois"
1.0.1 Mali Uromastyx, Ajani, Guban(Goober)
1.0 Brazilian Rainbow Boa, Nico
0.0.1 Northern Blue Tongue Skink, Owajabi(Jabi)
0.0.1 Spotted Python, Steve
0.0.1 African Bullfrog, Ushi
3.0 Cats
1/2.0 Rabbit (Friend and I went 50/50)

OMG this sounds serious. Do you know what may cause kidney failure? And I've never taken a reptile to the vet; do they just go to the regular vet or do I have to find a special one? Is it usually pretty expensive? (Not that it matter, I just want to be prepared).

Not a regular vet. You should also take all your herps when first purchase to the vet for a check up to make sure everything IS ok.

YOu will need to call around and get info on a good herp vet in your area, maybe try and find one that has worked with uros before. Call the petstores in your area and see who they use!

I would for sure keep them seperate and i would find a vet asap! Just to be safe rather then sorry!

Ok thanks. I used to work at the petshop in my area and I know that they don't take any of their animals to the vet (kinda neglagent and I saw a lot of animals die there), so they won't be any help to me. But I'll try to find a reptile vet in Columbia, Mo which is the biggest town in my area. Thank you guys, a lot!