Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well I haven't been able to post for quite a while now, busy etc, etc. But now it seems that I have to ask for a bit of specific advice.

I have 6 PTS 2Breeding pair and a pair of yearling twins. All are well, and one hopefully gravid (fingers crossed), except for one yearling twin. Despite my overprotective paranoia this little guy managed to shed once with out my knowledge and retained a ring of shed on his longest left front digit. It can't have been there long, mabey a week- I check them everyday for shed, but sometimes they are hard to find or get out of their hiding spot. I try not to be too invasive, so not to stress them out, while at the same time keeping an eye on those tiny little toes!

Long story short... some how I have failed. I have removed the shed and have been disinfecting every day, but the toe is still swolen and does not look good. I have had much sucess with my rescues' toes in the past, but this one seems to be getting away from me.

All other factors are good, ie eating etc. The little guy has taken up residence in my downstairs shower with some tree branches for ease of humidity, treatment and cleaning.

I need some ideas about how to proceed with this guy, Vets in my area are completely clueless - I do however work with one who is willing to follow advice from those more qualified, if available, but knows little about reptiles and has never even seen a PTS before. This guy is quite squirmy, and I am afraid that they may want to put him under for treatment, yikes, or immediately amputate the toe. This may eventually be required, but I would like to try something else first.

I have been using Nolvasan and Iodine to soak the whole foot.
Any other ideas or sucess stories will be greatly appreciated!

Glad you all are here!
Kisha

hi Kisha
Icequeen would be a good person to ask, as I know her PTS rescue had similar problems. Brian at the SFCRC or Jess B on the forum might have some advice too. Hpefully they will soon read your post, or you could email them, I'm sure they'd be happy to help.

A shower for a PTS enclosure! That's a great idea, the perfect shape...do you use the showerhead to simulate tropical downpours?!

Hope your PTS's toe recovers.

Susan

Yea, I thought it was a great idea too, as long as we don't have guests. I put some hanging baskets of pothos in also, then when I turn the shower on the plants get watered too. If I didn't think my husband would freak out, I would turn it into a skink cage full time. Easy to clean too.

Thanks for the good thoughts!

Kisha

Are you sure that all the old skin is gone? I had the same problem with one of my iguanas, Godzilla.Whem i bought him one of his fingers was hanging, almost amputated, and it remained like that for almost one year because at that time i was clueless about how to properly care for iguanas.When i discovered what was that finger's problem i cut the old skin but same remained on the finger and i didnt notice it.When i realised the finger was not getting any better i took a magnifying glass and i discovered the remaining skin. Only after i cut it some new flesh started to grow on the finger and it is not hanging anymore!
On that photo you can see that Godzilla's 4th finger on the right hand looks weird.It's weird but it is still there!
I dont think you should allow a vet to amputate your baby's finger!Perhaps some medicine to improve the limbs circulation will help but you have to know the exact dose!Some medicines to improve the memory have this effect and in general they dont have side effects.But ask your vet about that!Im not a vet!lol!

My PTS, Dill, has had ongoing difficulty with her sheds and her toes.
This is the most difficult toe of them all.

When I got Dill, this toe was swollen from cellutlitis and in very bad shape. In this picture, it is 100% better than when she first came to live with me.
She went on a 10 day course of antibiotics. The name of the antibiotics escapes me, but I know it wasn't Baytril. Sherri (LizardMisfits) recommended a certain kind...so I requested that from the vet.
Sherri also suggested I ask for Silvadene (spelling?) but it is not available here in Canada...so the vet prescribed Panalog instead.
I soaked her foot twice a day, during the acute phase then once the inflammation went down, and Dill would tolerate me touching her feet a little bit better, I started to ease the bands of skin off her toes using a round toothpick and my fingernail.
She wasn't pleased with this of course, so I tried to keep these "de-banding" sessions as short as possible.

Now, I just make sure she has soaking bowls available, and when she starts to shed, we go through this whole routine again, only without the antibiotics and ointment...just soaking, and me removing the skin with either a toothpick, or my fingernail.
By the way, she hates the process just as much now, as she did then.
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Kim

I just want to voice my appreciation for your work with this animal. It's so good to hear of people who will go "the extra mile" for a creature that most of the world might not appreciate!
Thanks from all of us who join in a love for these creatures!!!
Beth

How is the humidity in your enclosures? With an otherwise healthy individual, it is unusual to have a retained skin ring (IMHO). They usually retain shed over old injuries ect. Retained skin over toes/tail tips happens much more often in all of our captive reptiles (especially the tropical types like PTS, igs, water dragons ect) when the humidity isn't high enough. I *try* to aim for 60 with my PTS, but it can be hard to get above that, and not have major mould issues...

For your toe- the skin is off right? Soaking is good (warm water), you want to help the circulation come back. If the digit gets dark and oozy or dark and hard, it needs to come off- and your vet(s) can do this. If it swollen but pink, or swollen and normal toe colored- this is encouraging.
good luck! Jess b

Thanks for the advice...the toe is looking better. It has always been pink, but swolen. The swelling seems to be going down somewhat, I'll keep up the warm soaks and iodine and hope for the best.
I do pay close attention to humidity with regular misting, a humidifier and soaking- none of my others are having toe problems. Thats why I felt ok about backing off the hands on check ups with the babies- they really don't enjoy being doctored. The other 3 cage mates have all shed for the last several months with little intervention and no retained skin. I guess this guy will always need to be watched closely.
I've noticed in my BTS that some seem to have more problems shedding than others under the same conditions- this is probably the case with PTS as well.

I don't mind the extra care, I just wish that we hadn't had to learn the hard way .

Thanks again,
Kisha