First of all I want to say I'm not new to herp keeping. I Know how to deal with a normal shedding problem. This problem isn't normal. I noticed a while back that some of the skin around his ear didn't come off with his shed. I gave him the normal treatments like increasing humidity and soaking. the problem with soaking is that he won't stay in the water. he climbs up on the sides of the soaking container. Also, he pretty much refuses to be handled, so manually removing it with tweezers is a lot more difficult than it sounds. He has shed several times since then and every time he sheds he leaves another layer of skin in that ear. His ear is now completely clogged. A couple of days ago I managed to get him out of the cage for 10 or 15 minutes and pick at the skin with a pair of tweezers but i didn't make much progress at all. the clump of skin is really wedged in there and it is very hard. I don't know what to do about it. If some one could give me a hand I'd really appreciate it. Thanks.
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Clogged Day Gecko Ear
Replies (2)
That's a toughie... You could put him in a deli cup with a really wet paper towel so that he basically has to stay near it, for a few hours. That might just loosen it enough for you. I've heard of different stuff to put on shed skin to loosen it but nothing ever worked as well as water for me.
I'm having an off thought that you might be able to put him in the fridge to slow him down, but that could be dangerous and I've never tried it myself. Other posters may feel free to yell at me for having that thought. I guess the only other option would be to have a vet anethitize him.
I've been there pulling gecko skin off with tweezers, though, so at least I can empathize with you.
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"The serpent crams itself with animal life that is often warm and vibrant, to prolong an existence in which we detect no joy and no emotion. It reveals the depth to which evolution can sink when it takes the downward path and strips animals to the irreducible minimum able to perpetuate a predatory life in its naked horror."
Alexander Skutch
Keep the gecko in a warm, moist & sterile environment (just damp paper towels & a place to hide. Hopefully, the dead skin will absorb as much moisture as possible. This may take 1-3 days.
As a suggestion, try to immobilize the gecko by wrapping it with a terry cloth towel; hold it firmly in place, then try to remove the excess skin with forceps/tweezers. If the skin is too tightly attached to the ear, do not remove it as this may damage the ear drum which is worse than the original problem.
Goodluck.
