Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My juvenile regular corn (~3ft) has always been a very good feeder, however the past two days he has refused to eat. I know this can be due to a sickness. I also noticed these clear loose scales on the back of him. He likes to burro under the astro turf so it might just be a results of that. However, as I meantioned he seems to be refusing food the past two days, and he is a bit more active than usual.
All of this typically is a tall tail sign of some scale problem, but I thought mites were black. Could it be just dry skin? Any lotion you could recommend?
I am going to clean his cage really well with 1/10 bleech and rinse see if that helps, but I am not sure if that is the problem.
Please take a look at these high resolution pictures I took tonight:
http://genome.uiowa.edu/~jwalters/tmp/mrHat-sick1.jpg
http://genome.uiowa.edu/~jwalters/tmp/mrHat-sick2.jpg
http://genome.uiowa.edu/~jwalters/tmp/mrHat-sick3.jpg

Any feedback will be much appriciated!

It could be that he's turning down food because he's in the mood to mate. Yes, he's a little small but tis the season.

It doesn't look like mites to me. Mites are black or red, as you thought. It looks like he just rubbed himself the wrong way. Is there anything he could have squeezed in between inside his house?? I'm thinking that if he tried to squeeze through and realized he couldn't fit, he would have had to pull himself back out. Just look over his house really good to make sure there's nothing that should be changed.

Do NOT put any lotion on him...he doesn't need it. It will all shed off and he'll be all new again. The oil from your skin when you handle him is about all the "lotion" he needs.

Ok thanks a lot, how long should I expect him/her not to eat?

sometimes they refuse food for a few days, sometimes a few weeks. Just keep offering food every few days or wait a while and then try it...do whatever is convenient for you. He can skip a few meals and be just fine.

Yesterday, he ate, but didn't really hit it like it usually does. It wasn't aggresive towards the frozen mouse at all and wouldn't eat more than one. I am going to try again tonight or tommorow and see if it will eat some more.

They look almost like scars...I'd also make sure he's not got any dietary deficiencies or internal parasites. He may just be breeding, and the scale problem is due to some minor injury, but I'd hunt around before assuming it is harmless. If it's an injury, you need to find out what caused it, and if it's dietary, he could need help. Is his weight good?

Yes, his weight/girth appears to be normal. As I mentioned he/she has been a very good eater ever since I got him/her last December. This is the first time I've had any such trouble.