Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My both Monkey tail Skinks (Leonardo and Rafael) adjusted very well to our new life in India.They are eating well and trying to escape from their cages as usual.They love to free roam around their "winter room" (Since the beggining of winter i confined all my 9 reptiles -2 iguanas, 2 uros, 2 mts, 1 beardie, 1 croc skink and 1 leo gecko-in a room were the temp is kept at around 80 during the day and around 75 during the night). But i noticed yesterday that Leonardo is sneezing much more than usual.His nose is clean, no mucus going out and he is eating VERY well.Should i worry about that?Thanks!

Leonardo is probably having difficulty shedding a nostril scale. My skinks often exhibit this phenomena. Sometimes I use a small piece of scotch tape to help remove the irritating, loose scale.

Susan

Ill check my baby little red/brown nose today!

If that is 'Leonardo' in the second pic, 'he' looks very much like a 'she' from the shape of it's head! Eric

I think it is maybe because he was a juvenile when i took that photo.He is a male.A confirmed one.I saw his "parts"when he was pooping!lol!

So male MTS will 'pop out' their hemipenes when defecating?
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Yes.Not always but frequently.Rafael is a male too.Thats why I m keeping them in different cages.

You say he's sneezing more than normal - so is it normal for them to sneeze sometimes like blueys? I've heard my little one sneeze a few times and thought perhaps it was okay, but just want to make sure.

Also, last night when I was holding her she was just hanging out of my arm while I typed on the pc and I noticed one eye closed and the other open. If I started talking to her she opened the eye. Overall no discharge from the eye, doesn't look swollen, irritated, etc. No discharge from the nose or mouth. Every now and then I hear what might be wheezing/whistling (I think) - it's not constant, just every now and then mostly when she's excited. Sometimes I've wondered if I was really hearing a low hiss - she has hissed loudly at me a few times. I read in one book if you push slightly on the throat and mucus comes out of the mouth/nose that was a sign of RI. But none of that happened. Temps stay mostly at 84. She does have a warmer area that gets to 90 and she basks in it so I figured that temp was okay.

I need to know if I'm being an overreactive new herp owner. Cause for concern or need to relax?
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0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
1.0 San Felipe Rosy Boa "Legolas"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"
0.1 Okeetee Corn snake "Amazon"
1.0 Crested Gecko "Willow"
0.0.1 Irian Jaya BlueTongued Skink
0.0.1 Monkey Tail Skink
0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer "Kira"

Flavia,
It sounds like the sneezing just might be him trying to get rid of some unshed skin or something like that. Sometimes it just seems like they sneeze for no reason. Since there is no sign of mucus, it is probably nothing to worry about. By the way, I love that picture of Leonardo, so cute. Josh

Tigergenesis,
If she opens her eye when you talk, it is probably normal. Sometimes they close one eye if it is facing a light source, possibly your monitor.The wheezing/whistling seems to be pretty normal for this species. Sometimes it seems like they just do it for no apparent reason. Josh

thank you. If this is all normal, what would I look for to give me an indication something is wrong? I know discharge/mucus...anything else? Appetite is good and she's active - I'm assuming this might decrease also?

How does humidity affect RI? I know a higher temp can help clear it up, but I never hear what to do about humidity (lower it, raise it, keep it the same, etc.). Just curious, but I'm guessing you'd lower the humidity?
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1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Bredl's Carpet Python "Strider"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
1.0 San Felipe Rosy Boa "Legolas"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"
0.1 Okeetee Corn snake "Amazon"
1.0 Crested Gecko "Willow"
0.0.1 Irian Jaya BlueTongued Skink
0.0.1 Monkey Tail Skink
0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer "Kira"

Tigergenesis,
If your animal were to have a respiratory infection, her throat would look swollen or puffy. Discharge from the nostrils and mouth would be evident if you apply pressure to the throat area. Her eyes would also look somewhat watery and half open. She would not want to eat much, or at all, and she would not be very active.
Humidity, whether it be not enough or too much can actually be the cause of a RI. If your humidity is too low, the mucus in her respiratory tract could dry out and become infected. If your humidity were to be too high, without proper ventilation, bacteria and viruses causing the RI can breed and make it so she can't fight them all off. If the initial cause was the drying of the mucus, you would want to increase the humidity. If the initial cause was too much humidity and substandard ventilation, you would want to create proper ventilation and decrease the humidity. Treatment is generally an antibiotic like baytril, but if the infection was the result of a virus, there is no medication for that. Sometimes antibiotics do help viral infections in that after the virus has run its course, bacteria often infect the tissue after the virus is gone. No matter what the cause, you would want to keep her at a constant temperature of about 88 degrees. Josh

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1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Bredl's Carpet Python "Strider"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
1.0 San Felipe Rosy Boa "Legolas"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"
0.1 Okeetee Corn snake "Amazon"
1.0 Crested Gecko "Willow"
0.0.1 Irian Jaya BlueTongued Skink
0.0.1 Monkey Tail Skink
0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer "Kira"

Rafael, my 2nd MTS used to "call " me when he wanted to go out from his cage.Like "MOM, can you open the door for me pleeeease?""

I think everything is ok with your baby.Both my Monkey Tails love to bask under a heater where the temp is higher than 86F.I think the care sheets that recommend 86F as the maximum temp a Monkey tail can tolerate are not correct.

Yes, like iguanas Monkey Tails often keep an eye closeed and the other open and they sneeze too.