Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Dear all:

I have a CB male uromastyx ca 2 years old and with a body length of 4 inches except the head. It has a half a pea sized (or slightly larger) hard bump on its spine an inch below the neck. I first noticed a slight elevated point in the fall and it has grown since then. What could it be? He is fed the same as my other Uros: collared greens, mustard greens, dandelions, occasional peas and corn. He gets a calcium supplement and uv light. He does not seem to suffer from the growth, which does not seem to be causing pain when I touch it. If anyone could give some advice about what it could be and what to do about it would be greatly appreciated.

Tom Hakansson

It may possibly be an abcess. It should be lanced and cleaned out by a vet. It could have been caused if you had more than one male Uro in the same caging.

Thank you very much for your suggestions. I will take him to the vet and it is helpful to have some hypotheses from experienced herpers.

Tom

I agree with lizardman in that it is most likely an abscess from some sort of trauma. For interests sake, the treatment for reptilian abscess is different than in mammals due to the uric acid and solid nature of there puss. Abscesses are generally encapsulated, and in reptiles it is recommended to remove this entire structure if there are no complicating factors (like bone involved). If this is done, and closed nicely, antibiotics are not necessary. Of course complications do happen and often this is not possible, in which case a large opening is made, the abscess is debrided and flushed with antiseptic, and then left to heal as an open wound. Antibiotics are necessary at this point. Of course anesthetic is needed for this procedure.

You have the right idea in taking your uro to the vet, as this lump first has to first be identified. Other possibilities are a tumor, displaced trauma/osteodystrophy, parasite...

Good luck and have fun, these are always interesting cases
Ian