Yesterday little Cadence popped out of her hidie-hole in the "explosion" stage of a shed. The skin on her back was hanging all in one piece, having torn at the sides near her belly. Later when I checked on my collared gang, Cadence looked like she had on a stagecoach robber's mask; a little white triangle covering her nose and mouth and hanging down past her chin. At first I thought it looked pretty funny, but upon closer inspection I noticed she appeared to be choking and having trouble breathing.
I got her out of the cage and could see the skin was turned inside out, was still attached around her nose and was going into her mouth. She was trying very hard to swallow it. After a brief struggle, I pulled skin that was the entire length and width of her back from her mouth, well, from her stomach, actually, as she had succeeded in swallowing most of it.
Otherwise, lizard things are going good here. None of Cadence's eggs from last month made it, but that's ok. She looks ok, but is not putting weight back on as quickly as I had hoped. Maybe if she would eat something more nutritious than dead skin? Anyway, it is looking like my gang won't brumate this year because she is still too thin.
Sorry I have not been posting lately. The hospital where I work has just been packed since before the holidays and I have been putting in way too many hours. Welcome to all the new people and their lovely lizards. I sure enjoyed looking at pictures this morning.
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Valerie
We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now.
--Martin Luther King, Jr.--
God bless the USA
