Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi!
On october I took a rescue Uromastyx Ornata. I don't know his age, but he his a juvenile.
He was really skinny (57g and 8,7" ).

Now, he weigths 91g and he also took some colors! I'm really happy about that, but, I noticed today that there is about 2-3 layers of shed that is still stuck all over his tail...

So I give him a bath for 10 minutes and I gently pelled off scale by scale, a couple of row in his tail. It was really hard and took me about an hour to do 1/3 of the tail.

The problem is : The scales behind the old shed are really soft and sometimes there was a little bit of blood...So I stopped.

So, I would like to know what should I do with that? I leave the old skin there? or should I continue? Is there a better way to get rid of the old skin?

This is a picture when I got him:

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Lisabeth

1.2 Bearded dragons (Flake, Rusty and Rainbow)
1.2 Uromastyx geyri (Spiky, Salsa and Sangria)
2.4 Guinea pig (Pumpkin, Litchi, Moka, Lily, Soya, Noisette)

And this is now, and I think he's finally a SHE:

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Lisabeth

1.2 Bearded dragons (Flake, Rusty and Rainbow)
1.2 Uromastyx geyri (Spiky, Salsa and Sangria)
2.4 Guinea pig (Pumpkin, Litchi, Moka, Lily, Soya, Noisette)

What a difference a little TLC can make. Nice job with that uro!! As far as the shed issue, I am not really sure. I tend to leave my uros and bearded dragons alone when they shed and not muck with them or try to remove any of it. For some reason I feel they are less likely to have shed problems than my snakes in dealing with retained eye caps, etc. I would suggest leaving alone, keeping up the good work with diet and temps, and see what happens.

Agreed with the above - keep providing proper diet and environment and shedding will take care of itself in the future.

For now, though, do NOT pull the old scales. As you saw, it can damage the layers underneath. It's best not to bathe them, as retained moisture under loose layers can lead to infections. A humid hide is a good idea during a shed, but don't let her be in constant contact with a moist substrate. The most direct way to help with stuck shed is food-grade mineral oil gently rubbed into the old skin. I've not used it on tail shed, though, so you might proceed with caution and a Q-tip!
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1.3 Saharan Uros (Joe, Arthur, Hitch, Lefty, and Skywalker)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
1.3 Collared Lizards (Ripcord, Thiamine, Riboflavin, and Niacin)
2.0 Green Anoles (Bowser and Sprocket)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

I'll leave it like that for the moment. I thought it was maybe dangerous if the shed was stuck there...seems like she never shed normally on the tail.

Thanks to all
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Lisabeth

1.2 Bearded dragons (Flake, Rusty and Rainbow)
1.2 Uromastyx geyri (Spiky, Salsa and Sangria)
2.4 Guinea pig (Pumpkin, Litchi, Moka, Lily, Soya, Noisette)

This is very common on improperly kept uros and what usually happens is it turns into a bacterial infection under the old layers. A lot of times treating with an oral antibiotic is not successful due to the poor blood flow to the specialized tail scales. I would get her to a vet and have him/her try to culture it and see if it is bacterial and if so what will kill it. Then treat it topically. I have heard that silverdine(spelling) works ok on this but it is a very long process(up to a year). I think that if there is an infection you may have to continue debriding the rest of the tail as you have done a long with treatment of the topical. Keep the cage absolutely dry and sterile. Like Torey said a little humidity is ok but no direct dampness. Usually this problem happens from malnutrition and keeping the relative humidity too low in the hides not allowing the skin to shed properly. I would definately get her to a good reptile vet.

Good luck
Tom