fingers and toes

[rmcgregor]

My bts hasn't been shedding well and while I was on vacation she shed and it has consticted around her toes and fingers. I've got it off now after a long soak. Does anyone know a better way of preventing this? If she loses a toe or finger will it grow back at all?

[Spindown]

Toes dont normally grow back in most animals, and blueys are no exception. The injured toe will heal over into a stump if you take care of it while its healing. Are any of her toes looking like they were constricted enough TO fall off? If it was just one or two stuck sheds...it probably isnt enough to constrict to that degree.

[rmcgregor]

One is going to fall off and a couple others don't look that great either. Will this affect her in the long run significantly? I feel pretty bad about it happening.

[Spindown]

Nope. One member has a skink that only has 1 or 2 toes TOTAL and it doesnt affect it in a really horrible way. Of course it helps that it is so loved
It sucks, but it does happen. Just try and keep up on the sheds from now on

[Linnea]

it doesnt sound likely that one bad shed can constrict the toes enough to fall off, are you certain the bluey has no other troubles?

photo of the skink, temperatures, humidity - would help

also, have you given your bluey a soak?
shallow, lukewarm water with a drop of olive oil in it. put the skink in it for 10-15 mins and then dry it a little and put back in its home.

as sapphire said, as long as there is no infection its not going to be really bad for your skink to loose many toes, they can still live a good life. but if there is another problem here it needs to be found, so that its just the toes and nothing else.

[rmcgregor]

I have the tank at about 95 degrees. Humidity around 30. Not humid enough?
I can't figure out how to post a picture on here? I'm a rookie.
Other than the toes she seems really healthy.

[Linnea]

to upload a photo, click "upload attachment" when you post a reply. write a caption (a little message that will be under the image) if youd like, then press upload, then send the message like usual.
if you have uploaded the photos elsewhere, you can copy the image location and paste it between [img][./img] without the dot.

the whole tank at 95? or the warmer side?

like most reptiles, they need a temp gradient. one cool side (70-80), and one warm side ( 95) with a basking spot at 100.
i recommend a cheap temp gun for cool, and useful, surface temp measurements.

sorry if im double checking simple things, never hurts to make sure

humidity at 30 should be good,
some of the T. Gigas i think need higher humidity than average sometimes. let the more experienced owners get back to you on this topic.

sorry for not noticing you already soaked before, my mistake x.x

[rmcgregor]

Heres a picture you can see her toes.

I do have a temp gun. Her basking spot is 100 and she does have a cooler side to her tank that is around 75.

Thanks for all of your input.

[Spindown]

Good questions Linnea! I was typing as I was heading out, so didnt have time to ask those.

OP, I'm so glad you have a gradient! Normally ambient humidity (30-40%) is enough for blueys, but you must check EVERY shed to make sure there is NEVER any left on the toes. They hate having their feet checked, but it is a MUST if you wan tto prevent losing any more toes.

Do you have a full body picture? The underbite I believe can be a symptom of MBD, Metabolic Bone Disease, which is a lack of calcium. There could be other issues too that is causing the toe loss.
Do you have any information about her history? I had a bluey lose toes due to a systemic infection, the blood flow to her toes was vastly constricted and she lost several toes as a result.

[rmcgregor]

Here is a full body picture. She is only about 7 months old and I've had her since she was about 2 months old.

I feed her collard greens and dog food at the moment. I put calcium powder in there too and a vitamin spray for reptiles.

[rmcgregor]

Could you tell me more about the systemic infection and what that looked like and how you treated it?

[Spindown]

There was unexplained toe loss (at least I couldnt figure it out as there was NO stuck shed), her eyes were crusty, and she became lethargic. I took her for the toes and eyes, and thats how I found out about the infection. I never did treat it successfully, she went to live with the vet, who wont tell me what she did (although her ex-vet tech says she threw hundreds of dollars of different treatments at her to cure her, and now claims shes cured). However, my situation was a very odd and unique one.

[Linnea]

the vitamins, do they contain any d3?
there is d3 in some dog food, but not all. and not all vitamins have it either, i discovered when i bought the wrong type 3 times.

[rmcgregor]

The calcium powder I have contains d3.

[rmcgregor]

Do you think this problem could be attributed to lighting at all? My temperatures are good, but I've been using incandescent bulbs that apparently dont give off UV.

[Spindown]

I have never used UV and have never had issues like this.

[rmcgregor]

I guess it will remain a mystery??? Hope she is going to be ok. Other than the toes she seems really good.

Thanks for your input!