New owner

[mb606587]

The substrate is fine. And yes you can use either Betadine or hydrogen peroxide for the mouth.

[Jay]

thank you for all of the help. For now I have not put anything on it. It seems to just be more of a scab, inside his mouth looks fine. However, he hasn't eaten for 3 days now. Am I right in assuming this isn't something to be concerned about yet since skinks often do this? we offer him different foods every day but he isn't interested.

[splashy07]

He may be going into shed. Does his color look a little dull?

[Jay]

that is what I am wondering. I think he might be looking a bit dull but not sure. He isn't moving as much and seems to hide more. Being a new owner I worry about him too much - he barely moves and I keep thinking he has died!

[splashy07]

Aww, don't worry, although we all do! Sometimes checking on them too often and disturbing them causes more stress than good. But it's great that you are so conscious!

[kayla990]

Has there been any further progression with your Bluey? Being that tiny, I would personally be pretty concerned if they still haven't eaten yet (for reference, ours ate daily at that size - even during shedding). This young, I don't consider it normal/healthy to be off food. While your Bluey may not be eating due to the absess/wound, I would also look into the possibility of parasites - despite the claim of being captive bred (I'm not claiming to be an expert, but something seems 'off' with the weight and shape).

How are you preparing the food? I would blend it up super small into a smoothie texture so it's more easily digestible. Perhaps add in water and powdered multivitamin to the mix as well (but be careful to not overdose with such things, especially being so small). I know countries will have different supplies, but one for appetite that was suggested by a vet was Zilla Appetite Stimulant. If your bluey hasn't eaten still, I would be looking into products you have available for more emergency care (some brands make 'jump-start' kits to help with this).

How have you been monitoring humidity? The image of the substrate looks pretty dry. If possible, I would also add in sphagnum moss to the mix to retain moisture (and it's claimed to have anti-bacterial properties).

Also, are you able to contact the breeder to see what vet they use?
Best of luck!

[Jay]

Thank you for your reply. I am quite concerned about him. He is still not eating. We are offering different foods. a couple different cat foods, homemade blended foods ( like you said -smooth) and live worms. he shows no interest and actually just falls asleep when we put him up to the food. I am quite sure that there are no reptile vets here and we do not have ready made reptile products. His first few days he was very active and hungry but now he just sleeps. The guy I bought him from seemed offended that I was asking for help/advice on the skink's health because he assumed I was blaming him etc. So he is not very helpful. If there is anyone on this forum in Indonesia I would really appreciate any help you can give - about a vet or products etc.
The humidity is kept around 80 and his temp on the warm side is around 35. i know the substrate looks dry in that photo but it is since less dry. Also, we live in Indonesia and are entering rainy season so it is quite humid here and does not take much to keep his air humid. the thing on his mouth looks more like a dry scab now and also is starting to look the same on the other side. I have not been able to see inside his mouth for a few days so I am not sure if everything is looking normal inside.
Perhaps any vet could test for parasites if I took a sample....I will look into that.
thank you

[Jay]

how long can a little guy like this survive without eating? this is his 5th day. I have not seen him drink but have seen him walk through his water a few times.

[kayla990]

So sorry to hear he's still not been eating.. this is a really critical time for one so young 5 days is pretty long..a long time ago we had a very young fire skink in a similar situation (believed to be parasites, wasn't eating either) who survived for around 2 1/2 weeks after refusing food... So frustrating the guy you got him from isn't even trying to help out - ugh!

If I were in the same situation without access to a vet/additional carers around - I would try to reach out to professionals online for advice, maybe through social media as people may reply faster (and perhaps think about looking into on-the-lip syringe feeding, putting the smoothie mix into a plastic syringe that doesn't have a metal tip, and gently trying to put on tiny amounts onto the lips to see if they'll try to lick it off). I'm hesitant to suggest full syringe feeding/force feeding as without guidance it can cause even more issues...

So sorry for not being able to give further tips, really hope someone who has been in a similar situation can give some information asap..

[Jay]

thank you. I have been putting the smooth texture food onto his mouth to see if he will at least lick some but he is very resistant.

[Meeesh]

My advice is to call local vets! Sometimes they don't advertise that the are a "Reptile Vet" but have someone on staff who is experienced in reptiles who can help!

Or, maybe they can refer you somewhere. I wonder if it's mouth rot poor little guy. I know you're worried sick.

[Jay]

thank you. I did find a vet who would see a reptile. I am not sure how experienced she is but it was the only place I could find. He has been on antibiotic for 5 days with not much improvement. I think maybe his mouth looks better but he still wont eat and only sleeps. I don't know what else to do for him

[Meeesh]

You're doing the best you can! You're doing so much for your baby. I hope he starts to improve!

[Jay]

thank you. He is still fighting on, totally refusing to eat and not showing any improvement after a week of antibiotics. i put food in his mouth but he wont swallow it. he hasn't eaten for 2 weeks now. poor little guy, wish I knew what his problem was and could fix it.

[splashy07]

Poor thing. My guess is internal parasites, which an antibiotic may not address. Has he had a fecal sample tested?

[mb606587]

Unfortunately with how small your skink is, you may have to look into syringe feeding. We have a product here in the US called Carnivore Care that's designed for this. I'm not aware if you can get that in Indonesia but I'm sure you could substitute something like a pureed baby food.

[Jay]

thank you for your input. I have not been able to buy carnivore care. I tried ordering it from Jakarta online store but my order was cancelled because they no longer have it. Today I bought a small can of cat recovery food - I really hope it was safe for him, but I am getting desperate to find something to feed him. He ate close to a tsp of it today. he was very angry at me and more attacking the spoon than actually wanting to eat but he got the food. I think it is a positive sign that he is fighty because he has been so lethargic that he barely seems alive. He is definitely shedding now - only on his face/head. He used to lay all day out in the open but now he totally buries himself and I have to go searching for him.
Yes, I did get fecal testing and nothing unusual was found. should I retest?
Can you give me instructions on syringe feeding? He isn't very active so if I am syringe feeding how does he process that food? I wouldn't want to over feed him. I feel quite nervous about feeding him this way but really want to give him every chance to live...

[Jay]

I noticed in another discussion here that the type of UVB light can cause problems for skinks. Could a bad quality bulb be causing my skink to be lethargic and not want to eat? I am not sure what I have is even the brand that the box said it was because I find many products here are cheap versions of the real thing.

[Jay]

Sadly we came home this afternoon to find he had died. I had actually thought he was improving as he had started to eat and was moving around more. I feel so sad and bad that he didn't make it, not sure where we went wrong with his care. Thank you all for your advice over that last couple of weeks.

[kayla990]

So sorry to hear You tried all you could given the situation, sadly I would presume many of the issues were present before you got your bluey... Thoughts are with you in this difficult time