Mystery respiratory infection

[DSAquatics]

Good evening all, I have a 5 year old female indonesian(halmahera locale) blue tongue skink that has had an off and on respiratory infection for the past month or two. I have taken her to the vet twice and they say that her lungs sound clear and she is eating well but there is an enormous amount of discharge coming from her eyes and nose. So much so in fact that it dries up and forces her to breathe through her mouth and she cannot see a thing. They have put her through 2 rounds of antibiotics and a dewormer after they found pinworms. I have checked all of my parameters in her enclosure. The basking spot approaches 100 degrees. Her UVB and basking bulb is only a couple months old. The cool end doesnt drop below 75. The bedding is fresh. No drafts from vents. And her diet is varied between chicken, lettuce, banana, and crickets. I really don't know whats wrong and I cant stand to see her in such bad shape. What should I do? Thanks

[Janella]

Hi there and I am sorry to hear about your skink. Do you know what your humidity levels are? What is the vet thoughts on all of this? I wish I had an answer for you.

[splashy07]

I'd work on the diet, also, lettuce is absolute junk and bananas should be used as treats. Crickets are quite low on the nutrition scale unless you grow your own. A diet lacking in nutrients wouldn't cause a RI in a five year old, but it could lower resistance to disease. Chicken can be an additive but not a staple. I'd incorporate a high quality dog food into the diet. Throw out the lettuce, or make yourself a salad. If you like using insects dubias and superworms work wonders for me. (I do grow my own.) And yes, the question of humidity? Should be 75 plus.

[Janella]

Thanks I totally missed the diet part. Definitely need to switch that up and I agree could cause a weaker immune system. For protein, try canned dog food, snails, egg, ground lean turkey, insects, etc. As for veggies try dark leafy greens such as collard, mustard, turnip or dandelion greens. Protein should make up about 50% of diet, veggies 40%, and fruits 10%. I hope this helps.

[DSAquatics]

Thanks so much! My humidity is below 10%. I have always heard and read that the humidity shouldn't go above 40%, should a humid hide be provided or should I mist the enclosure? I don't want mold to grow. As for diet, I have suspected that it lacked diversity so I will change it. What should I feed as a staple? Also, one of you said dog food, What brand? As for the vet, they think she is fine. They don't know whats wrong. What else could I do? thanks

[splashy07]

Any high grade dog food as a staple. I use Merrick and some other good quality brands. 10 percent humidity?? I don't know where you have read such a thing but that is unacceptable for even a Northern. Indonesians need very high humidity. You should use cypress mulch or similar and provide a humid hide with sphagnum moss. A large water bowl will also help increase humidity. I kept Halmahera and Merauke Indos a few years back, and used glass aquariums at the time (I no longer do), and I covered half the screen with foil to keep humidity in. My cage ambient was 80% and never had an issue. And find a new vet. Yours is clueless with reptiles. I am very surprised this issue has not occurred before, but reptiles are good at hiding ailments until their severity makes them present themselves.

[DSAquatics]

Ok, I am using aspen right now, is that okay? and you say use cypress mulch, can I buy it from home depot or do I need to buy it from a special source? I ask as our pet store does not sell it. How do I keep mold from growing in such high humidity? thanks

[splashy07]

Absolutely positively NO aspen, and that goes for any type of BTS. I use cypress mulch/repti bark in all my cages and I have never experienced a mold issue.
Please rectify this situation as the animal is suffering in silence. I buy everything online from Chewy's as I have many reptiles and it saves me the trouble of carrying huge heavy bags home from the store. Chewy's and Pet Mountain are my main suppliers.

[Janella]

I couldn't agree more with the above. The humidity has to be higher. The substrate needs to be replaced asap. This all makes more sense now why your skink is sick. If you want your skink to get better, please please listen to our advice here. We know what we are talking about. I have no clue where you read 10% humidity is ok. It is absolutely NOT okay. Even Northerns have to have at least 40%. I have a Merauke, and I use Zilla jungle mix, with reptibark on top. I buy both from Amazon or chewy. I have a huge water bowl in my skinks enclosure. Once a week I pour about 12-16oz of water all over the substrate to help boost humidity. If I notice they are about to shed I do it twice a week. Humid hides with spaghnem miss works great too. I also would suggest going to another experienced reptile vet. If they knew what they where doing they would have asked you the same questions we did, then realized it is a husbandry and feeding issue. Start now on the right path and let's get your skink better!

[DSAquatics]

Thanks so much for all of your help. I am certainly confused as to why these issues have presented themselves now. I have changed the bedding to cypress mulch and humidity is now at about 70%. I have also ordered a new dog food. What else should I do? thanks

[DSAquatics]

Also, where should I find a new reptile vet? I have seemed to have very little luck as I completely agree that one I have been going to has been utterly useless.

[splashy07]

I can't help you with that as I live in New York where there are many. Do some searching online for exotic animal vets in your area. Do you have any local friends who keep exotic animals? See who they use.

[kayla990]

Some additional tips for humidity: as you say you've got a Halmahera - you'll want to try to get it high through out the day. Around 80-90% based on average would be ideal.

1) Get a large shallow water dish (which can be placed near a heat source for increased evaporation)
2) If possible try get hold of a fogger (we use one on a timer, makes it easy to maintain during the day)
3) Make sure you keep a hygrometer and see if you need to spray only once or twice a day. Additionally, we use a pressurized garden spray to make it easier.
4) Sphagnum moss mixed into the substrate will help retain some moisture (and as a hide as previously mentioned)
5) If your skink digs underground a lot, then the digging may help prevent the soil from being too wet/damp. However if your skink is like ours who doesn't burrow, then you may need to mix up the soil by hand once every few days to prevent mold or bacteria building up in humid conditions

All the best!