Hey guys Im a first time owner and my girl has been eating well and seems happy but today I noticed some discoloration on her scales. Is this scale rot ?
7 Likes
What kind of bedding do you use and what type of heating? Also if you have the humidity and temps please let us know.
Have they pooped recently? The fact that it cleaned up pretty well without leaving any pink or red color behind makes me think maybe they just decided to play in some poop. One of my BELs just seems to love finger painting.
Once we have the rest of the info we can definitely give some better info and advice. For now, keep them and the enclosure clean and don’t let the bedding get wet. Damp is fine wet is bad.
7 Likes
That isnt a before and after thats just two shots of spots of discoloration.
Her bedding is a mix of coconut chips, standard organic top soil, sand, crunched leaves.
Cold side is 75 hot side is 87 to 90. Night temps even out at 75 across the tank. Humidity cold side is about 70%. Hot side fluctuating between 60 and 70%. Hot hide is about 85% to 90%. I dont have a reading on her cold hide because she never seems to use it.
Bedding is damp but never wet. Struggle with good humidity in the winter. So I have to corner water more often.
2 Likes
The humidity should be 50 to 60 percent……
1 Like
To me it looks like substrate particulate and staining, not scale rot. That said, humidity is quite high and the moisture level in the substrate will contribute to that discoloration. This post is from a thread about humidity in regards to shedding, but it’s one I like to reference for anyone worried about humidity related health issues:
2 Likes
I agree looks like substrate to me. I have a ivory and when she goes into shed her whole body looks this way. As far as eating goes as long as you get the temps and humidity good they will usually eat. An out of whack eco system can cause alot of stress on a animal. My bannana boy ive had for 2 years was the most dificult snake as far as eating that i have ever owned. He was constantly refusing food and now hes a beast rarly refuses a meal. Typycally during breeding season is when he will. If its a new snake and this is your first research can be your best friend. I may get alot of hate but NERD has great info on reptiles and also dav kaufman give alot of info on their natural habitats.
2 Likes
Oh, my mistake on the photos!
My comment on the lack of red irritation and such still stands. I do still think it looks more like debris or dirt.
I do agree the humidity sounds high. I also want to point out that the ‘hot spot’ or ‘basking spot’ should be 90. If the ambient temp is 90 on that side that could be a double whammy on humidity issues and risk of heat related issues in BPs. Ambient temp up to 87 is okay but ideally around 85 works best.
1 Like
Definitely agree that it looks like the snake is just dirty. I occasionally see something similar on my snakes who use coco husk substrate, especially if the substrate is damp from pee or spilled water or something and they crawl through a mess like that before I have a chance to clean it up.
2 Likes