Possible burn on standingi?

[terradas]

I have a mysterious blue spot that appeared on my male standingi recently and I have no clue what it is. The only thing I can think of is a possible burn from basking under a halogen puck light. He only has this spot in one area and the female has no signs of this. It shows no sign of puss or blood, but I don't know what it could be if not a burn. The pair gets along just fine and the mark doesn't look like a bite wound. Any thoughts are welcomed!

Also, he's shedding in the picture so it is not a simple matter of fresh colors from under old skin.

 

[daggekko]

Yeah that kindof reminds me of my skin when I've worked on hot car engines and accidentaly touched something hot! How close can your geckos get to that puck light? Those things get HOT!! I know one keeper on here recommended putting them on a dimmer switch and cutting the power back 50%(mainly to keep the bulbs from blowing out)

 

[cricket4u]

It certainly looks like a burn, but a superficial one that may not need any intervention. You can apply a thin layer of Silvadine Cream if you can find it to help prevent infection. Even small burns can cause a good amount of fluid loss in reptiles so makes sure he remains well hydrated. Hope he heals quickly and well

 

[Hannibal]

Do you have a temp gauge (digital gun) to check the temp under the puck light? He might be getting to close & not realizing he's getting burned because the warmth feels to good. I got my dimmer switch/cord at Home Depot for $8, the Zilla Digital gun we have was about $30 & got it online at a reptile supply store.

 

[daggekko]

I got my temp gun at a reptile show, but it is the pro exotics temp gun- go to tempgun.com if you want to check it out. I think it is about $30 as well. They are VERY handy at checking temps instantly all over.

 

[Hannibal]

How's Sobe doing today? Was he able to shed ok?

 

[terradas]

Lots of updates. He's doing well and acting normal. I spoke with someone who sees this on their females and believes it to be breeding related, maybe some partially sloughed skin. He said it typically heals on its own without issue. This makes the most sense to me.

I talked to Julie Bergman as well and she didn't think it was a burn either because those are usually black. At Julie's recommendation, I'm going to give this guy a sauna to get rid of the last remnants of shed.

I ended up talking to a bunch of people and the consensus it pucks are alright for the smaller species, but could be too focused for larger animals. I still don't think it was a burn (female usually basks on top of the male and she looks totally normal), but the puck is shelved for now.

 

[Istel]

This looks like a "cold-burn" to me. A type of thermal burn, I've seen another just like it.

Reptiles get these types of burns from going from a cool core temperature to very warm too fast. In nature when I reptile begins to bask in the morning the air is still cool and slowly the core temperature rises. In captivity some types of bulbs produce this gradual heat exchange within minutes. The animal does not properly compensate the damage being done till it is too late. The skin on top will eventually die and there will be scaring after a few sheds.

It may seem not too bad right now but if it what I think it is it will get worse before it gets better. Once the burnt skin starts to slough away there will be "raw" unprotected skin underneath. Be very careful of dehydration during this time - the destruction of cells that are used to help maintain the body's fluids as well as hydrating fluids from the burn sites can result in this. Burns like this can cause extensive fluid loss. I would recommend a vet visit if it gets bad, the vet may remove dead tissue to help aid in faster healing as well. They may also recommend antibiotics, povidone-iodine soaks or an antibiotic creme to help toughen the new skin and helps dead tissue slough off. Scaring will most likely be permanent.

Keep the cage sanitary, once the skin does slough away there will be risk of bacterial or fungal infection.

This does not look breeding related at all to me. Good luck!

-Tanya

 

[terradas]

Thanks Tanya, I'm working on getting him to the vet to be checked out. Your explanation sounds likely, but I don't have the expertise with this species to say if it's a cold burn or breeding related so off to a herp vet. I'll try to post updated pics tonight.

 

[lauraleellbp]

Any update yet, Tony? Is he doing OK?

 

[terradas]

Looks like Tanya was dead on. The blue patch blistered and sloughed away leaving exposed flesh. I have him quarantined and using an anti-bacterial ointment to treat the wound. It seems to be healing normally and Sobe is still active, alert and eating.

Ever tried applying ointment to a nervous, injured gecko? Not easy. I was worried about stressing him out too much, but he seems fine so far. I'll keep an eye on him, but hopefully he'll heal quickly.

 

[Hannibal]

Good to know the cause, so things can be adjusted & prevented. I hope he heals quickly for you.

 

[Sgvreptiles]

In the future, I would not add ointment to a Phelsuma wound unless it was obviously infected. They are built to heal quickly no reason to add more stress to the gecko. I have had many wounds on phelsuma and rarely do I add any ointment. It will go into shed in about 2-4 weeks as they usually do after being injured.

 

[lauraleellbp]

Fingers crossed that he heals up quickly and completely, and can be reintroduced to his mate without any issues!

 

[terradas]

In the future, I would not add ointment to a Phelsuma wound unless it was obviously infected. They are built to heal quickly no reason to add more stress to the gecko. I have had many wounds on phelsuma and rarely do I add any ointment. It will go into shed in about 2-4 weeks as they usually do after being injured.

Good feedback, Jeff. I'd prefer to let him heal on his own. He's in a clean tank, solo and now that I've applied the ointment a couple times I'll leave him alone to heal on his own.

 

[lauraleellbp]

Any update, Tony?

 

[terradas]

Again, I'll try to actually get a photo this time. The burn eventually sloughed away and exposed his raw flesh. I've left him alone in quarantine to keep an eye on things.

The wound itself is healing rapidly. Phelsuma skin is an amazing thing. I'm spraying often to make sure he stays hydrated and he shows no visible signs of losing weight. I'm optimistic that he is still very alert to my presence and continues to prefer being on the sides of the tank or furniture rather than the ground. When he prefers to be on the ground I'll have serious concerns, but for now he is certainly on the mend.

 

[terradas]

Hard to tell from the photo, but the actual outside ring of the burn shows tissue growth and healing. Still looks pretty gnarly though. The extra heat this week can only help.