Leopard Gecko Rex: Bad Shedding

[XoVictoryXo]

I want to get a better understanding why Rex is such a bad shedder, is this an indication of something else? if so, how can i prevent this? Xena has no shedding problems at all, maybe once in a while I have to remove it from a toe. But Rex gets it bad on each of his toes and it is hard to get off. No wonder he had 3 missing toes when i got him.
He has plenty of calcium in his diet and gets vitamins once a week. he has a humid hide he likes to hang out in and sometimes I find him basking/sleeping on top of his hide under the sunlight during the day., After his shed, he has it really crusted on his toes. I have to soak him for quite a while after each shed and its really tough to get it off with a qtip. yesterday I was doing this and noticed it made his poor toe look raw (no blood thankfully)
Is this just how some leo's are?

 

[Mardy]

Yes there could be other issues. You mentioned he likes to bask under sunlight, do you mean direct sunlight through the window?

 

[cricket4u]

I want to get a better understanding why Rex is such a bad shedder, is this an indication of something else? if so, how can i prevent this? Xena has no shedding problems at all, maybe once in a while I have to remove it from a toe. But Rex gets it bad on each of his toes and it is hard to get off. No wonder he had 3 missing toes when i got him.
He has plenty of calcium in his diet and gets vitamins once a week. he has a humid hide he likes to hang out in and sometimes I find him basking/sleeping on top of his hide under the sunlight during the day., After his shed, he has it really crusted on his toes. I have to soak him for quite a while after each shed and its really tough to get it off with a qtip. yesterday I was doing this and noticed it made his poor toe look raw (no blood thankfully)
Is this just how some leo's are?

Hi XO,

A few questions. I am curious as well, what did you mean he bask under the light? daylight, red bulb or white? Also RH% in the humidity hide? Floor temperature under the warm hide? Is the shedding problem located on his feet only?

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Mardy: Yes during the day I have the shades up to get some natural sunlight. Rex usually comes out of his hide and climbs on top and basks. I only recently started putting the shades up, I had bad information that albino's need to remain in dark terrariums. Xena stays in her hide during the day showing no interest in sunlight.
I have a red night heat lamp but I am not using it at the moment, it is pretty hot in here. I have the AC on. I do have a blue day light as well for them, but it is too hot for that right now.
I just now took the temp for the floor above the heat mat and think it might be way too hot at 101.00 I just had a mini panic attack and put a repti carpet beneath the slate to try to lower it a bit. It is a new heat mat I think it is way too strong and I may have to look into a different one.
the humidity gauge shows 50% should I mist more then once a day? how about misting the entire terrarium?
The bad shedding occurs mainly on his feet, I have noticed some small dry flakes on the top of his head after a shed too, a wet qtip seems to remove that pretty easily.

 

[brooksylc]

For the UTH, get a dimmer or rheostat to dim the heat down since all UTHs get too hot on full.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Thank you, I will get this right away on friday! what is a good brand to get?
The other Uth I had before this one shorted out but it had a great temp always around 95.

 

[cricket4u]

Mardy: Yes during the day I have the shades up to get some natural sunlight. Rex usually comes out of his hide and climbs on top and basks. I only recently started putting the shades up, I had bad information that albino's need to remain in dark terrariums. Xena stays in her hide during the day showing no interest in sunlight.
I have a red night heat lamp but I am not using it at the moment, it is pretty hot in here. I have the AC on. I do have a blue day light as well for them, but it is too hot for that right now.
I just now took the temp for the floor above the heat mat and think it might be way too hot at 101.00 I just had a mini panic attack and put a repti carpet beneath the slate to try to lower it a bit. It is a new heat mat I think it is way too strong and I may have to look into a different one.
the humidity gauge shows 50% should I mist more then once a day? how about misting the entire terrarium?
The bad shedding occurs mainly on his feet, I have noticed some small dry flakes on the top of his head after a shed too, a wet qtip seems to remove that pretty easily.

Well you already know what I am going to say.:biggrin: Thermostat! This is why I asked what was the temp under the hide. It may be why he is on top of his hide? Like I stated before, make sure the humidity hide is at least at 70% (this may be the problem). The feet are always more prone to shedding problems especially if the floor is too hot. Ever heard of hot water is bad for the skin? Well, their feet are closest to the ground and so too much heat will dry their skin. Cool side is very important as well in order to avoid dehydration.

 

[Mardy]

A good but also cheap thermostat to get is the Hydrofarm one. It has digital reading, which you can't get at that price range. Great reviews and recommended often by reptile hobbyists.

Amazon.com: Hydrofarm MTPRTC Digital Thermostat For Heat Mats: Patio, Lawn & Garden

It works much better than the dial versions you get from the other popular brands.

Also my feelings about direct sunlight is that you shouldn't allow your albinos to get much of it if any at all. Indirect sunlight is fine, but direct sunlight can not only damage their skins, but it could damage their eyes over time. They are albinos, therefore they have no natural sunblocking pigments in their skin like the normal leopard geckos do. This is why you don't see albino leopard geckos in the wild, they are a captive bred only morph. Albinos are a genetic mutation that came from captive breeding. Beautiful geckos, but they wouldn't survive a day in the wild.

There are others that favor sunlight, but honestly if you supplement properly with multivitamins w/ D3, and the geckos get some form of indirect sunlight for day/night cycles, that's really all they need. The thing is once they go blind, there's nothing you can do about it. So personally I wouldn't risk it. Usually if you have a gecko that likes to bask, it's likely he couldn't find a comfortable spot in the tank to get proper belly heat. Too hot or too cold would cause that.

Just my opinion, good luck

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

For the UTH, get a dimmer or rheostat to dim the heat down since all UTHs get too hot on full.

Thank you, I will get this right away on friday! what is a good brand to get?
The other Uth I had before this one shorted out but it had a great temp always around 95.

A thermostat is the only way to go. You will find several suggested ones linked in my Leo Care Recommendations in the GU subforum on caresheets. The thermostat Mardy has just recommended is included. Rheostats are much less helpful.

BTW, is your humid hide on the warm end of the tank? Cannot find where you specifically said.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Thank you so much, I will make these corrections immediately.
His humid hide is next to the warm hide.
How can I raise the humidity levels to where they need to be, just mist more right?

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Thank you so much, I will make these corrections immediately.
His humid hide is next to the warm hide.
How can I raise the humidity levels to where they need to be, just mist more right?

You're welcome .

Please read my caresheet.

His humid hide can actually be one and the same as the warm hide.

I never recommend misting a leo tank. I think it is too stressful for them.

Where in the tank is the RH 50%? What is it on the other side? Humidity fluctuates greatly with temperature. Generally a fluctuation beween 35% (warm side) to 70% (cool side) is fine for most leos.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

The humidity gauge- I placed it inside his humid hide and thats what it read. When I get home I will check it on both sides.
Dumb question but is there a way to use one thermostat for both Rex and Xena tanks, or will I need to buy two of them?
Rex's heatmat seems to be the problem. Xena's heatmat doesnt get too hot- at all -and she doesnt have a shedding problem. But I would like to see if I could use it for both tanks anyhow just to be sure!

 

[cricketsnieceandrepsitter]

A good but also cheap thermostat to get is the Hydrofarm one. It has digital reading, which you can't get at that price range. Great reviews and recommended often by reptile hobbyists.

Amazon.com: Hydrofarm MTPRTC Digital Thermostat For Heat Mats: Patio, Lawn & Garden

It works much better than the dial versions you get from the other popular brands.

Also my feelings about direct sunlight is that you shouldn't allow your albinos to get much of it if any at all. Indirect sunlight is fine, but direct sunlight can not only damage their skins, but it could damage their eyes over time. They are albinos, therefore they have no natural sunblocking pigments in their skin like the normal leopard geckos do. This is why you don't see albino leopard geckos in the wild, they are a captive bred only morph. Albinos are a genetic mutation that came from captive breeding. Beautiful geckos, but they wouldn't survive a day in the wild.

There are others that favor sunlight, but honestly if you supplement properly with multivitamins w/ D3, and the geckos get some form of indirect sunlight for day/night cycles, that's really all they need. The thing is once they go blind, there's nothing you can do about it. So personally I wouldn't risk it. Usually if you have a gecko that likes to bask, it's likely he couldn't find a comfortable spot in the tank to get proper belly heat. Too hot or too cold would cause that.

Just my opinion, good luck

They are smart. They are not going to stand there staring up at the bulb. They will be sleeping most of the time.:coverlaugh: It's just to duplicate their natural habitat. It's their make believe sun just like if they were in the wild.

 

[cricketsnieceandrepsitter]

In Elizabeth's caresheet there is a link to one thermostat from BIG APPLE that has two outlets to plug the heat mats in. The problem is that then you will not have a place to plug the bulbs.

Steve, the Big Apple guy, does a video on thermostats.

 

[Mardy]

They are smart. They are not going to stand there staring up at the bulb. They will be sleeping most of the time.:coverlaugh:

If they fall asleep under direct sunlight, it's even worse. It'd be like having someone with no skin pigments to lay under harsh mid day sun with no sunblock lotions.

Seriously they're albinos, there's a reason you don't find them in the wild.

 

[cricketsnieceandrepsitter]

If they fall asleep under direct sunlight, it's even worse. It'd be like having someone with no skin pigments to lay under harsh mid day sun with no sunblock lotions.

Seriously they're albinos, there's a reason you don't find them in the wild.

I know what you mean. The problem is with the UVB, not UVA. They never fall asleep under the light though. They don't stay out in the light for long, they sleep in their hides.

 

[Mardy]

I know what you mean. The problem is with the UVB, not UVA. They never fall asleep under the light though. They don't stay out in the light for long, they sleep in their hides.

Not really sure what you are saying, but my post was directed at XoVictoryXo who said this in the original post:

"I find him basking/sleeping on top of his hide under the sunlight during the day"

Not sure why there needs to be an argument. Albinos and sunlight don't mix well, it's bad for their skin, and bad for their eyes. It's a captive bred genetic mutation, it does not happen in the wild. This is why I don't recommend hobbyists that always try to recreate the "wild conditions" because the wild conditions are pretty darn harsh for these captive bred and raised leopard geckos.

 

[cricketsnieceandrepsitter]

Yikes! It wasn't an argument. It's so hard to tell someone something thru writing.:lol:

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I know what you mean. The problem is with the UVB, not UVA. They never fall asleep under the light though. They don't stay out in the light for long, they sleep in their hides.

In my experience, leos will fall asleep out in the open, outside of their hides.

 

[XoVictoryXo]

Ok so having the repticarpet under the slate definitely helped the heat on the floor go down, I measured this morning it was 90 degrees. but in the meantime I am ordering the thermostat. And keeping the curtains down. I thought I was right about keeping their tanks on the dark side, I definitely don't want them to lose their eyesight
I tried to take the humidity in other parts of the tank but I think the darn thing is broken because it isnt moving at all it remains at 50% and the temp is definitely reading wrong from it! ugh. It is this product below. I am 2 seconds away from throwing it in the garbage.

I am having bad luck with things breaking lately