BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

So I've had my Bluey Yoshi for almost two years now. He's been generally healthy, very active, eats great, sheds fantastic and has a great temperament. He had a bout of pinworms a few months ago. We have seemed to clear it up. But now he has developed this odd sort of rash. His scales around his vent on his tail and on his flanks and jowls have an underlying pink color. I know this is not shed discoloration because he's had it though a couple of shed cycles now. The only thing i could think is some sort of bacterial infection. I find it odd because his cage was cleaned everyday due to his battle with pinworms. So I have been cleaning the areas with chlorahexadine as instructed by a friend of mine. But it hasn't seemed to help. My guess is his immune system was down while fighting off the worms, combine that with the trails of liquid poo he covered himself with I think some sort of bacteria was able to take hold. Below are some pictures I took. You can see its pink, some times red. Is there any sort of oral antibiotics I could give him? I would rather not do any sort of antibiotic injections. This seems to be a pretty mild case and I dont think it needs such a heavy hand. BTW My local vet is a dope, so I'd rather handle it myself if possible. Put it this way, she gave me a care sheet on bearded dragons when I came for my first visit

When I read your post, my first thought was a toxicity issue. As skinks absorb toxins their skin can take on a pinkish or salmon shrimp-like hue, primarily on lighter areas. The pics show centralized areas rather than evenly proportioned. I thought perhaps he was building up chemicals from all the things you were doing to get the other problem under control but now, I'm not so sure.

How long has it been since you stopped treating for the pin worms? It does possibly look like infection but it could also be from the diarrhea. If you've ever seen diaper rash from a good case of the runs you know how bad it can be.

What have you done to treat him? Perhaps you could try warm soak baths with a 5 -10% peroxide solution. I might even try a small spoonful of Epsom or non-ionized sea salt in the water. Both would help to draw any toxins or infection out while giving his under area a good clean soak. You may still have to go the anti-biotic route, and if it gets worse or his behavior changes, I would certainly do that. But depending on how long its been going on and these other factors, its possible this may take care of it.

Good luck.

Pink scales on the belly is most likely septicaemia.

Pm for further info.

Are you certain this is new? And isn't just a slight change? Some will get more pinkish through their shed cycle and will return to normal colors after they shed - it looks fairly normal to me. Lots of blueys have pinkish coloration which is more prominent at different times. I have a couple Northerns that have a lot of pink underneath, around the vent area especially. It is more prominent at various times. If you have no other cause for concern I would wait and see if it is just a normal color that you hadn't noticed before.

However, if you have any other cause for concerns, I'd take to it a vet in case it is septecemia - septecemia is very serious and can kill quickly. That said, it looks completely normal to me... I've had vet's assume redness is septecemia before and give several courses of antibiotics trying to clear it up but years later it is still there and the bluey is completely healthy. So in my experience, redness or pink colors aren't always an issue... but if you're certain that this is a NEW change and you've had the bluey for long enough to know what colors it has through the shed cycle then take it seriously. Good luck!

I see this quite often with the silver tannies. I've also noticed an "immediate" change in color when I am handling them/stressing them. They will become more red/pink the more I mess around with them.

I mean he's always had pinkish patches. especially on the vent area. I really took notice when he started to get it on his flanks. He's had this for months now.. Maybe a good 9 months. I don't know if a skink can live that long with septecemia. He has started to loose interest in food... than again he's shooting sperm plugs all over the cage, and my hands, and the floor lol. So my guess is he's in breeding mode. Ugh I may just take him to the vet to be sure. Its just I hate to pay someone to tell me nothing is wrong.

Interesting you say that Reptileking. Because if im not touching him they are pink. If i pick him up they go away and if i stress him out they will blush like cherry red.

If he has had this for 9 months, I'd say it's normal. Like I said, I've had vet's prescribe antibiotics based on redness / pinkness before just to be safe (and the antibiotics didn't change anything), but if you have noticed this for 9 months with no recent changes, I'd fairly confidently say that nothing is wrong. If you take it to a vet they will likely prescribe antibiotics just to be safe, but unless you have seen recent changes or have other causes for concern I personally wouldn't worry just yet.

And lots of males lose interest in food when they are in breeding mode. That's completely normal!

the only thing is he hasn't had the pink in the flanks until about two to three months ago. thats what perked my interest in whats going on.

Interesting case in my opinion...

Because, now I have to say:
Go to a repvet who is good and know about diagnostics..

Hmmm, because as Richard says.. emotions...

Pinkish underbellies are normal in scincoides aligned blueys. Often a more prominent feature in males.

Scotts1au wrote:Pinkish underbellies are normal in scincoides aligned blueys. Often a more prominent feature in males.

But how can we be certain if its not septicemia?
I would say:
-symptoms (eating less/nothing, lethargic, ...)
-acute appearing of the red scales
-blood work : high heterophiles levels, other signs...

Emotions?

It does look interesting,i tend to agree with scott,re scincoides often get pink flushes,that come and go,the areas in your pics dont look inflamed,the vent flush appears pretty normal,i dont recall seeing it on the flanks like that thou,except in kimberley northerns which some forms get a pink flush to the flanks

Kenn its popping sperm plugs,its winter at the moment in philly,both causes for males being off the tucker,you cant rule anything out though,vet maybe for peace of mind,otherwise just keep a close eye on him ,if it looks inflamed head for a vet pronto,if it is early signs of something,the quicker it gets treatment the better

Ok, thanks for your answer
(I thought you mentioned the stress factor/handling, but it was Brad)

kenn wrote:Interesting case in my opinion...

Because, now I have to say:
Go to a repvet who is good and know about diagnostics..

This is an interesting discussion. It's difficult because I never want to be too dismissive of anything because septecemia is very serious (and because reptiles hide illness so well) and it is always best to see a qualified vet if there are any concerns. That said, when I first got a bluey I took it to someone who is generally considered the best reptile vet in Alberta and he diagnosed septecemia due to conditions it was acquired from and redness on the scales of the belly. We gave it 2 courses of antibiotics because the first one didn't 'cure' the redness, but 6 years later the bluey is still exactly the same - Meraukes often have very red bellies. I have the utmost respect for this vet and have taken lots of blueys to him over the years - but I realize that the majority of the blueys he has seen have been mine and at the time he didn't realize that redness was normal. So we administered two courses of antibiotics that weren't necessary (and both learned from it).

I would think that most qualified reptile vets would do the same if presented with a bluey with redness / pinkish coloration and a concerned owner. I'm not a vet and so definitely can't speak from a vet's perspective, but from what I've seen over the years and given what the original poster is describing, I'd say it is completely normal. I have Northerns with almost identical colors.

Well I think I'll be making a vet appointment next week. He's not lethargic at all! He's roaming his cage all day and ignoring food, sperm everywhere. But for piece of mind and just general curiosity I think I'll take him in. God forbid something happened to him, my favorite reptile and I own over 20. So I'll let you guys know. Thanks, for the advice.

Katrina wrote:I would think that most qualified reptile vets would do the same if presented with a bluey with redness / pinkish coloration and a concerned owner. I'm not a vet and so definitely can't speak from a vet's perspective, but from what I've seen over the years and given what the original poster is describing, I'd say it is completely normal. I have Northerns with almost identical colors.

Indeed, it's an interesting case, and I think, when you are a qualified vet, you will have to admit you learned something new (as I did now )
We get just a FEW diseases in our studies (here in Belgium, 6years) and only 1(!!!!) semester of 2 hours lessons in a week about reptiles.
So the most obvious diseases, a normal (dog/cat) vet most know how to treat it, but a reptile vet (in my opinion) has to study and learn for himself, after the 6years.

Again as I said before, if it WOULD be septicaemia, the symptoms would be lethargic, loss of appetite, etc..

Sometimes pink scales can simply occur as a result of damage to the scale surface. These guys have underlying pigmentation that makes there normally whitish parts appear pink. This damage is a result of males tusselling over girls in Spring. I have another one that shows it better but gotta catch him :-)

The animals are perfectly healthy.

Thanks for sharing,Scott!