Stuck shed on itty bitty baby toes

[hds1492]

Hi all,

I got a 3-4 month old leo about 3 weeks ago. Since then, he has shed once, soon after I got him. He got most of it off. Some shed clung to his back, and I helped him get it off, but there is still some left on his toes. It looks like this may have happened before, because it seems like he is partially missing some toes (not sure if it's because he is a baby, but some are very short...). I got a bit off of one foot, but there is still another foot that has a bunch on it. I tried putting him in a shallow dish of water just now for a little bit, but it didn't seem to help. He is also a squirmy little bugger, and any time I *gently* touch his toes, he tries to get away. I don't want any (more) toes falling off, and I don't want to hurt him, so what can I do? I'm hesitant to use tweezers, because I don't want to accidentally pluck something important off...

 

[hds1492]

Here is a picture of my gecko and the foot with all of the shed on it.

 

[indyana]

Gecko sauna time... once you get the skin softened up with humidity, you are going to have to do your best to just hold him still and pick the skin off his toes. A dry cloth or cotton swab or your own fingers are the best bets.

Here's a pretty good summary:
Leopard Gecko Guy: Yet More Shedding Issues and Solutions

 

[mcwendle]

I adopted a gecko with stuck shed on toes. I just gave her about 4 warm sink baths one day. That evening right after one I used my fingers and a paper towel to get it off. Worked great. Just takes abit to get it off.

Sent from my phone glued to my hand

 

[hds1492]

Thanks so much for the link and comments, guys! I will try the sauna tonight.

 

[hds1492]

UPDATE: Got most of it off I tried to be as gentle as I could, but he still squeaked a little bit He is currently soaking a bit more so I can give the rest of it another try. Hopefully he's not too stressed out when I'm done...

 

[hds1492]

Do any of the products that assist in shedding work? There is some that is constricting a few of his toes that just wont come off


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mcwendle]

Keep moistening is best option IMO. Try more baths more often. The shed has dried and shrunk it needs to be real moist.

Sent from my phone glued to my hand

 

[rothsauce]

The two shed agents that I have on hand are

ZooMed Repti Shedding aid - small spray bottle

and

Nature Zone Reptile Shed Away - bottle that can be diluted with water for bathing or dripped onto toes from the bottle

I've used both in the past with good success for my two girls. Both had toe shed that had been stuck from multiple shed when they'd been bought.

 

[hds1492]

*Sigh* I think I might have a problem shedder. He shed again today, and he had shed on his head, on one of his back legs (like a sock lol), and on his 2 front feet (I think that had something to do with the shed that I couldn't get off before). I was able to help him with the stuff on his head and (for the most part) on his 2 front feet. The shed on his back leg and foot isn't coming off too easily, unfortunately I ordered some of the Shed Aid, which had good reviews. Hopefully that will help. I should probably keep doing soaks until that gets here, right?

 

[rothsauce]

Yep, soaks, sauna, and working lightly on the area.

Does it use the moist hide often? What's your setup like? Just covering all the bases in case it's something more simple

 

[DrCarrotTail]

Also make sure you have a quality vitamin and mineral supplement like Repashy Calcium Plus. Knowing a bit more about his setup would be helpful. I find that most shedding issues are due to the use of heat lamps instead of UTH or an insufficiently damp, inaccessible or too exposed moist hide.

 

[hds1492]

I am happy to report that he got his "sock" off by himself He doesn't use his moist hide, for some reason... It is a tupperware container with a hole in the lid with damp sphagnum moss. He currently lives in a 10 gallon with heat lamps (I purchased one of those 10g kits). He has a large hide below the "day" lamp, and the moist hide. He will be moving into a 20g long next week, with 3 hides and a UTH, so that should make things better, right? I have reptivite with d3. I haven't fed him crickets in a while, so I haven't used it consistently. I just got a shipment of crickets, so I will be using it more. Is the Calcium Plus just straight calcium, or does it contain d3? I know that the d3 isn't supposed to be an every day thing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[rothsauce]

That's great to hear! Sometimes they can go for a little while with small bits left here and there, some will manage to take care of it on there own but keeping an eye out just in case never hurts.

Hm. Maybe it doesn't realize the container is nice and moist? If it isn't too skittish, you could try setting him on top of the container or near the hole to see if he'll crawl in. Wouldn't hurt to try when you move him to the larger tank
Changing to the larger tank with a UTH should help too, less likely to dry things out. Nothing to fret over since he'll be moved soon.

Calcium Plus does have d3 in it as well. Some other posts have mentioned that Calcium Plus has a good balance of d3, enough to benefit the leo's but not enough to cause an OD issue. If you're just dusting feeders with it and not leaving out a dish of it as well, it shouldn't be anything to worry about.

 

[indyana]

Repashy Calcium Plus is formulated for daily use (when dusting insects) and should not cause a D3 overdose when used as directed. Some people choose to only dust feeders once or twice a week though, especially when their gecko reaches adulthood and is not being bred.