Hi all.
We just purchased a baby beardie from Petsmart four days ago. When we purchased him, he had a few black spots on the top of his head but we were not worried as we assumed it was due to rough handling and being in the presence of many other agitated baby beardies. Just today, we noticed that the spots had spread and he now has two spots on either side of his jaw and on his butt. They are all black/grey and are slightly indented and dry to the touch. The large one on the left side of his jaw seems to be open and exposing part of his gums. It also seems to be causing him pain. Other than the spots, he is acting pretty normal. He ate very well these past two days and seems to be adapting to his new environment.
I have heard about yellow fungus and am terrified that he may have it especially since we have another beardie that it could easily be spread to. Any insight would be appreciated. We called an emergency vet today but they said the soonest they could see him would be Monday.
It could be fungus or bacteria. Anything that kills the scales is a problem and needs to be addressed quickly.
I would look into taking him to a vet. You can give him baths with a betadine/water mixture. Ensure the water is a weak tea colour and bathe him daily. For the scales around his head get a q tip or toothbrush and swab the area during the bath. He'll need to soak for 20 minutes.
Thanks for the reply. We just gave him a betadine bath and put anti-fungal cream on the spots.
Do you think the spots could possibly be cricket bites? He has a few free-roaming crickets in his cage that he hasn't eaten.
The black spots are more likely to be something else. Cricket bits would be an open wound. I'd recommend removing the crickets though so he doesn't get bit.
I feed my girl in a separate container than her enclosure (except for greens). This way she can eat as much as she wants and I dont' have to worry about something in her tank that shouldn't be there. It also keeps her from associating your hand with food. It was something I did with my snakes, otherwise the king snakes would get prissy and try to bite.
What substrate are you keeping him on? I would probably do paper towels. I would clean the cage daily as well. I just got some F10sc from amazon and it got here in 2 days.