# Blue tongue covered in white spots



## Alexmo (Jan 7, 2015)

G'day all. About a month I go I got my first blue tongue for a pet. He stays in side. He has a four four tank with heat lamp,uv lamp and heat mat. In the last few days he has started to come out in white spots. I took look this morning and he is covered in them. He always has fresh water and I try mix up his food. Things he has eaten in the last month. Banana,wet dog food,a handful of snails,dried meal worms form a pet shop and on the weekend I bought him some dry lizard food made for blue tongues. His bedding is that shredded coconut stuff. I've uploaded a couple of pics. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks


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## Stuart (Jan 7, 2015)

Have you tried very gently rubbing him with a mildly damp cloth to make sure its nothing in the enclosure rubbing off on him?

I haven't seen anything like that before personally


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## Wally (Jan 7, 2015)

Looks like mite crap. How long have you had this bluey?


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## Alexmo (Jan 7, 2015)

I've had him for about one month. I'll trygiving him a bit of a wipe tomorrow. As I'm at work now. Thanks for the help. Will keep you up dated


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## MesseNoire (Jan 7, 2015)

He looks underweight too. See if there's any little mites crawling on him specifically around his eyes, legs and vent area.
Then treat with a mite spray.


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## Alexmo (Jan 7, 2015)

I'll give him a good look over. What food do you suggest?


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## Pythoninfinite (Jan 7, 2015)

Definitely looks like a very big mite infestation, and the animal is probably dehydrated because of the drain they place on the animal's blood supply. There are lots of articles on mite management on this site, but one thing you must do is kill all the mites which will have moved out of the enclosure and into the surrounding area. Remove the animal into a clean plastic tub, and leaving ALL enclosure materials in place in the OPEN enclosure, use a flea/cockroach bomb from the supermarket to fumigate the room and the enclosure, this will kill all mites in the substrate and cage decorations as well. If you remove and discard the substrate without first killing the mites, all you will do is spread them over a wider area as you trash the substrate - kill them in place before removing it. Treat the animal separately with an insecticide such as Orange Medic and place in a white or pale pillowcase so you can see if the mites are still alive a day or two later - you can see them moving on the pale fabric. Discard all substrate (must) and cage decorations (or clean in hot water). 

The flea bomb won't leave a toxic residue once it has done its job, but it leaves a hormone residue which stops mites (& fleas, cockroaches...) from developing into breeding adults, so as long as you've treated the animal thoroughly and effectively, you should have no more problems. Make sure you follow the instructions on the flea bomb can - remove fishtanks etc.

Jamie


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## izzys1 (Jan 7, 2015)

Maybe fungus from the bedding?


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## MesseNoire (Jan 7, 2015)

izzys1 said:


> Maybe fungus from the bedding?



Possibly but unlikely.

The scales are raised and have that dull look about them which are both signs of mites.
Mites require some form of pressure on the top of their heads to initiate feeding (as far as I'm aware) so this will result in the raised scales.

Follow PythonInfinite's advice and you can't go wrong.


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## Alexmo (Jan 7, 2015)

Thanks all I'll do just as Pythoninifinite said. Once he is all better what foods would you recommend to get him back to 100% the quickest?


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## spandangle (Jan 11, 2015)

I agree with every else. This is a mite infestation and a bad one. 

Mite infestations are common and you will find lots of threads on this topic. There are a number of methods that can be used to treat it. *Pythoninfinite*'s advise above is good and it will work. 

I have also had success in treating my shinglebacks/blue tongues that are housed in my indoor enclosures with Top of Descent. It is a spray that you can get from some pet stores. 

I would give him more protien to help him get back into shape quicker. Give him some dog food (My Dog is good) or roo mince.


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## dragonlover1 (Jan 11, 2015)

on top of the treatment recommended by Jamie,good food includes pinkie rats,red meat(no fat) superworms (not the dried ones) fruit and veg,you could also try herpaboost and get a bigger water bowl that he can bathe in.
You mention bananas,don't use a lot because they are high in potassium,I give mine a small bit every week but add other fruit as well.


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