"What to look for
Assessing stress and illness in reptiles means looking at the animal itself as well as its immediate environment (enclosure and equipment) and the macroenvironment (the room in which the enclosure resides).
Check the overall appearance of the reptiles:
Are there any lateral folds, or are the folds normal for the species exaggerated in appearance or are there more of them?
Has there been a change in color?
Is the color of the skin dulling, darkening?
Check for changes in feeding habits:
Has food intake dropped off?
Food choices changed?
Are they selecting foods with higher moisture content?
Eating more?
Look for changes in the appearance, consistency and amount of feces and urates:
Is there less urates?
Is it thicker, more viscous?
Are fecal masses smaller, harder, drier?
Defecating less often?
Check for any changes in behavior:
Is the reptile lethargic?
Spending more time in hiding or in the cooler end of the thermal gradient?
Spends more time in basking area?
Prolonged soaking in water bowl?
More active, especially at odd times?
Engaging in frequent or prolonged digging, scratching or head-banging behavior?
Increased or decreased tongue-flicking when handled or enclosure is opened?
Has the usually tame reptile become aggressive (not associated with breeding season)?*
Check for changes in shedding:
Has the shed schedule become erratic?
If the reptile should be shedding in one piece (all snakes, some lizards), is it?
Are sheds taking much longer than usual to complete?
Check for physical signs of illness an injury:
***Is it gaping (sitting with open mouth) for long periods of time?***
Increased or thickened saliva?
Paling of the tissues inside the mouth?
Prolonged eversion of hemipenes or cloacal tissue after defecation?
Limping?
Swelling of digit, tail, limb, back, jaw?
Loss of muscle tone/strength?
Tremors?
Shakiness?
Less climbing or failure to climb?
Difficulty raising body off ground (for legged species)?
Difficult or failure to right itself?
Any lumps, bumps or bruised areas?
Any scabs?
Blisters?"
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Vet inte vad det innebär riktigt men verkar ju inte vara så positivt! :P