Reptile Health Checks and Quarantine: What Australian Keepers Should Watch For

This is general guidance, not veterinary advice

This guide covers warning signs worth knowing and general quarantine practice for Australian reptile keepers. It is not a substitute for a proper veterinary assessment. If you are worried about a specific animal, the right move is always to contact an exotics-experienced vet rather than diagnose or treat based on general information online.

Health signs worth watching for

Some signs that are worth investigating rather than waiting out:

• Respiratory signs — open-mouth breathing, audible clicking or wheezing, or excessive mucus around the mouth or nose, which can point to a respiratory infection (RI).
• Retained shed or incomplete shedding — particularly around the eyes, tail tip, or toes, which can restrict circulation if left unaddressed.
• Visible parasites — small moving dots on the skin or pooling in skin folds and around the eyes are a classic sign of mite infestation.
• Repeated feeding refusal — outside of normal contexts like pre-shed, breeding season, or seasonal cooling.
• Weight loss — especially if the animal is still eating normally, which can point to parasites or an underlying illness.
• Lethargy or abnormal posturing — including inability to right itself, unusual head tilt, or dragging limbs, which can indicate neurological issues or metabolic bone disease (MBD) in lizards.
• Mouth changes — swelling, discolouration, or cheesy discharge around the mouth can indicate stomatitis (sometimes called mouth rot).

None of these signs are a diagnosis on their own — they are reasons to get a proper assessment. Track them alongside your regular feeding and shed logs in HerpKeeper so you and your vet have a clear timeline to work from.

Common conditions in brief

Respiratory infection (RI)

Often linked to incorrect temperatures or humidity, or poor ventilation. Signs include open-mouth breathing, wheezing, and mucus. Needs veterinary treatment, typically antibiotics prescribed after an exam.

Mites

External parasites that can spread quickly through a collection if not caught early, and can also stress the animal and interfere with feeding and shedding. Requires both treating the animal and thoroughly cleaning the enclosure.

Metabolic bone disease (MBD)

Mainly affects lizards, caused by inadequate calcium, vitamin D3, or UVB lighting relative to the species' needs. Can cause soft or deformed bones, tremors, and mobility issues if not corrected early with veterinary and husbandry intervention.

Stomatitis (mouth rot)

An infection of the mouth tissue, often linked to injury, stress, or poor husbandry conditions. Needs veterinary assessment and treatment; left untreated it can spread and become serious.

This is a brief overview, not a complete clinical picture — an exotics vet can properly diagnose and treat any of these.

Quarantine protocols for new arrivals

Whether you have bought a new animal, taken in a rehome, or returned from an expo with a purchase, it is common practice among experienced Australian keepers to quarantine new arrivals separately from an existing collection for an extended period — often discussed in ranges from around 30 to 90 days depending on the keeper's risk tolerance and the animal's origin — before introducing it into the same room or airspace as other animals.

Practical quarantine steps include:

• Housing the new animal in a separate room if possible, or as far from existing animals as your space allows.
• Using dedicated cleaning tools, water bowls, and hides for the quarantined animal — not shared equipment.
• Washing hands and, ideally, changing clothes between handling the quarantined animal and the rest of your collection.
• Monitoring feeding, shedding, and general behaviour closely during the quarantine period, and logging it so you have a clear baseline.
• Booking a vet check early in the quarantine period, particularly for animals from an unknown or higher-risk source.

If you are heading to an expo to buy, see our expo checklist for how to plan quarantine on the way home before you even leave the venue.

When to call an exotics vet

As a general rule: any respiratory sign, any injury, any sudden behaviour change, repeated feeding refusal without an obvious explanation, or any sign you cannot confidently explain from normal husbandry variation is worth a call. Reptiles are good at masking illness until it is fairly advanced, so erring toward getting things checked early is usually the safer choice.

Keep your feeding, weight, and shed records up to date in HerpKeeper so that when you do need a vet, you can hand over a clear timeline rather than trying to remember dates under stress. Good records also support the case discussed in our guide on reptile record keeping — they make every part of keeping reptiles, including the stressful parts, easier to manage.

Frequently asked questions