Q I have a young male iguana about nine months old. He has a red round bulge protruding from the left side of his vent area. I’m wondering what this could be, he seems fine in himself. Toby Miles, Oxfordshire A Just inside the vent is a chamber called the cloaca where the bowel and bladder are emptied before being voided through the vent. In addition, the paired sex organs (the hemipenes) can pop through the vent as they would do for mating. The red bulge could be gut, bladder or hemipenis. Either way this is a serious condition and you need to keep this tissue clean and moist until you get him to your vet. Clean with cooled boiled water or sterile saline (contact lens saline with no preservative will do), then keep moist by applying Vaseline or K-Y Jelly, and cover the tissue with paper towels during transport to your vet.

If the prolapsed tissue is not badly damaged it can normally be replaced and sometimes this will have to be stitched to keep it in place. He may need further tests and treatments especially if the problem is in his bowels. The sooner you get him to your vet the better.

Q My eight-week old Bulldog has really white gums, and around the eyes it’s also white. She has dark stools too. What can the problem be? S Chadbury, Banbury A The white gums and eyes could be a sign of anaemia (lack of red blood cells) either because your puppy is not producing enough or she has a bleeding disorder. The dark poo may be a clue as to where the red blood cells are going because bleeding into the stomach or guts can give poo this dark colour. Anaemia can be a serious problem and you really do need to have your puppy examined by a vet as soon as possible.

Q My 14 year old cat is suffering from kidney failure and is on tablets and diet food. Through constant grooming she has pulled out much of her fur. She is obviously itching. There are a few small spots on her skin and some dandruff. This all started before she was diagnosed so I do not think this is connected to her food or medication. My vet wants to use steroids. B Smith, Headington, Oxford.

A Itching in the cat is likely to be because of parasites (fleas, mites), allergy, infection or a combination of these. A few simple skin tests should get to the root of the problem and a course of treatment should put things right. Kidney disease does complicate the issue somewhat as care must be taken with drug choice and dose. Allergic skin disease can be challenging to treat as the most effective drug is usually steroids and these may have side effects which will worsen the kidney situation.

However, there are alternatives which may be just as effective.