Question
Prickly Pear Santa Rita has been in the ground for 2 years and now it is very unhappy. It has dried out desiccated parts of pads and other pads have brownish yellow sunken blotches in different shapes. Some have a dried out "skin" on top. I find no disease or fungus that looks like this or perhaps it never liked its location (hard as cement caliche)

Answer
Kaleb,

It could be that the soil is the issue, but more than likely it could be a disease spread by insects. There are many insects that feed on cacti and spread disease. Blight is one example. Especially if the blotches started out round in appearance. If the disease is too advanced, there isn't much that can be done to save your plant. Sorry for the bad news.

Sincerely,

Greg