What to do after Tegu gets substrate stuck in lip?

[Touc]

I've researched the topic about substrate getting stuck in the lip and realize that I can't prevent this from happening. However, I would like to know what to do about it after it happens. I took my 6-7 month old Argentine B/W Tegu to the vet to get a checkup and asked if it had mouth-rot. The doctor said it did not; it only had substrate stuck in its lip (in one scale). I failed to ask her anymore about it because I was happy that it was not mouth-rot. I am using EcoEarth (coconut husk) substrate. Here is my question and assumption: I assume that if the substrate is cleaned out regularly (monthly) and the tegu is living in a clean environment that the lip (scale) will not get infected; and the substrate will fall out of its lip (scale) after it sheds if the substrate is not caught to deep. What can I do for my Tegu's lip so it stays healthy until the substrate is removed naturally?

Also, my Tegu's habits have not changed. It sleeps a good portion of the day and likes to eat superworms mostly instead of raw meat. It is energetic and has never bit me. I take it out of the cage a few times a day for about 10-30 minutes each time. I don't let it run around because it is too small so I let it crawl around me. Therefore, the lip problem really has not affected it.

Thankyou This forum has been very helpful to me and my Tegu.

[the enigma]

You are making a correct statement by saying that a clean enclosure greatly reduce the chance of infection.
I have never really dealt with this specific problem. A wiser member then myself will probably come along soon and give you a full complete answer. I'm impressed with your caring attitude towards your Tegu. Oh and welcome to the forum!

[txrepgirl]

Hi Touc. Welcome to the Tegu forum family. It is so nice to see that you care about your Tegu this much. I'm glad you like this forum . First I would like to ask you a few questions if you don't mind.

1. Do you feed him inside the enclosure ?

2. What made you think that he has mouthrot ?

3. Does he get some mulch inside the drinking water ?

4. Does he eat his own poop sometimes ?


If you ever see any mulch inside his mouth you can take a damp smooth cloth and wipe out his mouth. Please do not use a wash rag because he can get his teeth stuck on there if you pull it back out.

[HernandosMom]

Hi. I may need to see a photo to really understand this one. Do you mean it's stuck between the jaw and the lip? Or is it ground right into the scales? If it' just in a pocket of flesh within it's mouth, I would take a Q-tip, twirl an end in your fingers while pulling outward slightly to make a cottony, soft point. Moisten it. Then you'll need to gently get it in there to wipe out the dirt. To get the tegu to open it's mouth, I'd start with him in a pillow case snoozing on my lap. Gently wrap his body so his head is poking out and you can get a firm but gentle hold when you need to around where his body is. Don't hold tight. I've found that if I just put my finger at the end of his upper jaw, under his nostrils, and just sloooowly, gently lift upwards, so his head starts tilting back ever so slowly, he will eventually open wide for a moment. Have the Q-tip right at the corner of his mouth where the problem is, and when he opens, roll it in there. Be prepared for him to instantly squirm. The quicker you can wipe and get the Q-tip out, the less stressed he'll be. You may have to try a few times. Just be careful you don't get carried away and hold too tight or ram the Q-tip with any force.

[Touc]

1. Do you feed him inside the enclosure ? Yes. I realize this is bad because it can lead to impaction if he eats the substrate. He has eaten some of the substrate in the past and I switched the substrate to Ecoearth because of that. What I do now is I move all of the substrate out of the way to one side of the cage and let it eat on the plain surface of the cage. I've tried several different settings so my Tegu would want to eat outside the cage, but each one fails. I even have a smaller cage that I've tried to let it eat in, but it just doesn't work. He has only eaten outside his cage twice: Once I fed him worms while he was laying down on my leg and the other was when I fed him live crickets in the smaller cage which has no substrate. The smaller cage that I want to feed it in has no substrate inside; it just glass on every side. I've tried covering up all the glass and putting in a basking light but it seems that it just won't eat there or anywhere but its own cage. The vet told me to feed him live crickets to stimulate its brain, so I plan on following that advice. Also, it did not have any impaction when it did eat some of the substrate.

2. What made you think that he has mouthrot ? I really did not know what was wrong with the scale on his mouth and why it was there. I did some research and the only thing I found at the time was mouth rot. Daily, I take my Tegu out of the cage and I just noticed one day. I wanted my Tegu to be healthy so I took it to the vet. It does not look like mouth rot at all; it looks like substrate is stuck in its scale on the front of its lip. However, I do not know what mouth rot looks like when it first occurs so I wanted my Tegu to be safe and I made the vet appointment.

3. Does he get some mulch inside the drinking water ? This happens but it is a very small amount. I only see my Tegu go to the water bowl once everyday. I've never seen him go twice for a drink or soak. My computer is in the same room as my Tegu's cage so we can both see each other at all times. My Tegu goes to sleep when I'm not here or when I'm busy studying.

4. Does he eat his own poop sometimes ? I've never seen my Tegu eat its own poop. I would have to describe my Tegu as being scared of his own poop because he just runs away from it.


Also, while I was holding him I got a really good look at the area of the mouth. It is not inside the mouth it is on the exterior. I can touch his mouth and even rub the area and he does not care. I actually think he likes his mouth rubbed unlike when I pet the top of his head. The substrate feels really compacted in the small area. The substrate and the scale do not have any odd color to them. I feel like I'd have to use some force to remove the substrate and I think it would be better if I did not do that. A Q-tip does not seem like it would work, but I can try to see how the area feels after I give him a good soak. I'll get a picture as soon as I can find the camera.

Thanks again.

[HernandosMom]

From what you describe now, I think he might just have some dirt ground into his skin. Maybe he was running his face along the glass and smooshed substrate into it. If he seems to like having you touch the area, maybe it feels to him like he's being cleaned a little. This happens in nature where some birds or bugs eat stuff off a bigger animal, so the tolerate each other's presence. It happens all the time in the ocean.

I'll bet when your tegu sheds his skin this spot will disappear.

[txrepgirl]

Thank you for all the infos. I forgot to ask you if he is starting to shed by any chance. Maybe some shed is loose and the mulch got into it. It's hard to tell without seeing a photo. I know you sad above that you are going to post one as soon as you find the camera. Thank you for going to post one. We have six Tegus and we didn't had a problem feeding them ouside the enclosure. Our two new babies ( well not that new anymore ) ate inside a bin two times and then didn't want to eat in there any more. I put a small plate inside the enclosure just to see if they would eat and they did. So I knew they were hungry. I didn't feed them inside the enclosure again. Every day I put some food inside the bin and one day they started to eat. Trust me if they are hungry enough they will eat in the bin.

It would be hard to get the leftover crickets out of the enclosure when your Tegu is done eating. It's not save to keep them in there. It can stress out the Tegu and they will bite the Tegu and can cause a skin infection on the Tegu. Have you tried a dark colored bin yet ? This is the kind of bin that I use and it worked well with all of my Tegus.

http://www.youtube.com/user/txrepgirl#p/u/4/37hvHhV3Mmw

[Touc]

He has been shedding for the last 2 weeks. The tail started shedding about a week ago and I'm waiting on the last half of it to shed completely. It is shedding in small fragments which is unlike the rest of the body's shed. I'm not sure if this is abnormal shedding. I've been soaking him twice a day to make sure it's getting enough saturation. I'll try the dark bin "trick" when I get one. Here are some pics.. I was having trouble taking clear pictures, but I'll try again tomorrow when the batteries are charged again. The substrate is stuck in the front part of the mouth/lip area. Here is what I have so far in this photobucket link: http://s131.photobucket.com/albums/p300/touc/Maui/

[HernandosMom]

Touc, don't worry about that dark spot at all. What you have is a tegu with a dirty face.

The skin of a lizard is not an inert shield. It can take up stains just like a pair of jeans. On a molecular level, bits of crud molecules are bonding with the skin molecules, if you'll excuse the pseudo-science oversimplification. He will shed that off in no time.

And yes, it's normal that the entire tegu does not shed at one time.

[Pikey]

O yeah i was expecting something far worse, thats not that bad & i agree it should disappear in a few sheds or it could be a genetic "defect".
My oldest one has a permanent "fat lip" that is just a defect it looks bad but is just an excess amount of "gum tissue", i just have to make sure it stays clean & swab it with providone iodine when & if it it starts to get foamy spit. Just keep an eye on it and as long as it shows no signs of infection i wouldn't worry about it.