# Mouth Rot



## Blackthunderdog (Jan 1, 2009)

Alright so after weeks of research and phone calls... I've finally come to the conclusion that my 2 month-old B&W has mouth rot. It's definitely not MBD. Problem is, I'm more than 3 hours away from any vet that treats animals that aren't cats or dogs. I've read about Betadine? but I only know that in one case somebody was able to get it over the counter and somehow (didn't describe the actual treatment) was able to get rid of the mouth rot (I believe this was on a boa btw).

Does anybody have any (or has heard of any) mouth rot-curing methods that have proven to be effective?


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## MMRR - jif (Jan 1, 2009)

Mouth rot is usually a secondary infection and often indicates that there is something going on systemically. Your tegu really should see a vet. Normally I would suggest a knowledgeable reptile vet but if that isn't possible a local small animal vet could examine and treat your tegu with a telephone consult from a reptile vet. The animal may require an oral or injectible antibiotic. In the meantime diluted nolvasan can be used to clean and flush the lesions in and around the mouth. Nolvasan can be purchased online.


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## mr.tegu (Jan 1, 2009)

mouth rot for the most part is very easily treatable and heals very quickly. i dont remember the name of the medicine but its in a pill and works very fast, you just jam the pill down the pre-killed mouse throat and feed to your reptile. within a few days you will see huge results.


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## kjphoto04 (Feb 15, 2009)

Try this link <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.anapsid.org/vets/califn.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.anapsid.org/vets/califn.html</a><!-- m -->
They show a vet in Santa Cruz
Kathy Calvert
Creekside Vet Hospital
Santa Cruz
831-462-8989


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## Blackthunderdog (Feb 15, 2009)

Thanks for all the help guys! Took a while (about a month or two) but the mouth rot or whatever it was has fully disappeared. He's energetic and sheds his skin 1-2x per month. I feed him regularly but I'm not sure how much I should be giving him... he appears to never be satiated. Any ideas?


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## Greenmanbacchus (Feb 15, 2009)

*Glad to hear you got rid of the mouth rot 
I don't know what's hot these days....the state of the art of reptile-keeping gets better every day! I haven't had a case of mouth rot in... oh, I'm gonna
say 20 years or more. Back in that day, we'd just run to the drugstore and get a bottle of Gentian Violet which is sold over the counter for babies with the oral fungus called 'Thrush'. Mouth Rot may appear from an involvement with simple oral lacerations that may occur in your Tegu (or snake or other lizard)
from rubbing its nose raw against a screen wall or top. I've seen it occur with the larger constrictors also after they've lost some teeth from biting their handler ( Hehehe...that'll teach 'em not to bite) ( J/K ) Inadequate hygiene may in some cases be found to be a factor. In the 1980's I received a 7" female Reticulated Python with what I would term an advanced case of Mouth Rot. She was immediately bathed in an anti-bacterial solution and placed in what today we might call an ICU. We called it a 'hospital cage' back then...no substrate, utterly clean conditions and properly high temperatures, which were not necessarily common in the 1980s. Gentian Violet was applied daily and results were seen in two days...the crusted scabbing sloughed off to reveal underlying tissue in the process of healing. After a week of daily application, treatment was discontinued and the Retic still kept in ICU.
After two weeks, her mouth parts had completely healed up, she was removed to her normal enclosure and offered prey, which she took readily.
No wonder there, I subsequently found out that she'd been scabbed for three months before I got her and that she hadn't taken prey in all that time. :O
Three months later, I had her on TV, looking great 
Personally, I'm way behind on the latest drugs and treatments....which is OK because I'm not keeping the big reptiles these days. Time enough to catch up when the 'bug' hits me again  Meanwhile, all I can say is that Gentian Violet has always worked wonderfully and quickly for me with even advanced cases of Mouth Rot...it's cheap, readily available and it does the job. It does stain everything it touches a lovely shade of purple, so be warned 
GMB*


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## Metalhead (May 13, 2020)

mr.tegu said:


> mouth rot for the most part is very easily treatable and heals very quickly. i dont remember the name of the medicine but its in a pill and works very fast, you just jam the pill down the pre-killed mouse throat and feed to your reptile. within a few days you will see huge results.


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## Metalhead (May 13, 2020)

What is the pill called? Mine just has a little around the lip and I want to deal with it before it becomes a significant issue... Not to say that it isn't significant but I'm not one to wait on these things


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