Convincing Her to Open Her Mouth

[Skeep]

Wow I haven't been on this forum for a while!

My tegu has an infection in her gums on one side of her mouth. I've taken her to the vet and gotten antibiotics to give her. At first she would happily open her mouth to get it cleaned out and to apply the antibiotics. She seemed to even like getting her mouth cleaned. But now she's decided she doesn't like it, maybe the medication tastes bad.

She's generally very easy to handle and doesn't hiss or bite, she just pulls away and keeps her mouth tightly shut! I've been bringing her out of hibernation so she'll heal faster, but that means she has more energy to resist making it even more challenging.

So! Does anyone know a good trick to get a tegu to open their mouth? I just need a few seconds at a time to make sure it's clean and that she gets a proper dose of antibiotics!

Any ideas are welcome, thanks!

 

[Walter1]

Welcome back Skeep. Good catch on the mouth infection. Might need an assistant for this. Speal gently, hold tegu firmly and ease a credit card into mouth. If you can then slide a pencil crossways to about the jaw hinge, like a horse's bit, he woun't be able to get it out of his mouth and close it.

 

[Skeep]

That's a good idea, I'll give it a try thanks!

 

[Walter1]

That's a good idea, I'll give it a try thanks!

Please update on how things go.

 

[Adramelec]

well.. i used an soft ball with some blood on it. but it must be a big enough ball so she could not eat it.