Bottom Lip Sticking Out

[dudemanguy123]

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Jackson's chameleon, male (I'm pretty sure), I've had him for almost a year now
• Handling - He has some trouble eating when I leave food in his enclosure, so I take him out every couple of days
• Feeding - I always leave calci-worms and some waxworms in his enclosure, he eats one once a day at most. He eats 2 to 3 crickets every other day. I dust everything in calcium powder. This is as much as can get him to eat
• Supplements - I put Zoo Med repti-calcium on all his food
• Watering - He has a dripper that I refill whenever it is empty, and I mist his enclosure manually 4 or 5 times a day. I hang around every morning when I first fill up the dripper to make sure he drinks, so I know he is drinking a bit each day
• Fecal Description - I haven't taken much of a good look, but I believe they are brown, yellow, and white, he goes very consistently, I spot clean every few days
• History - I have taken him to the vet once before. It was mostly due to him not eating at all for a while, the vet wasnt able to pinpoint the issue. They told me he was a little dehydrated, injected some fluids for him, and gave me antibiotics because he seemed underweight and was more susceptible to infections I believe. It never helped with the feeding issue, I've fixed it by giving him crickets and feeding him in a separate enclosure, but he still doesn't eat as much as he should be (at least I don't think)

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - He has a screen cage, the dimensions are 16"L x 16"W x 30" H. He's still pretty small, but I'm looking to get a bigger enclosure
• Lighting - I use a Daylight Blue 60W Zoo Med, a 13W Zoo Med Reptisun UVB, and a ceramic heat bulb. All three are on during the day, and they are on a timer. The ceramic bulb is all that's on at night and it does not produce light
• Temperature - Basking spot is about 85F, the bottom of the enclosure is around 65-70F
• Humidity - They are usually around 60%-70%
• Placement - The enclosure is in my room, I'm the only one who is in there and I usually just go in to sleep or to care for my pets in my room
• Location - Northeastern United States

Current Problem - I only just noticed this today, but his bottom lip seems to be sticking out a little. It was not like this yesterday, and I have no clue if it is a sign of something bad. I'm trying to avoid going right to the vet because I'm tight on money at the moment, and don't want to go if this is something that is not harmful. I know mouth rot and temporal lobe infections are common, so if it is something harmful such as this, I want to find out (and then bring him to the vet). Any help is very much so appreciated, thank you

 

[kinyonga]

It could be the beginning of mouth rot or a bite from an insect that's making it do that. Hard to be sure.

 

[dudemanguy123]

It could be the beginning of mouth rot or a bite from an insect that's making it do that. Hard to be sure.

Would an insect bite be something to worry about, or should it heal on its own no problem? Either way, I'm assuming I should wait it out a few days to be sure, and to see if anything changes

 

[MissSkittles]

@Mendez Could you do a husbandry review?

 

[Hansen]

It could be the beginning of mouth rot or a bite from an insect that's making it do that. Hard to be sure.

That's exactly what I was going to say. Those dang crickets could have nipped him on the way in. But, if you can get him to open up, check in there and see if it is a little red dot or pushy inside. The cricket will leave a little dot

 

[kinyonga]

Would an insect bite be something to worry about, or should it heal on its own no problem? Either way, I'm assuming I should wait it out a few days to be sure, and to see if anything changes

Can you get a look in the mouth in that area when he opens it?

 

[Lindasjackson]

Hi and welcome to the forum. I to have a Jackson’s Cham. You have a beautiful male Jackson’s there! There are some issues with your husbandry That need to be addressed as well as his mouth problem. If you don’t mind I will make some suggestions. I live in the north east as well which does make it a little trickier to care for our Jackson’s due to the weather changes each season. First off as you know Jackson’s are a montane species and don’t need the real warm temps like other chams do. I would suggest getting rid of the ceramic heat emitter at night. He needs a big temp drop at night to keep him healthy. Let the temp drop to 65 or lowerif you can and make sure his humidity gets up to 80-100%. There’s lots of ways to do this so let me know if you need help with that. His daytime basking Temp should be no more than 78 to 80 degrees with the rest of his cage gradually dropping down to the mid to low 70s. For a basking light just use a household incandescent bulb like a 60 watt should be all you need. The blue lights can really mess with their eyes so it’s not recommended. Humidity during the day should be between 30-50%. As for his uvb light, he needs a long linear t5ho fixture with either a reptisun 5.0 or a Acadia 6% bulb. His basking branch should be at least 8-9 inches below the uvb light. Either one will give him what he needs. He should be in a 2x2x4 foot cage by now. They need lots of room to roam. For supplements I use the repticalcium to. Just lightly dust his insects 3 days a week and then use a multivitamin with D3 once a month. Remember, no powder sugar donut look, just lightly dusted. I use the reptivite with D3. As for insects, have you ever tried him on dubia roaches? They are a great staple feed3r and as far as I know they don’t bite. Crickets are good to But maybe try some smaller ones. Calci worms are great and don’t need to be dusted with calcium because as you know they’re high in calcium already. I wouldn’t leave bugs in his cage all the time. Try just giving him 4 or 5 feeders every other day and see how he does. Sounds like he’s around a year old which is when they start to slow down on feeding anyway. Wax worms are okay as a treat but shouldn’t be given all the time as they are high in fat. As for his mouth problem, I’m not sure what it is but if it does persist you should take him to a good chameleon experienced vet. Try looking in his mouth if he opens it to take a bug and see what it looks like and let us know. I hope your guy does well! What’s his name? Mine is Eustis and he’s about a year and a half old.

 

[dudemanguy123]

He needs a big temp drop at night to keep him healthy. Let the temp drop to 65 or lowerif you can and make sure his humidity gets up to 80-100%. There’s lots of ways to do this so let me know if you need help with that.

Thanks for the suggestions! If you wouldn't mind, a few tips on keeping humidity up would be helpful, I definitely notice it's difficult to keep high. His name is Loki!

That's exactly what I was going to say. Those dang crickets could have nipped him on the way in. But, if you can get him to open up, check in there and see if it is a little red dot or pushy inside. The cricket will leave a little dot

Can you get a look in the mouth in that area when he opens it?

I will try taking a look in his mouth next time I feed him, I did notice one of the crickets in the bunch was a bit larger than usual last time I fed him, so it probably could have bitten him. I'll get back to you all once I'm able to take a look

 

[Lindasjackson]

If you have him in a screen cage you can try wrapping the back and two sides in plastic. You can use a showercurtain cut to size or you can get a window insulation kit. They sell them in hardware stores. I have my cage wrapped in a shower curtain that I trimmed to fit. It works well. I also have a mistking that I set to mist every 3 hours at night as well as a petspioneer fogger that i fit with a pvc pipe from the output opening up and over my cage so the fog falls down over the tree my Cham sleeps in at night. this replicates the fog that rolls in at night in the mountains of Africa where he comes from. All of this gives him a humidity of 80-100% at night. If you have any further questions, just ask. I’m happy to help. Attached is a picture of when I used to have an ordinary humidifier but I prefer the petspioneer because it is a top fill and easier to use. I just don’t have a picture of it.

 

[Lindasjackson]

Ps. Loki is a great name!

 

[Hansen]

If you have him in a screen cage you can try wrapping the back and two sides in plastic. You can use a showercurtain cut to size or you can get a window insulation kit. They sell them in hardware stores. I have my cage wrapped in a shower curtain that I trimmed to fit. It works well. I also have a mistking that I set to mist every 3 hours at night as well as a petspioneer fogger that i fit with a pvc pipe from the output opening up and over my cage so the fog falls down over the tree my Cham sleeps in at night. this replicates the fog that rolls in at night in the mountains of Africa where he comes from. All of this gives him a humidity of 80-100% at night. If you have any further questions, just ask. I’m happy to help. Attached is a picture of when I used to have an ordinary humidifier but I prefer the petspioneer because it is a top fill and easier to use. I just don’t have a picture of it.

I totally appreciate the effort. I read this on how you replicate the natural events of his life. I applaud the effort. My chameleons live for years because I put in the effort to research and do the things necessary. Good for your cham and you. TH

 

[dudemanguy123]

If you have him in a screen cage you can try wrapping the back and two sides in plastic. You can use a showercurtain cut to size or you can get a window insulation kit. They sell them in hardware stores. I have my cage wrapped in a shower curtain that I trimmed to fit. It works well. I also have a mistking that I set to mist every 3 hours at night as well as a petspioneer fogger that i fit with a pvc pipe from the output opening up and over my cage so the fog falls down over the tree my Cham sleeps in at night. this replicates the fog that rolls in at night in the mountains of Africa where he comes from. All of this gives him a humidity of 80-100% at night. If you have any further questions, just ask. I’m happy to help. Attached is a picture of when I used to have an ordinary humidifier but I prefer the petspioneer because it is a top fill and easier to use. I just don’t have a picture of it.

thanks! ill try and rig something up like that for him, ill let you know if i need some more help

 

[dudemanguy123]

hi all, ive been trying to take a look in his mouth, and it isnt too easy, i did get a quick peek the other day and it seemed fine, i didnt see any odd discoloration or anything, but once again it was quick so im unsure. his mouth isnt really sticking out anymore, ive attached some more pictures of what it currently is looking like. it still does not look normal however, and im wondering if i should now bring him to the vet?

 

[MissSkittles]

hi all, ive been trying to take a look in his mouth, and it isnt too easy, i did get a quick peek the other day and it seemed fine, i didnt see any odd discoloration or anything, but once again it was quick so im unsure. his mouth isnt really sticking out anymore, ive attached some more pictures of what it currently is looking like. it still does not look normal however, and im wondering if i should now bring him to the vet?

Vet visits are never a bad idea, even if it‘s just for reassurance that all is well.

 

[Beman]

There is something going on with the mouth. That looks like dried yuck on the lip line. Sign of infection. @JacksJill

 

[Lindasjackson]

I agree, vet visit is called for. it will give you the reassurance you need as well as give your Cham the help he needs. It’s been going on long enough.

 

[JacksJill]

If he were mine I would see about getting him on antibiotics now rather than deal with a deeper infection later. Once they get a serious TGI they can get them over and over again. This isn't in the gland yet that I can see but don't let it get there.

 

[dudemanguy123]

alright, thank you for all the help! Ill bring him to the vet as soon as I can

 

[Vaultgirltoki]

I would suggest going to the vet. If u can not go to the vet right away use coconut oil neosporin mix on the outside, and just coconut oil on the inside. Spread with a qtip, use qtip inside of the mouth make sure all is clean no mucus. Unrefined coconut oil only. Make sure the neosporin has no pain med. I used this on my boy till I got him to the vet. I had to wait 2 weeks for a vet that knew what type of chameleon he was. Vet said it definitely helped in it not progressing.

 

[dudemanguy123]

hey everyone, i was able to get a picture of inside his mouth, and thought it would be a good idea to post it here while waiting for the vet