Weak Tongue

[katkat669]

I posted on here last week about my chameleon who had nematodes. I gave him the second dosage of Panacur today and he seems to be perking up quite a bit. His eyes are open and he is roaming around his cage like usual. His appetite also seems to have returned. He is willing to eat, but when he goes to strike a cricket or worm out of my hand he cannot get his tongue all the way out. I think it might have gotten weak since he hasn't eaten on his own in about 2 months. Is there any way to fix this, and is this the most likely reason for his weak tongue? Thanks.

 

[chamlover]

Hi katkat,

I have a rescued cham that is also having tongue issues. Did he have any issues before this? Mine has been like this for several months and is now just starting to use his. I can actually see him practicing by sticking his tongue in and out for 15 minutes at a time. If it hasn't been going on for very long i wouldn't worry too much about it, but certainly keep your eye on it. He might have gotten a little lazy too. Try a different feeder and see if that will perk him up. Keep us updated on him.

Debby

 

[Tygerr]

I recently had the same issue with a female Veiled that had laid a large infertile clutch. Her problem was calcium deficiency (understandable after forming all those eggs).
I treated her with an oral liquid calcium for about two weeks, during which her tongue strength returned. Calcium is a likely culprit because it is crucial to muscle action (needed for transmission of messages by the nervous system), so a deficiency in it can lead to a non-functioning tongue or other muscle co-ordination problems.

But other nutrient imbalances can also cause similar problems. Low potassium is another one that causes muscle movement problems like low calcium.

Since your cham has had a bout of not eating, and also parasites, it is quite likely that not all the necessary nutrients were being digested. If I were you I would up the dosage of supplements you are providing for a little while (calcium as well as multi-vitamins), and make sure your feeder insects are well gutloaded.
I would also try hand-feeding whilst there are tongue issues - try to get the cham not to use its tongue until proper tongue action has returned (even if it doesn't actually eat from your hand, at least hold a cup/saucer with superworms/silkworms up close to its mouth). The worst possible scenario would be if the tongue went out and then couldn't retract. That could be a life-threatening situation for the cham.

A trip to the vet would be a good idea too - maybe you could have his calcium levels checked out.

 

[Lancecham]

I agree with Tygerr.
Did you just get him a few weeks ago?
Tongue issues can be related to nutritional deficiencies, severe dehydration or tongue injuries. I suspect nutritional deficiencies, Most likely calcium.

 

[nicolie85]

I hope your little guy gets better

My little cham, Buddy, is still getting over a case of MBD. Before I first started his treatment with calcium, he had lost all tongue function. Sadly, I had to force feed him in order to keep something in his stomach. It has now been about a month since I started his treatment and he is finally using his tongue again. A couple of days ago, my boyfriend decided to stick a silkworm in front of Buddy on a vine and after a few tries he ate the little bugger. I felt so relieved to know that I didn't have to force feed anymore and his strength was returning. With time he will be good as new.

 

[chamlover]

Its funny that you mentioned that calcium defiency is usually the culprit. My guy has been on calcium for 3 months and it hasn't made any difference. I'm glad you mentioned about the other possible defiencies. My vet hasn't suggested anything else to do with him so i can discuss that with him. Didn't mean to steal the thread, but i had posted about him a while back and didn't get any answers so this has helped me out too. Thanks guys.

Debby

 

[katkat669]

Thanks for all of your help. He has only been doing this since he got his appetite back after his bout with parasites. He tries to strike at the cricket or worm and cant get his tongue to go all the way out. I will up the calcium and vitamin supplements. Hopefully that will help him get his tongue strength back. And I have had him for 2 years and he has never displayed this problem, it just appeared after he began to recover from the parasites and tried to eat on his own. Thanks for the help, I will keep you updated.