my new tegu's tongue doesn't fork1

[merdcme]

is that normal. it really trips me out. its just a really long human tongue
he's a black and gold if that matters.

[CoolioTiffany]

I need picks to exactly know what you're talking about.

The two ends of the tongue can be stuck together with mucus, so there is a possibility of RI, unless it was born without the forked tongue, and more of a rounded end.

[merdcme]

i'll try again tomorrow to get a picture of it. it looks like a really long human tongue.

[CoolioTiffany]

i'll try again tomorrow to get a picture of it. it looks like a really long human tongue.

Like with a rounded tip and everything?

[Michelle.C]

is that normal. it really trips me out. its just a really long human tongue
he's a black and gold if that matters.

Sounds like it might have been damaged. Probably bitten off by a clutch mate.

[CoolioTiffany]

Sounds like it might have been damaged. Probably bitten off by a clutch mate.

Or it could have a mutation?

[Michelle.C]

Or it could have a mutation?

Possible, but doubtful. Most of the time, breeders house the entire clutch together for quite some time. The little guys end up losing lots of body parts (toes, tails, tongues, etc).

[merdcme]

Like with a rounded tip and everything?

yes
i'll have to get a picture to be certain but it doesnt look damaged at all. its my first tegu so i tought it was normal at first. i've had monitors. but then i started paying attention to other tegu pics and saw a forked tongue.

[Michelle.C]

yes
i'll have to get a picture to be certain but it doesnt look damaged at all. its my first tegu so i tought it was normal at first. i've had monitors. but then i started paying attention to other tegu pics and saw a forked tongue.

They heal, quickly. So, there probably wouldn't be anything to visually let you know that it was damaged.

If it's not just stuck together, I'd imagine it's damaged, I've never seen one born with that kind of deformity.

[mumps]

We adopted a female Argentine tegu 3 years ago, who, at some point in her life, was kept in a community setup. She, too, has lost the forks in her tongue and looks odd when she flicks that "stumpy" thing out.

Does not apparently affect her ability to smell, and she is doing well.

She does, however, miss her old cagemate, Mumps.

Chris