Leopard Gecko Needs Your Help

[chimpkin]

Sorry for the long post.

I am having a recurring problem with my Leo. A couple of weeks ago he had some swelling on his mouth (upper lip). It looked like a scab, so I thought maybe he injured himself. I cleaned it twice daily with peroxide. The scab fell off and it healed completely. He has been eating fine and acting normal until monday night I noticed slight swelling again. I removed him for examination and noticed slight swelling and scabs in two places on his upper lip.

It kind of looks like it is where his teeth are. I was going to continue to clean the area with Chlorhexadine on a q-tip. Any ideas?

Information:
Male Leopard Gecko
3.5 years old
20 Gallon Long
90 Degree Warm Spot
12 hr on/off Lighting
Solid Slate tile Substrate
Diet: Mealworms (dusted weekly)
Wax worms as treat
Small pinkie once per month
Pure calcium supplied at all times
Spot clean as needed, complete clean monthly (hot soap and water, then Chlorhexadine)

[mlededee]

sounds like it might be stomatitis (mouth rot). have you looked inside his mouth? can you tell if the inside of his mouth is red and swollen or does it have any mucus or infected looking areas? try cleaning the area with betadine twice per day for one week and see if that helps. if it doesn't clear up or comes back again after that you might need to take him to the vet for some antibiotics.

[chimpkin]

Mouthrot is what I initially thought but the inside of his mouth is the normal pink coloration and I keep his cage clean. The scabs seem to be in the area where his teeth are. Like maybe he is biting something or trying to eat something he shouldn't.

If I make a vet appointment and it is mouthrot what is the standard procedure for treatment. I would like to be informed before I go. I have an exotic vet where I live but I am not sure how often she deals with reptiles.


Can you feed leopard geckos baby food? I was thinking that if I could feed him something soft (temporarily) it would give the area a better chance of healing. He really crunches into those mealworms!

[mlededee]

treatment for mouth rot depends on how bad it is. if it isn't too bad then cleaning with betadine and/or chlorexadine will clear it up if the entire area is cleaned several times per day, but sometimes antibiotics are needed for worse cases or troublesome cases that just won't clear up with cleaning alone.

mealworms really aren't that hard and shouldn't really hurt the area. sometimes leos will take turkey flavored babyfood though--you can even mash some worms up in it. stay away from superworms as they can bite and cause swelling and inflamation in the mouth.