Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys, i just noticed this past weekend something that was not there before on one of my boas. A tooth of hers was portruding (sp.?) out from her mouth. Not piercing threw, just hanging out. Is this a problem? Will it fall out? Thanks guys
I will try to get a pic of her so you can better see what i am talking about.
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1.3 BCI
0.2 White Spot Geckos
0.0.1 Flowerhorn
0.0.1 Green Terror

Reptiles do shed their teeth, so unless it's something else that has happened to cause this, i.e. striking at or biting something hard enough to break it, mouth rot, or something along those lines I wouldn't worry to much. Hope this helps.

Quig

Thanks, i'm not worried because i know she can sometimes strike at the doors in her enclosure when she is feeding or after she is fed. I'm by no way or form a vet and far from it but as far as i see and how she acts she seems healthy to me.
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1.3 BCI
0.2 White Spot Geckos
0.0.1 Flowerhorn
0.0.1 Green Terror

The loss of a tooth now and then happens. Watch for possible signs of infection just in case.

Quig

This is completely normal as snakes are continuously replacing teeth. Non-venomous snakes have a higher replacement rate than venomous snakes, and boids have shown to have one of the highest replacement rates of all snakes. Due to the larger, more energetic prey items of boids, this would seem quite logical. Also, it has been shown with boids, that there are at least a few teeth lost with each feeding.

Kelly

I have watched my snakes eat hundreds of times and never noticed lost or broken teeth.

Christian

I have seen it only a few times in 30 years. It is just really difficult to spot unless you are looking very closely. The number of teeth lost per meal in the study group of snakes was based on the number of teeth found in the study snakes fecal samples and correlated with the number of meals the snake had eaten. Obviously a fairly rough estimate, but indicative of the occurrence.

Kelly

i never knew that either, that snakes can break their teeth while eating ans swallow it with their meal. Thats just facinating, if i could do that i would need the worlds stronget dentures by now. lol.
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1.3 BCI
0.2 White Spot Geckos
0.0.1 Flowerhorn
0.0.1 Green Terror