Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My Jackson's has his mouth open often when just perching, not even basking. Is he too hot or too humid? I haven't been spraying him much, but when I do spray him I spray him directly.

Any thoughts would be welcomed.

Thank you.

Usually this is a sign of upper respiratory disease. It can be helped by making sure your temps and humidity stay equal even through the night. I've kept the temps around 72-75 degrees in the evening and let it reach 80 during the day with humidity levels at 65-70 %. A herp vet can help you out as well if needed, but most will be helped the way I mentioned. Hope it helps you out.

not always true, they sometimes open their mouths when shedding and when showing agression - even to humans.

What is the temp where he is sitting when he gapes? Is his color paler than usual? Is he doing this right after he basks?

URI often shows some other signs too. Does he sit with his snout tipped straight up even when sleeping? Eyes shut? not eating, moving around or hunting? Color darker? Basking a lot more than usual? Chams with URI also show a lot of sticky saliva in the mouth and can gulp and sort of blow out their gular area over and over.

If he's showing aggression or fear, he will probably be showing stress coloration too, very dark with a lighter diamond marking on the side.