Reptile & Amphibian Forums

the teeth on some of my rescue alligators are rolling out of there mouths. none of the ones ive raised have ever did this.ive got three of them that are doing this .almost pointing strait out.i was wondering if any of you have ever seen this and if yes how can it be fixed?is this from over eating?i know the background on one of them and they fed it everyday,most of the time chicken i think.thanks rootbeer

As I understand it, that's one of the early signs of nutrition related calcium deficiency, or metabolic bone disease. Postural muscle tension is constantly contracting against the mandible and this causes the jaw bone to bend and the teeth to rotate outwards when it begins to soften. I don't know if it is correctable other than stopping it from progressing further.

thanks for the info.would adding extra calcium to all of the alligators diet be a good idea even if im not seeing any problems?they have a fairly diverse menu.

Calcium supplementation should ALWAYS be provided. When you speak of a 'fairly diverse menu', are you including whole animals? If so, do they make up a larger portion of this menu? If these animals are really young, you are probably feeding them pinkies or fuzzies, in which calcium from bone will not be as plentiful (practically non-existent in pinkies) and therefore, YES, a calcium supplement should be provided. Technically, a multi vitamin (human kind) can be provided if done in the right amount. Just because you have a diverse diet doesn't mean that extra supplementation isn't required. Especially with chunk meat, it is a requirement.

Chris

>>thanks for the info.would adding extra calcium to all of the alligators diet be a good idea even if im not seeing any problems?they have a fairly diverse menu.
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Just a side note, loss of teeth can also be attributed to lack of vitamine A. If you plan on supplimenting nutrients, you may also wish to raise the vitamin A intake....

I heard that Alligators have 80 teeth. 40 on top and bottom and they lose and regrow teeth all of the time. not that you shouldn't give your alligator a healthy diet but they say an alligator goes through 5,000 teeth in a lifetime. you should google "Alligator caresheet" and see what comes up