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I was on vacation for 9 days & when I came back my BTS had scabs in the corners of his mouth. (I had a pet sitter taking care of my zoo) He is moving around & eating normally & doesn't seem bothered, but I'm bothered.

In addition to the scabs (which I've put Neosporin on), I think his mouth is red, right inside the lips, but not deep inside the mouth, like a little internal lip ring of redder flesh. I can only see this when he opens his mouth. The scabs in the corners can be seen from the outside.

Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. I can't imagine what could be causing this...
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Robins Critters
1.0 Corn snakes Jack Skellington
1.1 Hog Island Boas Harley & Isaboa
0.1 Albino Sonoran Gopher Snake Jasmine
1.3 Leopard Geckos Yoda, Geo, Tang, Ginger
0.1.1 Crested Geckos Peek & Boo
1.0 Blue Tongue Skink Indigo
0.0.2 Eastern Box Turtles Squirtle & Yurtle
0.1 Pacman Frog Buffy the Cricket Slayer
0.0.1 Sulawesi Red Toad Mr. Toad
0.2 Tiger Salamanders Tiger & Sally
1.1.3 Firebelly Newts Wayne Newton, Isaac Newton, Fig Newton, Olivia Newton John & Thandie Newton
1.1 Cats Gus & Mena

Hi Robin,

Mouth infections in reptiles can be of bacterial, viral, fungal or parasitic origins. Trauma to the nose or mouth areas from cage rubbing or bites from live prey are also associated with mouth infections. Since skinks explore and chew on things - it could be a simple case of minor damage that has become inflamed.

It sounds like you have caught this before the condition has gotten severe, and there is a good chance that prompt attention will clear it up. Before applying Neosporin, we always clean the area daily with a swab dipped in diluted Betadine (the providone iodine that is used to disinfect before surgery). If your skink is young, use a 25% solution - if older, we use 40-50%.

You might want to clean the enclosure too, and remove any loose substrate - just use clean towels or sheets while being medicated. We find that any substrate will stick to the ointment on the mouth. If you don't want the skink to burrow, you can use carpet on the enclosure bottom.

If there is no improvement in a few days - if the redness and scabs increase, or if the skink shows a decrease in activity or appetite, it is extremely important to take it to a reptile veterinarian as soon as possible. It can be very tricky to treat mouth infections after the bone and deeper tissues are affected.

Hope your kid gets better real soon,
Morgana

Thanks for the response. His mouth is getting much better.
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Robins Critters
1.0 Corn snakes Jack Skellington
1.1 Hog Island Boas Harley & Isaboa
0.1 Albino Sonoran Gopher Snake Jasmine
1.3 Leopard Geckos Yoda, Geo, Tang, Ginger
0.1.1 Crested Geckos Peek & Boo
1.0 Blue Tongue Skink Indigo
0.0.2 Eastern Box Turtles Squirtle & Yurtle
0.1 Pacman Frog Buffy the Cricket Slayer
0.0.1 Sulawesi Red Toad Mr. Toad
0.2 Tiger Salamanders Tiger & Sally
1.1.3 Firebelly Newts Wayne Newton, Isaac Newton, Fig Newton, Olivia Newton John & Thandie Newton
1.1 Cats Gus & Mena

I had a similar problem w ith one of my blue tongues, but i knew exactly where it came from. I feed in plastic shallow bowls and my blue tongue was in a rather biting mood (he was trying to bite me but caught the bowl instead and thrashed around with it). Not long afterward, I noticed some cuts on his lips but they have healed up fine on their own. It wasn't long after I bought the skink he did this, not used to me at that time. Though it did take a couple weeks to heal completely, he never had any decrease in appetite or activity. He was always my best eater, eating more than the female.
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PHLdyPayne

Yeah, his activity & appetite have not decreased, it's just taking a while for it to heal. I'm sure it's from biting something... Silly skink
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Robins Critters
1.0 Corn snakes Jack Skellington
1.1 Hog Island Boas Harley & Isaboa
0.1 Albino Sonoran Gopher Snake Jasmine
1.3 Leopard Geckos Yoda, Geo, Tang, Ginger
0.1.1 Crested Geckos Peek & Boo
1.0 Blue Tongue Skink Indigo
0.0.2 Eastern Box Turtles Squirtle & Yurtle
0.1 Pacman Frog Buffy the Cricket Slayer
0.0.1 Sulawesi Red Toad Mr. Toad
0.2 Tiger Salamanders Tiger & Sally
1.1.3 Firebelly Newts Wayne Newton, Isaac Newton, Fig Newton, Olivia Newton John & Thandie Newton
1.1 Cats Gus & Mena