Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My female is sitting with her mouth open an awful lot lately, and she never really did this before. She is also refusing to eat. She never really ate more than every 3 or 4 days, but now seems like she has no interest in the mealworms. Her environment and surroundings have been unchanged for over a year, so it is not an environmental issue. Should I be concerned about the open mouth?

You said..."My female is sitting with her mouth open an awful lot lately, and she never really did this before. She is also refusing to eat. She never really ate more than every 3 or 4 days, but now seems like she has no interest in the mealworms. Her environment and surroundings have been unchanged for over a year, so it is not an environmental issue. Should I be concerned about the open mouth?"...how old is she? Do you have a male with her?

I have had her for about a year....I rescued her from a pet store that took her from an owner that didn't want her OR the male that he had.....the pet store didn't really sell lizards and I was interested in getting a couple as pets around the same time, so I got them from the store..... the male started attacking her about a week after I brought them home (grabbing her by the back of the neck, but violently), so bought another aquarium and separated them... I never put them together, because I am afraid he is going to hurt her.... they were out of their aquariums about 2 weeks ago, and I found them on the floor in my living room together....I am not sure if this had anything to do with it or if I am just grabbing for straws.....I am worried more about her mouth being open all the time....she never really was a big eater, and when I first got her, I had to force feed her for about 2 months....I forced her to eat about 7 worms yesterday and she chewed them up once I put them in her mouth, but she won't eat willingly on her own...

I could be wrong about this, but you're probably better off not force feeding her for a while, because that stresses her out and makes her even less likely to eat.

Just to help us out, do you think you could post a few details? Like how big the cage is that she's in, basking spot temps, warm and cool side temps, if you have a big water dish with a waterfall or a bubbler or nothing, how old she is (adult or subadult, since you've had her a year), and are you dusting, do you have UVB light on them, and have you changed the bulbs on the UVB since you got them? Stuff like that makes it a lot easier to help. If you could get a picture of her like she is now, mouth open and all, that'd help too.

Good luck with her!

~jenny
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1.4 normal ball pythons (Cindy, Darwin, Periscope, and dah bebbies)
0.2 rescue chinese water dragons (Yoni and Linga)
1.0 rex rat (Scurvy)
1.0 gerbil (Yerbul)
0.1 mice (Cute Girl Mousy)
0.1 bunny (Spazz)
1.1 betta fishes (Vicious and Killer)
2.2 great danes (Shasta, Odysseus, Merlot, and Watson)
1.0 fat fuzzy mutt (Smokey)
1.1 cats (Thidwick and Turtle)
3.0 horses (Buddy, Sam, and Scout)
1.0 goat (Billy Jack)
0.0.1 chupacabra (it ate our chickens)

jenny.thegreenes.org

Hi, I hope your female is doing all right at this point since it has been a few days since you first posted.

First of all, the open mouth thing is called 'gaping' and is usually due to one of three things. 1, eating a big food item. In this case, the gaping should go away within a few mins or so. 2. Being too hot. Cooling down the viv should make the gaping stop. The temp should be about 84-88, with about 90 in a basking spot. Overnight should be about 75-80.
3, a respiratory infection. This is the most serious cause of gaping. In this case, you need to turn up the temps abit, around the clock. Nighttime included. If the gaping does not stop with a couple of days, you need to see a vet for antibiotics.

Second of all, the grabbing the neck thing is typical mating behavior, and this is the mating season. Last year, my male tore the crest off my female, and I had to separate them to allow it to heal. This year, the scar tissue is protecting her neck. Whether they are separated or not, your female needs to have a lay box with about 6" of dirt, or she could become eggbound.

Hope this helps a bit.

The reason I asked her age and whether she had been with a male is because she could be gravid if she is around three or older. If she has no place to lay the eggs, she could be heading towards eggbinding. I can't be sure of this...so it would be a good idea IMHO to take her to a vets.

As was already said...the male grabs the back of the neck when he is trying to mate with a female.

This poster is right, and the only other thing I could think of would be mouth rot. You would be able to see signs of infection in her open mouth.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
1 little girl born 2/2/06
2 male RES, born 1999
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04