Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a friend with a tegu that is experiencing tooth loss. She took it to the vet and blood panels are not showing hypocalcemia and there are no signs of mouth rot. In fact, the lizard looks healthy in every way except this one.

With tegus being relatively new to the pet trade, I am not sure if they shed teeth like crocodilians. Since tooth loss is always a concern in crocodilians, I wanted to post here where people are more familiar with the issue.

Does anyone have any thoughts? She is an experienced tegu keeper and all husbandry aspects are up to par as far as diet, lighting, temps. However, a vitamin deficiency is always a possibility in any captive animal.

Hello.. I have some theoretical insight. This did not happen to me, however, a good friend of mine claims that the use of a water softener to soften well water was the cause of death in some of his aquatic reptiles (a couple of red eared slider turtles and juvenile dwarf caiman). His belief was that the water was robbing the animals bodies of calcium, or something like that, you get the idea I'm sure. As I said, didn't happen to me, but maybe useful??