Brown stuff in corner of mouth
- Thread starter Alex21
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carol5208
Chameleon Enthusiast
There is a thing called a temporal gland infection in Jackson's chameleons. It is in located in the corner of their mouth. I am not 100% positive but that is what it appears to be. If it is so determined, you will have to get this guy to a vet and he will have to be given the proper meds to help clear it up.
Djturna4thakidz
Established Member
Yep looks like a gland infection. A vet visit and meds will fix it right up. If it goes unchecked they can get pretty bad
Miss Lily
Chameleon Enthusiast
Is the area swollen at all? They sometimes get parts of feeders stuck there and they can become infected. I was told with my Jax that they can get the wax build up in the corner of the mouth, and mine has had it a couple of times but never as dark as that. You might find the info in this old thread of mine useful: https://www.chameleonforums.com/temporal-gland-info-please-74955/
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Chameleons Northwest
Avid Member
I don't agree that this is necessarily an infection. This is commonly seen in Meller's chameleons also. It appears to be the natural shedding of a waxy substance produced by the gland. In the wild they naturally rub it on surfaces, like a calling card. Your cham is shedding a couple thin "disks" of the stuff, similar to ear wax. Don't pull it out. If it is a normal shedding it may stay there for weeks, even months. And then it may simply disappear one day because your cham rubbed it off onto a branch or something. It is possible that, when in captivity, the chams don't rub them off as readily as they do in the wild. In the wild the scent or the presence of other members of their species climbing the same branches, may stimulate the rubbing reflex. Without that stimulation-to-rub the secretion may just hang in the gland for a period of time.
I would recommend you observe for swelling or if your cham appears bothered by it. But I do agree with Miss Lily. Check out the thread she linked to in her comment.
Here is a pic of one my Meller's shed years ago. And, yes, the exposed edges do harden, but the portions still within the gland are soft like earwax.
I would recommend you observe for swelling or if your cham appears bothered by it. But I do agree with Miss Lily. Check out the thread she linked to in her comment.
Here is a pic of one my Meller's shed years ago. And, yes, the exposed edges do harden, but the portions still within the gland are soft like earwax.
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It looks normal to me. That little wedge of discharge is common with Jackson's. You don't need to remove it. If there is no swelling it's much less likely to be infection.
