Strange Tongue Issue

[TheDOMINATOR]

Hello. About an hour ago during today's feeding I noticed my 4 month old male panther appearing to be struggling shooting at prey (a few free-ranging crickets). He would turn his head, lock eyes on his target, and open his mouth but his tongue would not come out. So I continued to watch him and then saw him appear to gag; he would gape, spit out a long blackish-brown solid-looking object that at first I thought was a twig he had somehow managed to swallow, then it would retract in his mouth and he would do this again several more times. I then realized this long thin object was his tongue! But the top thicker part on the end appeared to be missing. But after gagging for 3-4 minutes I actually saw it just fall out of his mouth -- it was horrible -- but was still attached, like a broken yo yo falling to the floor on a string. So again I watched and waited, and after a few minutes he began hunting as usual, shooting at crickets with stellar aim, appearing to be totally fine.

I guess my question is, is it normal for things like this to happen? Or at least heard of? I can only guess that his tongue somehow managed to get tangled inside of his mouth, or that a mealworm went down the wrong way and blocked it somehow (I fed him a couple of those yesterday). Lucas appears to be fine now, albeit darker than usual and a little wobbly while walking on his branches, but that could be him still being in pain and or shock from the whole experience.

Any thoughts or suggestions as to what could have happened and if he will be all right? Thank you.

 

[Carlton]

Hello. About an hour ago during today's feeding I noticed my 4 month old male panther appearing to be struggling shooting at prey (a few free-ranging crickets). He would turn his head, lock eyes on his target, and open his mouth but his tongue would not come out. So I continued to watch him and then saw him appear to gag; he would gape, spit out a long blackish-brown solid-looking object that at first I thought was a twig he had somehow managed to swallow, then it would retract in his mouth and he would do this again several more times. I then realized this long thin object was his tongue! But the top thicker part on the end appeared to be missing. But after gagging for 3-4 minutes I actually saw it just fall out of his mouth -- it was horrible -- but was still attached, like a broken yo yo falling to the floor on a string. So again I watched and waited, and after a few minutes he began hunting as usual, shooting at crickets with stellar aim, appearing to be totally fine.

I guess my question is, is it normal for things like this to happen? Or at least heard of? I can only guess that his tongue somehow managed to get tangled inside of his mouth, or that a mealworm went down the wrong way and blocked it somehow (I fed him a couple of those yesterday). Lucas appears to be fine now, albeit darker than usual and a little wobbly while walking on his branches, but that could be him still being in pain and or shock from the whole experience.

Any thoughts or suggestions as to what could have happened and if he will be all right? Thank you.

Chams sometimes do overextend (sort of a sprain or strain) or injure their tongues. I'd bet that younger chams are a little more likely to do this. As long as he can retract it completely it may be a temporary problem. Tongue problems and poor muscle tone can be nutritional, so I'd review your dusting and gutloading schedules just in case. If he can't retract it there's the risk he'll bite it off accidentally or will need to have it removed. Either way, a cham can learn to eat without the whole tongue structure.

 

[TheDOMINATOR]

Good info to know. Thank you. During today's feeding I monitored him closely and he seemed completely normal, hunting the free-ranged crickets with his usual great aim and his tongue seemed to shoot and retract as if nothing had ever happened. So I'm guessing I really have nothing to worry about. But boy I'll tell you, it was scary and horrible watching him gag and choking on his own tongue.

I dust pretty much the standard schedule: I rotate between a mixture of calcium and DinoFuel and a mixture of calcium and Repashy Superpig every day, with calcium with D3 twice a month and Reptivite twice a month. I'm considering giving him the vitamins a little more often for the next few weeks just to be safe, maybe once every ten days instead of two weeks.

 

[ataraxia]

To add to the possibilities. Make sure your chameleon is properly hydrated.

From my experiences its around the 5-6 month mark "if and when" a panther may start to shows signs of a deficiency. Id recommend implementing a multivitamin with a preformed version of vitA. Reptivite or cal plus have this version.

 

[TheDOMINATOR]

To add to the possibilities. Make sure your chameleon is properly hydrated.

From my experiences its around the 5-6 month mark "if and when" a panther may start to shows signs of a deficiency. Id recommend implementing a multivitamin with a preformed version of vitA. Reptivite or cal plus have this version.

He's pretty well hydrated; I mist several times a day, see him drink, and his urates are always milky white. And Reptivite is the vit supp I use.

I'm no vet or cham expert (this panther is my second ever cham), but I think what happened was just a freak accident. I can only guess he shot at prey and hit a branch or leaf unexpectedly and either his tongue got tangled when he retracted it, or somehow he swallowed his own tongue.

I'll continue to monitor him closely and again, I'm considering upping his dose of Reptivite from the standard twice a month to once every ten days or so just until I feel he's really okay and not deficient in anything.