Swollen jaw?

[tortoise16 2003]

One of my Libyan Greek tortoise I recently acquired has some swelling on one side of her jaw. The tortoise is overly very health super dense eats great great eyes I haven’t noticed any other issues. It seems like the swelling is due to a internal issue as I don’t see any injuries that could be causing the issue. I did have a Forsten tortoise in the past that had a very similar thing and it didn’t cause any issues. It’s hard to see since it’s still small

 

[Ray--Opo]

Did it go away with your other tort? I am not that knowledgeable so hopefully someone will chime in soon.
And welcome to the forum.

 

[tortoise16 2003]

Did it go away with your other tort? I am not that knowledgeable so hopefully someone will chime in soon.
And welcome to the forum.

It didn’t she was fully healthy. It stayed and it seemed to never affect her. Didn’t grow or get smaller

 

[Yvonne G]

I'm sorry, but I'm not seeing what you're concerned about??

 

[tortoise16 2003]

Hope this shows it better. She’s supper healthy in all other senses eats like a pig great weight poop looks good.

 

[Yvonne G]

Looks like it may be an abscess. Sometimes a sharp piece of something they're eating pierces the mouth tissue. You should have a vet look at it. They don't usually get better without intervention.

 

[tortoise16 2003]

I see yeah I’ll have to get a vet appointment. Do you think I should try Baytril first? I do have some that I could try.

 

[Yvonne G]

Baytril is an antibiotic. It would tackle an infection, but it wouldn't express the gunk in the abscess.

 

[ZenHerper]

The problem with reptile pus is that it is crazy thick...like cheese. The immune system walled it off and the circulatory system can't really transport antibiotics to it.

Surgery is done to remove the lump of gunk and to stop the generalized inflammatory response. Antibiotics may be prescribed after surgery to prevent re-infection through the surgical incision and immune-depressive stress. Usually, an antibiotic wash is prescribed to be flushed directly into the surgerized cavity.

 

[Cathie G]

I can't cast a vote because I think Yvonne G and ZenHerper are right. Actually I've had two boils that turned into something similar. An abscess. They were like a little pea under my skin and antibiotics wouldn't get rid of them. They would cause me problems once in a while because an infection would flare up around them now and then. Surgery was the only solution and it worked. Best wishes.?

 

[tortoise16 2003]

Got it so if it isn’t treated it can lead to a infection? I had a Forstens that had it she was fine with it I end up selling her. But if there are risks of it developing into a infection then I think surgery is probably the only option. Also I was told by someone else it looks to be swelling since it’s not hard when I feel it it’s soft and watery not hard. Should I wait a week or so before I get a vets check? Since it could go away in it’s own

 

[ZenHerper]

An abscess is the pus formation from an infection.

But if this bubble is not firm, then it is not an abscess.

There is a kind of pneumonia called Pneumomediastinum that pushes air bubbles into the skin of the upper body, including the neck. This condition forms in response to an infection of the lungs.

In either case, a veterinary consultation with an office that sees reptiles routinely is needed.

 

[tortoise16 2003]

I applied some heat with a paper towel yesterday and it seems like the swelling went down a bit.

 

[ZenHerper]

I would be extremely cautious about applying therapies without knowing what is going on there.

If this is a form of pneumonia, the primary condition is internal.

If it is a local inflammatory reaction, the cause needs to be identified and addressed.