Fire Bellied Newt with mouth problem

[Ferris]

I have a young male fire bellied newt named Hercules with severe swelling in his mouth. Dunno whether it's an abscess of some kind or if it's his tongue, but there is something there causing huge trouble. I've only had him a few days, and he had this condition when I got him.

I got him from a specialist reptile and amphibian shop who I trust greatly, they recieved him second-hand (not from a wholsesaler) and didn't notice his condition until afterward. I got him free because of his condition. He came with a female (also from the same previous owner) who seems to be in perfect health.

The swelling is a kind of opaque gray colour, and is swollen enough that he can't fully close his mouth properly, and it's extremely noticeable just looking at him.
He is active, but totally uninterested in food. I'm very worried and don't know how to treat him, as I'm not even sure what's causing this or what it is. I'm asking anyone who might know while I try to find an amphibian vet (which is much harder than it should be in my small city). I've included pictures. Can anybody help?

 

[Mac Myers]

Yikes! Hopefully someone smarter than I will chime in.
The only Vet ARAV lists in Ireland is:

Lindsey Lee Cox
59 Prospect View
Stocking Lane
Dublin, Ireland D16
Ireland

 

[Azhael]

Poor fella...
Taking it to a vet would be the ideal option. Otherwise it will be very difficult, if at all possible, to guess what could have caused it, let alone treat it...
Keep isolated, clean, cool, shady and undisturbed. Definitely don´t handle it anymore. Handling it will only make things worse and worse...

 

[Ferris]

Hey, just to update:

Poor Herc died roughly a week after I started this.
Found that vet actually, but I was told there was nothing to be done.

I was worried he'd slowly waste away from being unable to eat, but in fact I just found him dead one day.
Could have been worse I suppose!

Thanks for the replies.

 

[born2ride321]

Realize this was originally posted quite a while ago... but my fire belly has the exact same problem. I originally thought he was sitting with his mouth open waiting to catch bugs but today he was acting really strange so I picked him up and realized there was something in his mouth. Did anybody find out what this is or how to treat it? Poor little guy is probably not going to make the night...

 

[2by]

found out that my fire belly newt has the same problem, anyone knows if theres something you can do to cure this? would salt bath help?

 

[Chinadog]

This problem is very common in wild caught, petstore newts along with skin sores and rapid weight loss. The theory is that the animal's immune system has been suppressed by the stress of capture, storage and importation under less than ideal conditions allowing these kinds of problems to take hold. As previously posted, the only real chance of it recovering is providing perfect living conditions and taking it to a vet who has experience treating exotics.