Help!!!!!! Look at his tail!!!

acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
On Friday night I was removing a dry hide that was much too small for Geek - once I picked it up - i saw Geek was under it and just there after - it slipped from my grip.

It happened so fast, I dont know if it actually hit him and I screamed like you wouldnt believe.

I then grabbed the dry hide (which was man made and VERY heavy) and pulled it out of his house - meanwhile he scooted to the other side of the home and started twitching his tail and turning in circles.

He kept tasting his tail during this time. About 2 minutes later he went into his other dry hide. 45 minutes later he was in the same area but had turned around - awake and alert.

When I checked on him about an hour later he was under his "shelf hide" - awake, alert as before

6 hours later - same thing

Its been 5 days since then and tonight is the first time I have been able to observe him outside of his hides. I am alarmed at the condition of his tail!

I know they drop thier tails etc but I am not sure what to think or do now - or even if I need to do anything

Please help Geek and I

He is cruising around with no issues that I can see.....what should I do?

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acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
Thank you

Anything I can/should do? Some sort of First Aid, or bath to help him?

Any thoughts as to how this happened?

Did he drop it due to my possibly dropping the hide on him, stress from the noise, stress from my screech?
 

TokayKeeper

Evil Playsand User
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718
Location
Albuquerque, NM, USA
basically, you caused the tail to "drop" without it dropping. Significant internal damage was done to it from most likely dropping the hide to cause it to impartially autonomize. It should fall off without problem and should regenerate. If you're worried enough, a vet should be able to amputate it at the injury site, giving a clean wound to allow for regeneration.
 

acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
Should I take that to mean no need to bring him to the vet tomorrow?

Sorry to be pushy - I just want to make sure Geek has the best care possible

As I write this - he is in his wet hide....not sure if that helps or not
 
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smsararas2

New Member
Messages
123
Location
Canada
My favorite little girl lost her tail a couple weeks ago because I also dropped her house on her*hangs head in shame*. The tail will fall off and you will be surprised at the lack of blood. For the first two days I kept her tank extra clean with paper towel for substrate and made sure she has ton of calcium because she was craving it(for obvious reasons). Then after the two days I kept is moistened one a day with a petroleum based ointment(thanks to Golden Gate Geckos suggestion) and she is doing just fine now. She did go off her food for a couple weeks but now she is back to normal except of course her little tail slowly growing back. Hope this helps, an only share my experiences with people.
 

M_surinamensis

Shillelagh Law
Messages
1,165
I am displeased by many of these responses. Soft language that seems aimed at making the thread starter feel better is causing the subsequent posts to be slightly inaccurate. They do not need to feel better, they need to have some information. It is what they asked for.

Injuries to the tail of a leopard gecko will often result in caudal autotomy; as others have mentioned the tail is built to break away in small sections, indicated by rings of tissue all the way down its length. Many significant (deep) injuries will cause the tail to then drop at one of the rings closer to the base of the tail. If that occurs, then it's fairly straightforward care for the condition, keeping it clean and watching it for signs of infection until it heals and begins regrowing.

Often and many times are not always however. There is a concern, should that crushed tail tip not drop. Having dead tissue still in contact with the live tissue forward of the break point is highly likely to result in secondary infections.

If the damaged tail tip is still connected after about forty eight hours (or less, if there are signs of infection around the break) you should definitely see a vet. The vet is likely to remove it and provide topical antibiotics, but that is a call that requires a direct, firsthand, educated observation of the condition. It is not something that anyone online can responsibly analyze from a photo and assist you with.

Edit: the wet hide may be problematic. Heat, moisture and dead tissue are pretty well guaranteed to encourage bacterial growth.
 
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Dog Shrink

Lost in the Lizard World
Messages
2,799
Location
NW PA.
I am displeased by many of these responses. Soft language that seems aimed at making the thread starter feel better is causing the subsequent posts to be slightly inaccurate. They do not need to feel better, they need to have some information. It is what they asked for.

Injuries to the tail of a leopard gecko will often result in caudal autotomy; as others have mentioned the tail is built to break away in small sections, indicated by rings of tissue all the way down its length. Many significant (deep) injuries will cause the tail to then drop at one of the rings closer to the base of the tail. If that occurs, then it's fairly straightforward care for the condition, keeping it clean and watching it for signs of infection until it heals and begins regrowing.

Often and many times are not always however. There is a concern, should that crushed tail tip not drop. Having dead tissue still in contact with the live tissue forward of the break point is highly likely to result in secondary infections.

If the damaged tail tip is still connected after about forty eight hours (or less, if there are signs of infection around the break) you should definitely see a vet. The vet is likely to remove it and provide topical antibiotics, but that is a call that requires a direct, firsthand, educated observation of the condition. It is not something that anyone online can responsibly analyze from a photo and assist you with.

Edit: the wet hide may be problematic. Heat, moisture and dead tissue are pretty well guaranteed to encourage bacterial growth.

I agree. Any time there is an obviously visible wound a vet should be involved. Accidents happen, live and learn, but please get your leo to a vet. Hope it's ok.
 

Holly12

Member
Messages
454
Oh my your leo got to be in pain like the others said get him to a vet he needs to get some meds for that tail. I wish you luck please tell us how he is doing. :(
 

acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
Thank you for the kind words everyone - they do help as I feel horrible

Thank you also for the much needed information - I have an appointment scheduled for Geek at 5:00 pm today with my vet

I was lucky to find that my local vet that I take my cats to also has a vet that specializes in reptiles.
 

Golden Gate Geckos

Mean Old Gecko Lady
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12,731
Location
SF Bay Area
M_surinamensis said:
Often and many times are not always however. There is a concern, should that crushed tail tip not drop. Having dead tissue still in contact with the live tissue forward of the break point is highly likely to result in secondary infections.
I couldn't agree more. If you look at the part of the tail just above where the shriveled up part is, it looks like it could become infected. Dry gangrene can become septic and systemic. I suggest a vet trip to have the tail amputated above the necrotic area and perhaps even antibiotics.
 

acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
Although I was happy to find the clinic I go to with my cats also had someone who saw reptiles - I was a little skeptical. As in, ok you went to Vet school and learned some about reptiles - does that make you the right vet to treat them? Alot of my reaserach on this site has told me it can be difficult to find a good reptile Vet.......

The vet Geek saw today was awesome! She was a lady in her late 50's or so and had clearly been a vet for a long time. After 5 minutes with her she started talking about her Savannah Monitor and her Iguana and all of thier antics - I felt very happy having her treating Geek after hearing she has had reptiles for years - what a welcome surprize!!

After she saw how bad I felt about what had happened and kept cringing everytime she handled him - she was super cool in telling me what she was going to do and then also telling me she was going to do it in another room as she didnt think I could handle it. LOVE HER

She did a complete physical of Geek, sexed him (yep - Geek is indeed a he) - then trimmed off the dead tissue - treated it with antibiotic ointment and also gave him an oral antibiotic.

It was funny as before all this she said, I would like to also treat him with some oral antibiotic and I may be going overboard but I feel better safe than sorry.

I was all ABOSOLUTLEY!!! Whatever you recommend - and thank you for going overboard!!! I am all for what ever needed to take care of my kids so it was funny to hear from someone else as I am usually the one that apologizes for going overboard!

So she trimmed off his tail and showed me how to go about giving him his oral antibiotics and Geek is now home and safe.

As I was at the counter waiting to pay after thanking her and saying Goodbye - she came back out and grabbed Geek again and said, Im sorry - I just want to double check his weight because what my assistant recorded just doesnt seem right compared to what I felt when holding him.

Turns out - she was right - assistant recorded his weight wrong so the she ended up adjusting his meds and giving him the additional oral antibiotic right there. CAN I SAY AGAIN LOVE HER??

Thank you for all your advise everyone - seriously appreciated and also - thank you for the kind words - I really did need them - I still feel like crap but the kind words here, from friends and from Geek's new Vet really help - seriously.

Poor Geek wouldnt have had to deal with losing his tail, dealing with pain, the stress of today or the next 2 weeks of twice a day ointment and once a day oral meds if it wasnt for my stupid mistake.

I am definetly living and learning off this one.
 

acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
Oh and M_sur - thank for addressing my concerns about his wet hide - the vet also said to remove it.

I took out all the moist moss and just put a paper towel in there so he can still use it as a hide but no moisture remains

Thanks again everyone!
 

acharpenter

New Member
Messages
204
Location
Minnesota
Thats so great that he got treatment! :D

I totally agree - I thank this forum for pushing me in the right direction to get him treatment

I was under the assumption from book research etc that if they drop thier tails - not to worry

As anal as I am about my pet's care - I second guessed that research to post here to see what those with Gecko's (and also have lots of personl experiance with) - would do. Sooooo glad I did

BTW - Geek just wanted me to relay to eveyone:

Doing good, thank you so much for moving her in the right direction - even though I hate the oral antibiotics....YUCK
 

Golden Gate Geckos

Mean Old Gecko Lady
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12,731
Location
SF Bay Area
I am soooo glad you took Geek to the vet, and better yet... found a GOOD one! I wish there were more reptile keepers like you, and you have set an amazing example of loving your gecko enough to get him cared for professionally. Most breeders I know wouldn't even do that. KUDOS!
 

M_surinamensis

Shillelagh Law
Messages
1,165
Thank you for all your advise everyone - seriously appreciated and also - thank you for the kind words - I really did need them - I still feel like crap but the kind words here, from friends and from Geek's new Vet really help - seriously.

Poor Geek wouldnt have had to deal with losing his tail, dealing with pain, the stress of today or the next 2 weeks of twice a day ointment and once a day oral meds if it wasnt for my stupid mistake.

I am definetly living and learning off this one.

I have no idea how familiar you may be with me. I am not a patient, forgiving or tolerant person when it comes to animal care. I am a perfectionist, I define right and wrong, proper and improper and I adhere to them rigidly, expecting others to do the same. Many of my interactions with other pet owners consist of me yelling about everything they are doing wrong. I am not a very nice person.

So when I, being me, say what I am about to say, it means something. It's not a hollow platitude or just being polite.

You have nothing to feel guilty about. You were not engaged in any risky behaviors, you weren't doing something stupid or likely to cause negative consequences. Your fingers slipped and your lizard moved so that the tip of his tail got clipped; factors outside your control or your ability to predict. What matters a great deal more than the fact that something you could not prevent occurred is your response when it did. You looked at an uncertain health scenario and you sought professional medical attention in a timely manner. You did not wait and see, you did not hesitate, you did not wait for it to be "something serious" you analyzed the situation and made the safest and healthiest decision for your pet. You did the right thing when confronted with the situation and you deserve praise and admiration, to be pointed at when others have similar issues, "Do what Acharpenter did."

No guilt. All good.
 

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