best way to cause a tail drop?

[lytlesnake]

This might be a controversial subject, but here goes anyway. I have hatched a gecko that has a badly bent tail due to my own incompetence at operating a hovabator. Or the hovabator may have a wafer going bad. In any event, my Nature's Spirit incubator will be here in a few days.

This gecko's tail is almost at a right angle. So if I scare it into dropping it's tail, it should re-grow a straight tail. I think the gecko would have a better quality of life with a straight tail.

The question is, what is the best way to scare the gecko into dropping it's tail? I have an enigma that dropped her tail in shipping. We're pretty sure it happened when the agriculture department opened the box and their dog sniffed it. This probably terrified the poor gecko.

So should I just put this gecko in a tub with a lid and let my dogs sniff it? Or is there a better way?

 

[LadyGecko]

Does the baby have difficulty walking/standing/balancing in general with the bent tail?

If not-just leave it be and it will drop it if it needs to
just my -.02

Sandy

 

[Nigel4less]

I use a scalpel and try to detach it, it sounds cruel but I`ve had to cut off some burned tails,etc. And they seem to regrow it fine.

 

[lytlesnake]

The gecko gets around just fine, though it does have some balance issues and tends to walk in circles a bit. (No it's not an enigma). When they're small like this a bent tail does cause some of that.

If it was just a little bent I wouldn't consider doing this, but it's pretty bad. I'd be scared to use a scalpel though. When their tails detach naturally, you can see geometric sections where the tail joins the body. It looks almost like when you cut open some kinds of fruit. I've attached a picture below of my enigma's tail to illustrate what I'm talking about.

So I'd prefer to just scare it into dropping the tail as opposed to cutting it off. I don't think I'd do that unless it was a medical emergency, which it's not. This is the hatchling here.

 

[micahash1]

Per my vet a poke with a needle usually causes the leo to drop it's tail. Although I probably would not recommend this unless its bent tail is causing issues. (Heck if I had a tail, I'd drop it too if I saw a needle. I hate 'em)

 

[Bling_my_leo]

Ewwwww! That pic, the second one, is nasty. Sorry. Just to say that....

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Jason, why would you want to scare and stress out your gecko to the point that is loses it's tail? I'm sorry, but unless the geckos tail is causing it pain or poor quality of life, I just don't understand why you would want to subject the gecko to that. When geckos are regenerating their tails, they are susceptible to infection and have no fat reserve.

I think this little one will adjust very well to it's tail just the way it is. I see absolutely no reason for removing a gecko's tail for cosmetic purposes.

 

[skyline]

I wouldnt do it unless it is causing the gecko pain or if it can walk or stand properly. yeah just like Marcia said it will stress out the gecko. I'm pretty sure it will adjust to fit its needs.

 

[lytlesnake]

I do understand the shocked reaction to this. It's not that I want to stress the gecko, and it's not for cosmetic purposes. I'm just wondering if this gecko would have a better quality of life with a re-grown but straight tail.

My enigma recovered physically very well from a dropped tail. I use a spray called Herptile RX which is Electrolyzed Oxidizing Water. That, combined with a clean enclosure, minimizes the chance of infection. Still, scaring the gecko with dogs is not a good idea. I don't want to cause it psychological problems.

It's just a thought, so I welcome everyone's opinion. If I do decide to poke it's tail with a needle or something, I was going to wait until the gecko gets bigger and stronger anyway. I might not do it though. I will continue to monitor the gecko's progress and make a decision in the future.

 

[Mel&Keith]

I would think that it will be just fine with it's tail like that. I remember someone posting pics of a pig tailed gecko that was big and healthy a while back.

 

[fallen_angel]

We had a gecko that did not fully recover from a lost tail, so I couldn't imagine putting that kind of stress on it. She was my very first gecko, and my first and only *knock on wood* tail dropping experience. Tail dropping really scares me because of what happened to her.. I know about the Herptile RX, and have heard many good things about it.. unfortunately I didn't know about it when our girl lost her tail.

But anyway, I agree that unless the tail really causes problems, I would just leave it alone. This may sound dumb, but how can you be sure the tail will grow back straight?

Also, I am very interested to know what caused this (you mentioned your inexperience with Hovabators), if you don't mind sharing..

I also agree with everything you said about the scalpel. I noticed the geometric sections when it happened to us as well. If you DID decide to do this, I really don't think the needle idea is all that great.. if anything, I would try really loud, sudden noise or something.. But as said, I wouldn't do it either way unless the bent tail really caused the gecko problems in life.

 

[lepgeckosrock]

I have also seen geckos that have dropped there tails and the one that grew back was crooked or deformed so how can you guarntee it will grow back anybetter than it is now

 

[lytlesnake]

I put the thermometer on the bottom grate of the hovabator. I didn't realize that the temperatures above that were higher, so the eggs were getting overcooked I think. When I saw a few eggs starting to collapse, I re-misted the vermiculite around them. I should have only done this once, but I saw more eggs looking affected, so I re-misted several times. Well, that made the humidity in those containers way too high, so then the eggs swelled. I really should have noticed how heavy the containers were getting, but I didn't until it was too late for some eggs.

I had the thermometer on the bottom part of the hovabator last year too, but there were no problems, except for my very last hatchling of the year having a big knotted looking club tail. I think that was because the weather got really hot for a while. Then the air conditioner would come on, and I guess it was just too much temperature fluctuation. That, or the wafer on that hovabator has been going bad since last summer. I think it's fine though.

I live at 3200' elevation in the mountains, so it can get pretty warm in the day sometimes, and then much colder at night. I wish I would have gotten the new incubator before this season started. I meant to do it for a long time and just never followed through on that thought! Now I feel badly for the eggs that didn't make it, and the couple of hatchlings that have been less than 100% this year.

Also that's a good point about the tail maybe not growing back straight anyway. Who knows? Well, I'll give it some more thought while I continue to observe the gecko and get it feeding really well. Thanks again for all your replies. I welcome all input on this subject, whatever your opinion or experience.

 

[fallen_angel]

I too keep the thermometer under the grate (and understand the problem) but I now have a second thermometer on top of the grate. This fortunately hasn't cooked my leos, but has made most of them incubated for male when I thought I was incubating for both sexes (although I guess it doesn't matter since they are mack snows and don't incubate along with the "rules").

Thanks for the explanation, as it can teach us all a few things :main_thumbsup: I am sorry about all of the issues you have faced this year, too. I am definitely getting a new incubator (Nature's Spirit) for next year.

 

[lytlesnake]

Aside from the lost eggs, I've hatched 8 geckos this year, 3 Amel Fat Tails, a Super Hypo Tang, this Cremesicle, 2 RAPTORs, and most recently a Jungle het raptor. The Super Hypo has a very slight knot in the middle of it's tail, and one of the AFT's came out really small. They're all doing well though, and the rest have had no problems. The RAPTORs look really sweet this year too!

 

[fallen_angel]

Very awesome and congratulations!

 

[GeckoGathering]

Tail Dropping

I'm just wondering if this gecko would have a better quality of life with a re-grown but straight tail.

***But stressing out from it + possible infection can sometimes give different results.
I had one drop its tail and 5 hours later it died. Take care. HJ

 

[lytlesnake]

***But stressing out from it + possible infection can sometimes give different results.
I had one drop its tail and 5 hours later it died. Take care. HJ

Aw man, sorry to hear about that. When I was feeding last night the gecko's tail looked a little straighter actually. I'm gonna watch it as it grows before I think about trying to get it to drop it's tail.

OTOH, one person told me that they just pinched a third of a hatchlings tail off and it didn't seem to mind at all. It does sound risky though. I'll keep you posted. Thanks!

 

[Surf_420]

just give it time, i had a super hypo pigtail born last year, i dont have any current pics on my lappie (gaming computer is down) but after 4 months of fattening her up her tail straightened out.

also liquid calcium would help also, i remember someone telling me that it may have been caused from a vit. a or calcium defienciency late in the mothers laying season. anyhow my pigtail is no longer a pigtail and is very happy i never thought of doing something drastic as making her drop her tail .

give it a few months and see the difference

 

[lytlesnake]

The little Cremesicle is doing well. As she grows, the bend seems to be having less of an effect on the tail overall. She's moving around great too. I gave her some calcionate syrup once, I'll give her some every day for a while. Thanks for the info.