Help? My leo's tail tip is black?

[bethanboys]

I noticed my son's leo's tail tip (about half an inch) was a darker pink a couple days ago. It still looked normal though, no stuck shed or injuries. I made a note to keep checking on it. Well he does the feeding and general care so I forgot to check until today, when he told me to come quickly and look at her tail.
Now the half inch (well its about a cm now) is shriveled up and black.

My first thought was a) she got her tail tip stuck under one of her hides or b) a burn.

She is on paper towels and her heating pad is starting to unstick so it's not super hot anyway. However there are some gaps where the paper towel is pulling away...very small gaps but she could have easily slipped the tip of her tail in one of these gaps and fell asleep like that while it burned.

Does that sound possible?

So what's next...does she absolutely need to see the vet or can I wait for the tail tip to fall off (will it?) and watch for any signs of complications that would warrant a vet visit?
Her tail is otherwise healthy and fat and she is active and eating.

Thanks!

 

[gitrdone0420]

From the way you are describing it, it sounds like the tail is dying. It could have gotten infected somehow and started to die, or there could be something else going on to cause it to die... Im not really sure. But, as long as it doesnt continue to travel up the tail, the tail should drop by itself. One of my leos had a superworm eat a hole in the tail and it got infected. We put her on antibiotics and she dropped the tail herself, but I did take her to see a vet. If I were you, I would have it looked at just to see what the vet says and the vet may opt to amputate it. Anyways, that is just what I think... Good luck