Help... Tip of tail breaking off??? (Picture)

edevrie2

New Member
Messages
1
Location
United States
Help! I'm an elementary school teacher who has a ten-year old leo that has been the BEST class pet ever this year. About two weeks ago, it shed but didn't get the very end of his tail off. I tried using paper towels to add moisture, put him in my sink with a tiny bit of water, and tried to help him by trying to take the skin off myself. No good. About a week ago, I noticed that the tip of his tail looked like it was dead and broke off. I feel awful and don't know what I should do... will it come off by itself? Should I try to cut/pull it off? Should I take him to the vet? I just don't want him to be in pain, or to drop his entire tail if he feels threatened (if I try to take the end off myself.) Any ideas? Thanks. IMG_1387.jpg
 

indyana

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,336
Location
Massachusetts, United States
Unfortunately, that can happen if old shed is not removed promptly. :( I would keep an eye on it. If all goes well, it should fall off or be so loose you can remove it without him flinching much. The only concern at this point is infection. If you start to notice the rest of his tail becoming inflamed or looking unhealthy, you should definitely see a vet.

To help the healing process you can apply a little topical antibiotic ointment to the end of the tail.
 

Keagan

New Member
Messages
42
Location
Michigan
Going off of the previous post: If you do decide to use a topical antibiotic ointment, be VERY cautious when applying it. Since the tail is probably tender and inflamed any kind of touching (even lightly) could stress the him out and cause him to drop its tail. To prevent this in the future you could increase the humidity in the vivarium. Sometimes this can aid geckos in the shedding process. I have three geckos ( two leopards, one crested ) and occasionally mine experience issues with shedding around the toes. Since yours seems to have issues with shed around the tail, I'd advise you to check around his toes, sometimes shed can go unnoticed and his toes will fall off. As far as him being in pain, I don't believe he is. Of course I'm not the gecko so I'm not 100% about that, but as long as you don't notice behavioral changes such has changes in eating habits, hissing and nipping at you when you put your hand in the tank then hes not experiencing any pain. I think that the tail situation will resolve itself, although unfortunately the tip may fall off.
 

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