Tail wound, I need advice~

[gothra]

I mentioned this in another thread...Lemzip, my PA, had accidently bitten his own tail while catching mealworms, this is how the wound looks 2 days ago (I can clearly see teeth mark, some bruising, but no blood):

This is how the wound looks today, it is very red and the tail tip looks a bit "sunken and dried":

I have never dealt with this before; do I need to take him to a vet? Will the tail heal up by itself? And does he need any medication (e.g. to prevent infection? but its definately not an open wound...). Thanks for any advice!

 

[gothra]

I just took him out to have a close look at his tail, the tip is now hard and dried. The color is dark red. Will the problem spread to the whole tail? Will the tail tip dry up and fall off?

 

[gothra]

Ok, I read some of the past threads regarding the same problem; I would like to wait and see if his tail tip will come off naturally by itself (I think this is the best option for the gecko?). I have a question though, how do I tell if he is getting an infection? Any indications that I should look for? He doesn't seem bothered by it at all (he doesn't react when I touch his wound), and he is eating and pooping fine now.

 

[Sandra]

For this kind of wounds I've been recommended Neosporin in the forums. Betadine is a good way to disinfect too, that's what I was suggested by my vet to clean the stump when they had to amputate my gecko's tail.

I would wait for now but if you notice any worsening, I would take him to the vet. If it starts spreading, the sooner you stop it the better.

 

[Leopardbreeder]

Yes Neosporin is good and you can use diluted Chlorhexidine to clean the wound every so often.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Bonnie, I hope the infection doesn't spread, so keep a close eye on it. Any antibiotic will help, but most salves are petroleum based and will make the tissue stay moist when you really want it to dry up.

I had a similar thing happen to one of my geckos from crickets chewing on her tail, and I wound up amputating the end of her tail just past the necrotic tissue myself so it wouldn't continue spreading. The severed end healed up right away.

 

[gothra]

I could take him to the vet and get the end of his tail amputated, but I am hoping for a slim chance that his tail will heal up and the tail tip could be saved. So, how do I tell if the part of the tail is ready to fall off? It is still red today, will it turn black and dry?

I'll check on him everyday, and make sure the wound/redness does not spread.

 

[gothra]

Update: I just booked a vet visit on Monday morning (earliest I can get), not the usual vet that we used to see, she is fully booked until the 30th, will probably be too late for Lemsip...Well, I thought all is going well, the wound darkened but didn't spread. However, today I noticed his whole tail is getting pink, and it felt soft to the touch. Is this a sign of infection?

Wish us good luck, I hope this vet we are going to see on Monday knows about gecko...

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Bonnie, are the temps OK in his enclosure? It may be that he is getting burned, or the infection is spreading.

 

[gothra]

The temperature seems fine; I'm worried that he is getting an infection, is this life threatening for him? What should I expect when I take him to the vet on Monday? Amputation of the whole tail/ partial amputation? I really would like to have an idea in advance, because I feel this vet we are going to see knows very little about leopard geckos. Had seen him once on emergency a couple years ago, when Nana was on the verge of dieing. He just lectured us on how to keep geckos (the very basics...) and then sent us home; and Nana died on the same night!

 

[gothra]

We went to the vet today; Lemsip's tail is badly infected, the vet suggested amputation of the whole tail. He just called and said the surgery has just been finished; the condition of the tail is worse than he had expected, its all necrotic tissue right up/near to the abdomen area. He had trouble stitching up the wound as well, as the skin breaks very easily. He will give us another call a few hours later, if Lemsip wakes up fine, we can take him home tonight.

I noticed the faint bite marks on Monday morning, and I did check on him everyday. I only notice the slight change of colour of his tail on Saturday, I can't believe how fast his condition has worsen. I hope Lemsip can make it, fingers crossed...

 

[gothra]

Another update: I just went to visit Lemsip, he has woken from anesthetic (sp?). He still got about 1cm left from the very base of the tail, but the vet has stitched the wound close, so he won't grow a new tail. Will this be all right for him, no tail means no fat reserves in the future?

I didn't bring him home tonight, I requested to have him stay in the care unit, so someone could keep an eye on him. He will be given anti-biotic injection once every 3 days, until the vet thinks he's ok. So I'll go see him again on Thursday. Actually, I plan to have him stay in the clinic for as long as possible; that should save him from the stress of a 2-hrs bumpy bus ride.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

Wow, Bonnie! I'm so sorry your poor baby is going through all this! Do you have any idea how his tail could have gotten so infected? I have never heard of a gecko's tail being stitched up after amputation, so I don't know what to expect as far as it growing back. It's true that he would not have a fat reserve in his tail with it being gone, but I would think as long as he's healthy otherwise, he would be OK with the fat reserves in his body.

I hope he's going to be OK!!!

 

[Leopardbreeder]

I think he should be fine with no reserve. Just make sure he gets all he can eat! Best of luck to you both.

 

[gothra]

I had been thinking about this yesterday... remember I posted about Lemsip having diahrea after I gave him a silkworm? I mentioned his tail getting slightly "deflated". I wonder which comes first: whether he has an infection in the tail and he tried to bite it off; or that tiny bite wound really caused such bad infection (refer to the first pic I posted, its really just some teeth marks, he didn't even bled).

Anyway, they have scheduled a different vet to give Lemsip the anti-biotic injection on Thursday, I will be there also, I will definately get a second opinion about the stitching up of the tail wound.

 

[rubym]

I was just wondering how your gecko is doing? We just got a little one yesterday and his tail is in aweful shape. We are working on getting him into a vet tomorrow am. I know he will loose his tail up pretty far so I was just wanting to get a heads up on what I may need to expect from the ordeal. I hope your little one is improving.

Ruby

 

[gothra]

Update: Lemsip seems to be doing fine. Just got a phone call from the vet, she said Lemsip bled a little this morning while she is putting anti-bacterial cream on his wound; but it is normal and I shouldn't have to worry about that, as there is no sign of further infection. He will have his last injection on Saturday, and I have already scheduled to bring him home on the same day. I hope he'll do fine in my care...

I'm still a bit concern about the closing of his tail wound, don't know what will happen if his body attempt to regenerate a new tail, but there is no space for it to come out. I asked about this, vet said often times, reptiles with tail amputated will not regenerate a new tail...don't know if this is really the case...? Anyone know?

 

[Sandra]

Ouch, I wish I had read your replies sooner... My gecko had her tail amputated and has grown a new big, fat tail. I guess it's just a matter of how the vet did the amputation.

My gecko didn't bleed at all. Even when they were performing the surgery, she only bleed one or two little blood drops. I don't see then how bleeding while they are just applying cream in the wound is normal.

I saw in the other thread that you are calling your vet to ask them about how they amputated Lemsip's tail. Tell them about how my vet did it and it may help them in the future if they have to perform any other tail amputations.

If you don't get any second opinions by this evening I'll call my vet and ask about the stitches. I'm not close to her and it would be a bit embarrassing to call her only to ask an opinion; and I don't rely on her too much because she has told me incorrect information many times, but it's better than having nothing.

 

[acpart]

I don't know if this is helpful because it's only one case. One of my adult leos dropped the last inch or so of her tail --I dropped something accidentally on it (I felt terrible). After it happened, her tail shook for quite awhile and then it got stiff and rigid. The vet said as long as she was eating normally and there was no sign of infection she was OK. About 2 weeks later the damaged part of her tail fell off. There was no bleeding and it healed up fine, but there's also been no regrowth at all. She looks like a normal leo who just had her tail airbrushed --the back end is completely flat and smoothe. I'll take a picture of it if you want when I get home this weekend; I'm away for the week.

Aliza

 

[Leopardbreeder]

I dont think bleeding would be that bad because when ever you rub a wound, you pull open the scab. I hope she gets better.