Broken and black tail, help please

[chloe_bongo]

Hi everyone,
I am truly devastated by what happend today and I’m asking for help. It is completely my fault and I am so upset that I am the reason but this morning my chameleon was on the roof of his enclosure and after I had finished feeding him I shut the doors and shut his tail in the doors I was in a rush and I left for work and 7 hours later I came back, he had been there all day and I was devastated. I opened the doors and he got down immediately because he had been up there all day he rushed to get some water and now he has eaten and drunk the correct amount. But his tail is what is worrying me, I’m sure it is broken where is got caught and is black near the end.
I’m so upset with myself that I let this happen and it won’t happen again.
And I am so embarrassed about posting this but his health is more important. Any advice or information is hugely appreciated as I really want to do what’s best for him.
Please help I love him so much and I feel horrendous about this situation
Here are some pictures:

 

[ERKleRose]

Hi there! That’s going to require a vet visit and most likely amputation as it already looks like necrosis has set in. I know this all sucks, but you should be very proud of yourself for posting this to get help rather than not for fear of embarrassment! Keep us updated, I’m rooting for y’all!

 

[Beman]

First off... Breathe. Secondly things do happen. And with these guys you have to watch every single detail which the longer you are in the hobby the more you will understand that lol.

Now this would require a reptile vet visit. Depending on the extent of the damage if the tail tip dies off it would need to be amputated to ensure the tissue that is necrotic does not kill off good tissue above it.

Here is a vet list. You want a good reptile vet to take him to.

 

[GrannyK]

You’ve received great advice already, I’m just here to say do not beat yourself up over what happened too much. A lot of us make mistakes that affect our chams I know it’s embarrassing. I have been there. I did not realize when I changed out my heating lamp bulb it was a 75 w and not a 60 w I had in previous and my guy got quite a burn. I feel terrible to this day and it happened 2yrs ago. Came here to the forum got him attention at the vet and he is perfectly healthy. Everyone here is wonderful, they are here to help. Good luck with that little dude and keep us posted. We never know who our experiences can help in the future!


Here is my guy today, missing some scales and eye issues but other than that healthy and happy as a chameleon can be. ok so he’s not the happiest but what cham is with a camera in their business. Ha

 

[elizaann2]

Hello and welcome. I’m so sorry to hear this happened to you and your dear Cham. Please do not beat yourself up over this. Accidents happen. I agree with the above. Baby needs a vet. Please keep us posted on how things go. Sending you lots of love

 

[chloe_bongo]

Hi everyone, thank you so much for the kind reply’s. I am sorry to say I live in the uk, so the amount of reptile vets is slim to none. One of the only options I have is to talk to the reptile shop I got him from. This shop is really good with chameleons and is an amazing shop. I can get some advice from them but otherwise I’m not sure what my options are?

 

[Sonny13]

hi and sorry this happened. For now I would sterilize it (used the same as human version) at least twice a day, to prevent getting infected. A also applied calendula cream on it to stimulate the healing process and yes this not be the solution advised, but in your without the option of seeing a vet it's best option. I've experienced the same and I couldn't see the vet for 5 days, and this period the wound healed up, however the tail will be lost.
But, if you can visit a vet this would always be the number one thing to do. I hope for the best.

Ps. for me it was an emergency and I just handled pure out of instinct and I was lucky.

 

[ERKleRose]

Here is a vet list for the UK, hope it helps!

 

[elizaann2]

Hi everyone, thank you so much for the kind reply’s. I am sorry to say I live in the uk, so the amount of reptile vets is slim to none. One of the only options I have is to talk to the reptile shop I got him from. This shop is really good with chameleons and is an amazing shop. I can get some advice from them but otherwise I’m not sure what my options are?

Well blurg. I do have a small list of recommended exotic vets, I'll share it with you just in case it can be helpful to you. See attached.

 

[nightanole]

You may be fine.
If the blood flow hasnt be damaged, at worse you will have a kink.

The tail will be black for a few weeks, even if it is good. Any damage no matter how light will cause the skin to turn black.

If the blood flow is damaged, the best case scenario is it will dry gangrene and fall off on its own. This has been the case for all of my tail injuries that could not be saved.

I have never had an infected tail issue from damage, so i can not comment on that.

 

[kinyonga]

As @nightanole said…”If the blood flow hasnt be damaged, at worse you will have a kink.” can the end of the tail, below where it was squeezed, still curl on its own? If so, then it’s still likely getting blood flow and there may be a chance for it.

I’ve seen a few cases of tails getting “crimped” like this, in some cases, the end will die and fall off eventually…in other cases it will need to be amputated. bTW, I’m not a vet…I just speak from experiences, what I’ve learned over the many years I’ve kept chameleons and many other reptiles, etc.

 

[chloe_bongo]

Hey thank you for all the advice, it has been 3 days and the end of the tail is starting to get colour back. He is about to move the end fine but there is just a bit in the middle where it was in the door that’s got 2 dents and it doesn’t look like he’s able to move that part. He is walking round his enclosure fine and eating/drinking normally. For now I will monitor him but if anything gets worse I will go straight to an exotic vet near me as there is one. Thank you all for your help, I will keep you updated!

 

[kinyonga]

Exactly what I was hoping for!

You might find this interesting…
https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-medical-tail-damage/

 

[chloe_bongo]

Hi everyone, sorry I’ve been inactive. It’s been a month and Bongo is recovering really well, has continued to eat/drink normally, he’s had an easy shed and his tail has been gaining strength. He is now able to coil it round again in a spiral and it is starting to gain its colour back. Thank you for all your help, I’m so glad that he has bounced back and he didn’t loose his tail. We have also been working hard on gaining trust and he now happily walks on my had and is happy to walk about with me. Here’s some pictures of this and his tail!!

 

[Sonny13]

Finally some good news on the forums
Enjoy your Sunday

 

[Gloriawood]

Ooooo I’m so happy!!!! This is fantastic news!

 

[GrannyK]

So happy he has healed so well!!! he’s beautiful!