Broken horns

[OldChamKeeper]

Does anybody have some experience when a Jackson cracks/breaks a horn?


I noticed today when filled my little bud's feeding cup his middle horn was at an angle. In looking at it I see he busted it at the base. Very small amount of dried blood and almost not noticeable right at the base. I straightened his horn. Felt like it is still at least half intact.


So, ideas?


I am tempted at this point to let it be, secure it with a dab of super glue (I've repaired cuts and other odd injuries using that in very little cases) and keep an eye out for infection. Is there anybody here who thinks I should finish off the horn and just clean the stump? I'd think it would grow back over time. Such a shame as he has never broken a horn and had a magnificent rack.

 

[mcbdz]

I would be afraid to remove it. Can you call your vet and ask. They understand how stressful it is on them to come in and usually will give advice over the phone unless it is important to be seen. We also have a couple vets as members on here so maybe they'll see this post later.

 

[ChameleonMom]

Sorry to hear your little guy has broken a horn. I don't have experience with Jackson's but I do have a 4 year old male veiled (Camo) who last year had the 'spine' of his casque separate from the rest the casque. I left it alone but soon after is split right away from his veil about half way down. I'm assuming he caught it on a vine or piece of driftwood in his cage because soon after it happened I woke up one day and the piece that was separating had disappeared and left behind was a kind of 'wound' that appeared tender and sensitive. I didn't find any blood when this happened. I contacted my vet and she couldn't explain it but I was directed to treat the area with Polysporin and keep an eye on it if it became infected or abcessed. It didn't and the Polysporin helped it to heal rather quickly. My guy is no worse the wear for having lost this part of his casque! Is there a vet you can call for advice without bringing him in? If you do decide to remove the horn I would treat it with Polysporin! Good luck with your little amputee!

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

I would not glue it. If enough of the blood supply has been damaged then the rest will shrink down and the horn might die. Then you will have something dead glued to his head and when will need to fall off then you might get a terrible infection in there. Bad situation. I would just leave it and maybe put a dab of neosporin on the crack. It might reattach and be okay, but it might die and fall off. Unfortunately there's nothing you can do to increase te chance that I will be okay. You'll just have to wait and see.

 

[OldChamKeeper]

In a direct examination, there is no separation. I had to wait for the wifey to wake up so I had a second pair of hands if needed. I only stress a cham once if I'm going to handle it to look at it.

If anything the center horn is a little "loose" and still has blood flow to it by candling his horns. Looks more a false alarm. I think he got his horns stuck in his branches or such and tweaked his middle horn. The small area of dried blood is from the base. Once cleaned there was nothing.

In using glue I can safely report from past exp. that when the animal sheds it comes off with the shed. This is not something I'd suggest to anybody. I happen to have a tad more experience in a little first aid than most folks. Notice I said first aid, I'm not a vet.

If he eats and drinks like normal I'll just keep an eye on him. If he looks like crap in a day (he looks normal as I type this, all fired up and angry at me) I'll pop him over to a Herp vet I've been meaning to meet.

Thanks folks