Broken toe?

[SarahCarpo]

My little darling Draco, has decided, (i think) to break his toe.
I did have a dragon once before (Vivian) but I've never experienced this problem so i have no idea on what to do.
Hes extremely lively and loves jumping around the vivarium, so i presume hes just broken it doing some stupid stunt.
I've been reading various articles of the toe going black and falling off etc, but his toe isn't actually black, it just looks different.
He doesn't seem to be in any pain and when i touch it hes perfectly normal.
The toe however is quite hard, and isn't flexible. Its the longest toe so i'm almost certain its broken.
I'd just like some advice on how to look after his little toe, and what i can do for him.
Here's a picture Any help will be strongly appreciated.

 

[Venom508]

I read with tails. . about them having kinks or breaks, they can sometimes turn black, go hard and not 'flex' like it's supposed to.
And that looks similar. It might just be the picture, but that to me looks like it's black. All these things are a sign that it's necrotic, and it even looks. . -Squints- like the body is already trying to get rid of it.

It might just fall off and that could be the end of it of his toe.
It would be nice to get a second opinion though, hopefully somone will help with diagnosis.
If I'm right though, he needs to see a vet. If it feels different to the other toes, then it might need to be checked out.

Hope hes doing okay. Keep us updated on him!

Also, seeing as he is so young and this injury may have come from a fall. It might be a good idea to remove some of the higher perches from his tank. You could replace them with lower branches (So he can still climb but not hurt himself) and flat rocks, with places to hide.

Hope this info helps. Good luck with him. He is totally cute by the way! x3

 

[SarahCarpo]

None of the vets around here have anything to do with reptiles- useless i know. There's only a Pet store which will have a look at him- but i know they don't look after their bd's very well so i'm not sure whether to trust them. I've been giving him salt water baths, which is what various websites have recommended, to stop nay infection. I've also taken out the plants which he usually climbs up, because i think that's how he did it. He's also so young and tiny, i'm already concerned about him because he hasn't been growing as well as his brother- who's the same age but quite a lot bigger than him. Although he eats perfectly fine and stays well hydrated. I hope it does just fall off, but i'll be petrified if that happens. Haha. I will keep you updated, but his behavior and eating habits are perfect!! so the only concern i have is his toe.

 

[Venom508]

I'm sorry to hear about the lack of info in your area

Quick question, are you housing your bearidies together? If so they have to be seperated as they are solitary animals.

Just try and keep it clean, but the salt water may dry it out more, I dunno if thats good or not. Hopefully a mod will chirp in soon, I might contact one because that toe doesn't look good.

 

[PumpkinJelly]

It's good to know that he's still eating and acting the same as before. Things like this really prove that Beardies are tough little buggers If you want to take him to the pet store to get checked up on, then it won't hurt, as long as you keep a close eye on what they do to him (if they decide to do anything at all). Don't try to cut of the toe or pull it off, because that may lead to serious pains (since there still may be nerves in the toe that are connected and still have feeling int hem) and an increased chance of infection. Like someone else suggested, take out anything that allows him to get higher up off the ground, in case he loses his footing again and falls. I know what you mean about being petrified if his toe comes off. My little one's tail was nipped pretty badly when I got him. It was just the tip, but the tip was chewed up and rough. After a few days, the tail tip got hard, dark, black, and didn't flex at all. I applied Neosporin to the tail tip everyday, sometimes twice a day, hoping he could regain the flexibility and color in the tip. Nothing had been happening (although I kept up with the neosporin since I didn't want ANY chance of infection) with the tail, until one day when I was handling him. I was holding Fiz and he went through an opening between my fingers and his tail rubbed on my hand, and just like that, the tip broke right off, with no effort. It fell into my palm, and I freaked out. I started crying, actually, since I was so afraid he would die (Being a new owner then, I had only had him two weeks). But, the open part didn't bleed, and hardly looked open at all. The tip that had fallen off was hard, and didn't look like a tail at all. I threw it in the trash and immedietely gave Fiz a warm bath, and made sure everything was clean before I applied some Neosporin and put him back into his tank. For a week, I played "Home Veterinarian" and applied Neosporin to the tail tip until it rounded off and healed into the little nub it is today. Now, five weeks later, he's happy and his little nub is doing just fine (never had an infection). I thought my story would make you feel a little bit better about the situation.

Keep us posted with updates on the status of the toe, and if you notice any changes, try to post a picture of the toe and post it on this thread for us. It'll help us tag along and try to diagnose any problems that are persisting.

Have a Great Day!

-PumpkinJelly & Fiz!

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That long toe does look broken. That area will probably become necrotic & eventually dry out & fall off.
You can bathe him in a diluted betadine bath to help reduce the chance of any infection. The antibiotic ointment should be applied daily as well. Does it seem to bother him any?
If he is housed with another dragon, that can cause dominance issues which increases the stress on his system.

Let us know how he is doing.
Tracie

 

[SarahCarpo]

Well guys, just to let you know. I've just got in back from work, got out little Draco, looked at his toe. And it has gone. Its obviously fallen off in the few hours i've been out. Hes even more livelier now. The toe isn't an open wound, but i'm going to bathe it in either tea tree oil or aloe vera for a few days, (any suggestions on which would work best?) And hes not bothered by me touching his toe at all. But yeah i freaked out when i found his toe had come off and started crying. I've noticed though he has started shedding his skin now, which he hasn't yet done. So maybe its a good thing, and hes starting to be a big boy Thank you all so much for all the reassurance and advice!!

 

[PumpkinJelly]

Like I said, I cried before when Fiz's tail tip came off, so don't be embarassed by it :wink:

You seemed to have the same results as Fiz did when he lost a body part. No blood, and it doesn't even look open. What worked well for me was Neosporin and warm baths. I gave him a warm bath once a day to rinse out any dirt or whatever he may have gotten in there during the day, and then applied a decent amount of Neosporin to the wound. I had great results with it, since nothing happened to Fiz.

So, in my case, all it took was some antibiotic ointment (meant for cuts, scrapes, burns, like Neosporin. A generic brand will most likely work fine as long as the active ingredients are similar), a couple of warm baths, and a whole lot of love :wink:

-PumpkinJelly & Fiz