Is this tail rot?

[KayJay93]

Alfie's 3 months, and adorable. But i'm a bit worried about his tail. When i bought him he was with all his other brother and sisters, and he was the only one that actually had a full tail. It's always been a bit dark, but i'm worried if its tail rot or not? And can anyone explain exactly what tail rot is and how to treat it? He is due for a shed so he's a lot darker than usual and has lost all his colour which makes it look slightly worse than usual, but i'm still worried about it.
Would appreciate any help, Michaela x

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

That appears to be a normal looking shed. Has he been bitten on the tail? If not, unless the tail has been injured it will not be tail rot. Is he housed separately?
Tail rot is when an injury from a tail nip or a break becomes infected & can travel upwards on the tail. Sometimes portions of the tail become necrotic while the infection spreads which causes that part of the tail to have to be amputated to stop the infection from becoming systemic.

Tracie

 

[KayJay93]

I don't know if there were any injuries from before i bought him, but i know he had a broken toe which shortly after i bought him fell off and thats doing absolutely fine. Alfie does have the tiniest kink in his tail, which could have been an injury? You can see it ever so slightly on the close up picture of his tail near the end. He's the only beardie i have so he's housed on his own.
Do you think i should take him to the vets?

Thanks for any further help x

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Alot of them have a tiny kink or crook on the end of their tails. It could just be how they were born, or a slight calcium deficiency.
How is the tail looking today, is it still dark? I really think that it is a preshed phase.
If he had a tail injury it would be a very obvious deviation so it doesn't appear that he has had a tail injury. Did his toe heal up pretty well then since you have gotten him?
If you feel that the tail begins to get stiff, or if it is just not looking quite right, you can take him to the vet.



Tracie

 

[KayJay93]

He still hasn't shed yet, so still looking pretty dull, am hoping he'll shed tomorrow
Yeh his toe healed up absolutely fine Its just a little stub now haha. Doesn't cause him any trouble at all.
Will update with a photo after he sheds to see if its still dark or if it's just normal.

Thanks x

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Great the toe healed up fine, with no problem. Poor thing!
Definitely post another picture after his tail sheds so we can compare the color of before & after to make sure that there is no problem. I hope he sheds soon!

Tracie

 

[KayJay93]

Alfie has finally shed!
However his tail hasnt...
This happened last time he shed and it eventually went fine. Is there anything i can do to speed the process along apart from regular baths? Should i be worried about the fact that his tail takes around a week on average to shed?
Here's some pictures of his tail while he's in the bath, he is a beautiful colour :

 

[dawnki]

I'm pretty certain the dark color of the tail and any crooks is a sign of calcium deficiency when they are young-----my dragon had this occur when he was a hatchling as did many other babies where i used to work. I blamed it on the use of wrong lighting. Bruno--my dragon-----still has this and he's an adult now. So it never really ever goes away but won't harm your animal.

Bruno as a baby-----notice tail

now as an adult---

 

[KayJay93]

Aw! He's absolutely gorgeous though

I definitely know i have the wrong lighting (reptiglo 10)...
Once i knew it needed changing I ordered the Arcadia 12 straight away which was fine... Until it took 3 weeks for them to tell me they didnt stock them :shock:
So i'm claiming to get my money back and i'm going to order another one today. Hopefully this time i'll get it quickly

Thanks for the help x

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Great Alfie is finally shedding. The tails take longer to shed most of the time, so, no worries. If you feel it needs some help then you can use aloe vera to help it out along with baths.
What is the humidity in the tank?

Tracie

 

[KayJay93]

I didn't know that, thanks

Honestly? I'm ashamed to say i dont have a hygrometer I was told i wouldnt need one when i bought him and hadnt really read up about the humidity.. shamefully.