My bearded dragon has a hole in her tail

[Nithogger]

Hi,

Im a bit freaking out here. I left the beardie alone with crickets for a while, done it before and it never went wrong. Today I decided to remove all cover for the crickets so she can catch them. She's already a tad old, you see, around 14 years.

Then I suddenly noticed something odd on her a tail. Despite feeding the crickets, it seems they took a liking to my beardie's tail, and now there's a hole. I feel embarrassed as hell about it.

I put her in a bath to soak away some of the sand around it and have a good look. It's around 3 to 5 mm deep, still sensitive and a light pink colour.

What are my options? Does this heal by itself if I keep it clean?

Im thinking about removing all the sand from her vivarium and put kitchen paper on the floor so the wound stays clean.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Kind regards,

 

[AHBD]

Hi Nit....yes, take the sand out ASAP so it can't get in the wound. Can you post pics ? Raw honey can take are of most minor wounds, so you can apply some of that after a betadine bath [ add betadine to water until it's the color of iced tea ] Put the honey on + then a bandaid over it, change daily.

Can you post pics ? Here's how :
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Then use the XIMG to upload them

 

[Nithogger]

Hi, thanks for your reply!

Here are two pictures I took after cleaning it a little more. She was also shedding skin, which blocked it at first. Had to remove it a bit, gave her a warm bath and then cleaned it with lukewarm water and a cotton pad, to remove a bit the sand on the edges.

One more below for a slightly better idea of how deep it is.

 

[AHBD]

That really is a hole....some people exaggerate so a pic is worth a 1,000 words. The honey will work well as a wound dressing, lots of clinical proof to back it up. If you feel more comfortable going to a vet [ but ONLY an experienced reptile vet ] then that's also an option.

 

[AHBD]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiRxbTsh4zWAhUI6CYKHdewClQQFggxMAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.advancedtissue.com%2Fhoney-can-help-wound-healing%2F&usg=AFQjCNEBU3YyA2kqBJgR4ngnQ6ka8H5YVg

Here's an article [ one of many] that talks about honey as a wound dressing. It does not need to be Manuka, any raw unpasteurized honey will work. From a health store or straight from a beekeeper.

 

[Nithogger]

I suppose fill the wound with honey? I've read about honey before, also how it works, so I trust you absolutely on that one.

There's a vet in a city nearby that specializes in reptiles and also bearded dragons. I'll call them tomorrow and ask for advice.

Does your experience say anything about this? Perhaps a bit naive, but I'm afraid her tail will have to be amputated or something.

It does not need to be Manuka, any raw unpasteurized honey will work. From a health store or straight from a beekeeper.

I was thinking about getting organic honey, do you agree with that?

 

[AHBD]

As long as it says raw + unpasteurized. And yes I have had 2 beardies with eye infections [ over a 24 yar period ] that cleared up within days of applying honey. One had scratched away the top of his eyelid with his hind foot [ caught the nail + took the upper eyelid off, blood everywhere ] It healed within days + looked like the lid was actually supposed to be like that, with no scar.

I also had a family member cut the tip of a finger with a lawnmower. Had 8 stitches, tip turning black but after raw honey it healed quickly + you can not see a scar at all. It just looks like the finger grew that way to be slightly flatter + shorter.

Honey works because it produces it's own hydrogen peroxide [ the man made h.peroxide is not the same + not safe on a wound ] Honey promotes tissue granulation and bacteria can't grow in it. It's even used in a children's cancer ward in Bonne Germany on wounds that don't heal . [ Google it ]