Tail problem, possible nip? Really need info/advice!

[littlegoron]

I did a search but had trouble finding what I was looking for and I figured i'd make another thread to ask for help.
So, I got my baby beardie on the 21st of May, and over 2" of his tail was bent and twisted around, like a U shape.
This was taken the day that unboxed him on the 21st.

it was very tight when he first arrived. It will be 2 weeks this coming Tuesday, June 4th, since I got him, and the part of his tail after the nip points straight up in the air and it looks really shriveled and its a lot smaller than the rest of his tail.
It doesnt seem to cause him pain at all but I don't know what it is and I don't know if I should take him to the vet or not.
The breeder did not mention this to me at all,I was none the wiser until he got here, and is been bugging me about what it is, what will happen, etc. Is he going to lose almost 1/3 of his tail due to this? Should I say anything to the breeder? I sent an email the day i got him saying I had received him and did add that I noticed what looked like a tail nip but he didn't reply to that part

Here is a photo of how it stands erect

Here is a shot of it up close, sorry for the quality:

His tail has grown since I got him but that part is not catching up obviously and its getting all shriveled like i said.

Any idea what it is? Is it a nip, or something else? Should I do anything or let it be? Will he lose a significant amount of his tail because of this?

Thank you so much in advance, I really trust you guys and know you'll be able to help steer me in the right direction.

 

[AHBD]

Oh, my, you should have sent that pic IMMEDIATELY to the breeder if that's the way it arrived. That entire part of the tail is dying and will fall off almost certainly. Please get in touch with the breeder. It may be that the tail got caught in the lid when he snapped it down...I can't imagine the breeder sent it in that condition. It may need to be amputated if there's an infection[ from the point of the trauma] or it may fall off on it's own. Poor little dude !

 

[AHBD]

Also, even though this was likely an accident , the breeder should reimburse you or pay for any vet care needed from this injury.

 

[littlegoron]

I snapped a pic the minute I unboxed him and saw it, and I sent an email to the breeder the following morning saying that i had picked him up from the airport and all was well, and added that he seemed to have a tail nip or something wrong with his tail. He arrived in a box that you had to fold the sides in, almost like a pizza box, and i am thinking he must have accidentally squat his tail when closing the box.
I do feel like I should be reimbursed a little because I did pay a lot of money both for the dragon and to get him here, and if i have to pay for it to be taken off it's going to cost a good bit of money, my vet has a 50 dollar walk in fee right off the bat..I just wasnt sure if it was rude for me to say anything to them, though I really wanted to as I was feeling pretty upset about it.

 

[AHBD]

By the way, he looks very cute, and hopefully he won't develop a spreading infection. You really deserve a full refund.

 

[littlegoron]

Thanks for the help, i really appreciate it. I hope it comes off on its own. I will email the breeder with pics in the morning and see what happens..but im not optimistic

 

[littlegoron]

So today it is even smaller than in the photos above, and i guess it may fall off soon. if it doesnt i will have to book him an appointment with the vet for this week just to make sure.

I have a question though. If it does fall off on its own, what do i do?! Will the area already be closed off or will it be this awful open wound? I'm a bit nervous about it, since obviously ive never experienced this before..

 

[AHBD]

Hi there,...it would be good to look around for a qualified herp vet right now, it may need to be amputated and you wouldn't want to wait too long if it's infected. Has the dead part gone beyond the actual point of trauma , right where it was pinched in the original picture, or up to it + then stopped ?

 

[littlegoron]

From where it was pinched down to the tip, it feels like a twig, but everything above the trauma point looks fine, his tail has been getting thicker since i got him and it looks good actually, ends in a little nub and goes into the flat part where it was squat. I have touched his tail and it doesnt seem tender and the rest of his tail is all one color and looks healthy, i think its about to shed actually. I will try to get a good quality photo of it for you.

what are some signs of infection i can look out for? from looking at it, it doesnt look infected to me, but im not exactly experienced.

 

[icelore]

It looks like it's dead/dying, not infected. The trauma looks like a pinch, not anything that would open the skin to infection, so the odds of it falling off on it's own are high I think. Especially with the fact that the tail has continued to grow and get fatter above the point of damage, it bodes very well for you! Hopefully he won't have any issues and all will be well.

Keep us posted, I'm interested in seeing how it turns out.

 

[AHBD]

It's good that it hasn't visibly traveled any further, and it may just fall off and that will be the extent of it. At times an infection can creep up underneath + unseen , so just keep a good watch on it. And you actually e-mailed the breeder the day you got him like that and never heard back ?

 

[littlegoron]

i got him the 21st and the morning of the 22nd i emailed the breeder and told him we had got on well, mentioned he had something wrong with his tail[people told me it was just a nip so i said i thought maybe it was that but wasnt sure] and said i was not told about it, but otherwise he was alert and looked well. i asked some other questions like what greens he had been fed, to make veggies easier for the both of us.

The breeder replied several days later and only discussed the greens question and did not say anything about the comment towards his tail that i made.

I did not send the pic along with it which i really regret. i did take the picture the minute i unboxed him but i really thought it would heal. the breeders wife/partner has been ill and i didnt want to be a pest during such a stressful time, so i told him about it the day after i got him.

i did email him yesterday as well at your suggestion and he replied quickly, saying he had a witness [his wife/business partner] and that the dragon was fine when it left his house, and that he couldnt be responsible for what happened to the dragon in my care, so basically said that i was the one who did it, or that maybe air canada had crushed the box[they didnt, it was in perfect condition] He was not willing to even consider the possibility that it was just an accident on his end. it didnt happen out of magic thin air. if i opened the box one time to take him out and his tail was damaged, what other explanation can there be? but he was not willing to even imagine that as an option, that an accident can happen.
basically his response summed up was "i know i didnt do it, i have a witness who will vouch for me, so you can admit you did it or we're at a dead end."

He then offered me a $30 refund, which is less than 1/10th of what i paid for the dragon and delivery and taxes and seems quite useless. that wont even cover the walk in charge at my vet if i have to take him. I sent him the photos posted here and he said it looks like it will fall off on its own and that i shouldnt take him to the vet anyway.

 

[littlegoron]

ps. i checked his tail this morning and felt it and it feels pretty normal and looks like the death has not spread above that initial flattened impact point. im going to watch it for another while though, i check on it every day for changes. i think i will call the vet today and get an estimate on how much an amputation may cost just in case i do have to bring him, really hoping it wont cost too much.

I am going to try to take a good quality photo of it today if my sister comes over with her camera, so i can post it here just so you guys can take a look too.

 

[littlegoron]

HIS TAIL IS FALLING OFF

it was really going sideways today so i figured probably tomorrow it would be falling off. but i just went to feed him and it is hanging off now, what should i do?! will i leave it alone?
i think our vet closes at 8pm and its only just started hanging off now at 7 45. he does not seem to notice or be bothered and is in no pain..
i usually give him a bath around 9pm, should i skip it tonight, will the water hurt it?

please help me guys if you can im scared, i knew itwas going to fall off but i dont know what to do now!

 

[AHBD]

It's O.K., it needs to fall off. He'll be fine with or without a bath....it doesn't hurt him. See what it looks like tomorrow, if it looks red/irritated, then have a vet see it. For now he may not even notice it, it's dead tissue, like a scab coming off. By the way, baths should be given earlier in the day so all the scales can dry completely before lights go out.