AHHH It lost its tail!!

[lars5277]

I know that if some lizards lose thier tail they grow it back. Is this the case for an Iggy? Do they just fall off? It's still moving! The tail that is, the lizard is too. Is this something to worry about ??????

[Jeanne]

I know that if some lizards lose thier tail they grow it back. Is this the case for an Iggy? Do they just fall off? It's still moving! The tail that is, the lizard is too. Is this something to worry about ??????

IME, no they do not. My brother has one that lost his tail months ago due to some weird yeast/fungal type infection that we could not figure the cause, however, we did manage to cure him without any problems since then, he just has a short tail. I am not sure why your came off, but if I were you, I would look into it. Could be sick in some way, got it caught in his cage on something.. there are really a number of causes, I would definately look at his enclosure and try to figure out if it was something there or you have another issue going on? Can you provide pics of the injury? Now that his tail has come off, my suggestion is to dip his tail (the injured part only) into betadine and keep it clean. Do not use betadine too often, as it does inhibit growth/healing with extended use in reptiles, it is to be used more like and initial disinfectant. I would consider taking him to a vet ASAP to make sure he is OK. Also, his tail moving after it is not connected to the body is a temporary thing, the nerves in the tail are still working and dont "realize" they are not connected to the body. Also, lizards tend to use the wiggling tail effect so they can run from preditors, it distracts them so the prey can get away.

[frankykeno]

What were the circumstances that caused his tail to come off?


~~Jo~~

[mr~python]

my dad (back in the day) used to live with this guy that had tons of herps. he had an ig named charlie and charlies tail one day just broke off. my dad said that his tail did grow back it just wasnt as long (and it was darker with no pattern i think he said)

[SatanicIntention]

Yes, they do grow back, but definately not as pretty as before. It sounds like the baby is VERY stressed.

Is his tank in a busy part of the house? If so, I would move him to a very quiet part of the house and cover the sides of the tank with a dark sheet, construction paper, or towels.

I also hope you're getting his heating/lighting situated fairly soon. He is a growing iguana and needs this to grow properly, and if he doesn't get what he needs to grow, he can become permanently stunted. You can get UVB bulbs online very cheap(www.reptilesupply.com), and for his heating, you can just use a normal household flood bulb for heating. Bright, white light is key to a happy, healthy lizard. He does need fairly high humidity though, so you may want to get one of those human humidifiers at your local drug store. You can put it on a timer(found at WalMart, analog is fine). You can also put the lighting on a timer. I would set the humidifier to come on every 3-4 hours.

If he dropped his tail, throw a towel over his head to calm him, and then wrap him up like a sausage in a blanket, with his head still covered. Rinse off the wound, dry, and then apply neosporin or other triple antibiotic ointment. A baby losing its tail is very stressful on his body, as they can store alot of fat/energy in their tails.

As for handling him, leave him completely alone for a good solid week. Only feed and clean up feces. no need to mist as the humidifier will do that for you. Then, after that week, start putting your hand in the enclosure. Lay it flat on the floor and don't look at the iguana. If you look at him, it will mean(to him) that you are threatening him and see him as prey, and that isn't a good thing. Do that a couple times a day, and every day, move a little closer to him, but don't look at him. Then, after that, you can start to try to touch him. Move slowly, and try to pet his back or his head. Don't look at him still.

Slowly, he'll start to trust you, and realize that you don't want to eat him.

Just wondering, what are you feeding him? What supplements are you using? RepCal Calcium w/o D3(plain calcium) as well as Herptivite should be the only two used. He doesn't need any D3 because he will make it on his own being under the UVB lights. Hopefully you can take him outside for a few hours a day to get some natural, unfiltered sunlight. It will be very beneficial for him. You could also build him a wire mesh pen to be in while he's outside, which would probably be better, so he doesn't scratch up your arms tryin to get away. The pen can have wooden sides and a mesh top. Maybe big enough so he can walk around and get some good exercise, and also big enough to where you can place part of it in the shade and part in the sun. That way he can choose if he needs to cool off or warm up.

I hope this has helped a bit. I don't want to seem like I'm coming down extremely hard on you. I just want to see this Iguana grow up to be big and strong because of what his owners did for him, and not die at a very young age because his owners didn't know how to care for him. Do you know what I mean? I'm just trying to help.

[lars5277]

I still working on a UVB light, I guess I am going to have to order one online. I am keeping the humidity in the 90's and the heat there as well. we are feeding him vegatables and fruit. I am going to pick up some calcium when I go to town next week. I can try to take a pic of his tail tomorrow. As far as vets go, the nearest herp vet is 400 miles away, so I read what I can in the forums and learn as much as I can from my mother (she is very smart about all animals). I am going to be building a big viv this winter for the Iggy and Salina (housed apart of course). I am thinking of putting them into a closet with a humidifier to keep the humidity up a little easier. that should also help with temps too. I am going to have to order a couple Accurites online too. We live in North Dakota, and the stores don't seem to carry a lot of what we need. Pet stores give very different advice from what I see here. I was very upset with what the pet store had told us of the Iggys potential size and temperment. They blew me off when I called them and confronted them on this. We are going to read a lot more , and take the very best possible care of it. If it becomes more than we can handle my mother offered to take it for us, she has had them before and will be capable of providing a much better home for it. She also lives in Rockford which has a lot more resources than we do here. I appreciate all the information posted so far.
I have one more question, he burrows under his water bowl to sleep at night. Should I provide a hide for him? And does he need light 24/7?

[mr~python]

I have one more question, he burrows under his water bowl to sleep at night. Should I provide a hide for him? And does he need light 24/7?

i dont think igs need a hide but if hes going underneath his water bowl to sleep he might like a hide. and igs dont need the light 24/7. i dont know if it would stress them out like it would a BP, but for an ig 12 hours on 12 hours off would be fine.

[PrincessErica]

The tail wiggling after it's off is SO weird. I wanted to handle a baby iggy at the pet store so the guy took one out for me and the thing FLIPPED. It made a break for it and stupid pet store guy tried to grab it by the tail to catch it. Well, big mistake. The tail came off and was flopping around on the floor. I was seriously traumatized by that event.

[clizardb]

I also hope you are not just feeding the Iguana fruit and vegetables. The largest part of their diet should be dark green leafy greens with a positive calcium to phosphorous ratio such as collard, turnip, or mustard greens. You should also be dusting the food with calcium powder about 3 times a week and a vitamin/mineral supplement once a week.

[lars5277]

We are feeding it calcium on its food, and she got some special Iggy food at the store with addititives and such. We found out it's a female, so the wife has changed her name to "Easa". Shannon is doing tons of research on her to make sure she cares for her right, she showed me about 20 websites last night. I nodded and said "Yes Dear.".