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Small end of tail injury- Need some help.

Z

Zeina

#Addicted
So Tom shed last night- I got home and it was a nice full, one piece shed.
He's active, happy, drinking water, running around- but I noticed at the VERY TIP, like the last little 1/2 a millimeter of his tail, it is kind of bloody/injured? It wasn't like that before he shed. And I can't get a really good close up, this picture is the best I could do.
It's not bleeding, it's dried, but like, could it fall off? Should I leave it alone? If so, for how long? If not, do I take him to a vet immediately??
I'm not sure what to do. I believe he injured it during his shed, maybe he got caught up on something but I just want to take the right actions for his health.
Any suggestions are appreciated, I don't want him to lose the tip of his tail!
 

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I'm sorry no one has answered yet. Maybe this will bump it up for someone more knowledgeable than me.

Do you still have the shed to examine the tail tip again under a magnifying glass? I did a little research and your pic looks just like the retained shed pics of the very tip I've found. I'm not saying it is for sure because I don't have the snake or the shed to examine. If this were my snake I'd call and ask the vet, especially since there is blood; but like I said, I'm not knowledgeable in this area.
 
If it IS an incomplete shed, there is the possibility of just that small tip falling off. Even if you can get the last bit of skin off now, it may be too late. But should that happen, it's just the very tip. You'll still have a really cool snake and hardly anyone will ever notice. This happened to me once and it grew up big and healthy, and no trip to the vet was needed.... and he still looked great! I'm no expert either, just my trip down memory lane. Here's a pic of my first corn snake, which I sold. He was a pretty boy!
corn%20snake1_zpsopgfsroh.jpg
 
Yeah it was full- I checked the shed out after I noticed his tail tip. It had a little teeny bit of blood on it, so that's why I assumed this was due to him shedding and maybe getting stuck?? If it looks the same and/or worse, I will call a reptile vet first thing in the morning.
It may be okay, but I love my snakes to death and I don't want anything to happen to them, so I get a little over protective and weird about them lol thank you guys <3
 
It almost looks like old damage from a previous retained tail tip- maybe more than once. I wouldn't be surprised if he loses the tail tip. If he does, it will heal nicely and will shed better. The way it is now, you're going to have to very carefully check it every time he sheds.
 
Nanci said:
It almost looks like old damage from a previous retained tail tip- maybe more than once. I wouldn't be surprised if he loses the tail tip. If he does, it will heal nicely and will shed better. The way it is now, you're going to have to very carefully check it every time he sheds.
Click to expand...

Thank you Nanci.
It's odd, every time my boys shed, I pick them up and check them for stuck pieces and injuries. I check the shed, too, for anything weird.
I have never seen anything odd at the end of his tail, no damage or bleeding or stuck shed pieces... I've only just noticed it after this last shed. It concerns me if I missed something, I never want them to be injured because I wasn't paying close enough attention.
Would it be of any benefit to soak him at all?
Or should I just leave him alone and monitor the tail for now?
 
I don't think it will return to normal- it looks like it's been constricted at some point. I think if you soak and see if anything is left, you could end up pulling off that little end. I don't think it will make it worse to leave it.
 
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