What to do if a gecko loses his toe

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Silverfire

New member
My juvenile gecko who had some stuck shed on his head the last time he shed has shed again, but this time his toes were still on. When removing the skin with a q-tip, I noticed a kink in one of his toes and realized that the skin there was thicker on the other toes.

I’m afraid that I missed some stuck shed the last time he shed. While he did react when I touched the tip of his toe, I’m afraid that I may have been too late. I have a gecko who is missing toes, but I got him like that.

What should I expect if the toe falls off? Do I need to do anything to prevent an infection or is the wound closed when the toe comes off? I feel absolutely horrible about this, and I want to do everything I can to make sure he heals in a timely manner.
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
If the toe falls off, keep the wound clean and dry! Use a paper towel substrate until it heals.
  1. What type and brand of supplements are you using?
  2. How often?

Keepers always need to be vigilant. Stuck shed that a leo didn't remove, always needs timely help.

Should your leo have difficulty shedding, carefully use one of these methods to remove that stuck shed. Stuck shed could restrict blood flow to the toe. When left untreated that causes the toe to die and fall off.

IF a leo repeatedly has shedding problems, look to husbandry issues: lack of a warm moist hide just about 24/7, diet, multivitamins.

 
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Zeruel

New member
Has the toe turned purple or black? If not, it might still be savable. Just make sure you've removed all the stuck shed.

One of my gecko used to have shedding problem, and one time I missed some stuck shed on one of her toe. Though the toe looked red and kinked when I found it, it turned normal after 1 or 2 more shedding.

I can only suggest you to keep the tank clean to prevent infections. Leos are usually quite good at healing wounds so I won't worry too much for him. My rescued gecko had lost more than 10 fingertips from stuck shed but she's still thriving.
 
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Silverfire

New member
It looks perfectly fine now, thank goodness. He’s moving his toes perfectly fine now! It’s still a little kinked, but he’s moving it perfectly fine.
 
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Silverfire

New member
I checked again today and the kink is gone! I’m so glad I caught it in time. It’s only been the past two sheds that he’s been iffy on, so I’m hoping that he’ll have a nice clean shed next time. I’ll keep you all posted.

His current diet is not as cricket heavy as I would like- not a single pet store near me has appropriate sized crickets for him and haven’t had them for at least a month. (Well. They’ve been sold out for a month. Someone buys about a thousand crickets every time the shipment comes in) I just managed to get some mediums, which he eats a few of, but he’s mainly on small supers and small mealies rn. I use the zoomed dusting supplies on the schedule you provided me- (though I only give him d3 twice a month since he has a uvb. It’s monday pure calcium, Wednesday pure calcium, Friday multivitamin). If his sheds continue to act funny I’ll be taking him to the vet to see if he has any opinions on what to do.

I know you said in a previous post that since I live in a swamp that if the house is above 40% I shouldn’t give a humid hut, but I think I’ll keep providing him one, if you think that’s a good decision of course. You are a huge help and it’s obvious you care a lot about leos so I trust your advice quite a bit. [MENTION=3989]Elizabeth Freer[/MENTION]
 
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