Chameleon tail turning black and scabbing

[Beman]

Update:

Attached are two photos from today. Literally the day I posted this thread Cam must have jumped down to his cricket box and on impact, busted his tail open. I only assume he busted his tail open because it was not showing “fresh skin” when I posted the thread, and after I found him on the floor trying to get his crickets, I could see some pink skin… I put some bacterial ointment on it using a q-tip day of, and today I just got done spraying it with water to clean off the ointment for a fresh dose.

Another chameleon lover posted a photo of their cham recovering from a burn, and the look of the “fresh skin” on their cham looks about the same as mine. All the signs are pointing to a burn.
What do you all think about these new pictures?View attachment 307130View attachment 307131

If it is in fact a burn. Which it does look like it is very possible although the pattern is odd to me. Then you want to get silver sulfadiazine cream from the vet for it. You will not wash it off. You will keep applying it to it. Typically 2 times a day generously. This will treat underlying infection as well as the burn so that it can start healing.

 

[ChamCham69]

Update on my Cammy:

I was unable to take Cam to the vet due to hurricane Ida. The city was without power for over a week and locals had to evacuate, although I do not think he needed to go to the vet. His tail (picture attached) is definitely deeply burned and is very very slowly healing. Please don’t be alarmed by the red-orangish tint on his tail. It’s not bleeding or infected. Cammy still uses his tail to grip and balance. I’m hoping this will heal soon but it may take awhile.

Please let me know if there are any concerns or additional actions I should take!

 

[Beman]

Update on my Cammy:

I was unable to take Cam to the vet due to hurricane Ida. The city was without power for over a week and locals had to evacuate, although I do not think he needed to go to the vet. His tail (picture attached) is definitely deeply burned and is very very slowly healing. Please don’t be alarmed by the red-orangish tint on his tail. It’s not bleeding or infected. Cammy still uses his tail to grip and balance. I’m hoping this will heal soon but it may take awhile.

Please let me know if there are any concerns or additional actions I should take!

Honestly looking at that tail.... IMO your lucky he has not passed from an infection. It is absolutely horrible and that would cause a ton of pain for him. You really need to get him into a vet. Get the right cream to put on it and see if they want to prescribe antibiotics for underlying infection.

 

[ChamCham69]

Honestly looking at that tail.... IMO your lucky he has not passed from an infection. It is absolutely horrible and that would cause a ton of pain for him. You really need to get him into a vet. Get the right cream to put on it and see if they want to prescribe antibiotics for underlying infection.

Well luckily I’ve taken him to the vet multiple times for this issue and he hasn’t had any infection

 

[ChamCham69]

Does anyone think that his circulation has been cut off to the back of his tail from the burn? If I mess with his tail he will move it but otherwise he’s not curling it unless he’s sleeping.

 

[ChamCham69]

Either way, I have made him an appointment for tomorrow afternoon. Update will come soon.

 

[ElliotG]

I agree with @Beman on this. At the least you should get a cream or antibiotic. In that pic you can see part of his tail is peeling away and dying, that can easily lead to an infection. I couldn’t imagine the pain the poor dudes in. If you don’t get prescribed a cream get an over the counter without pain killers, something is better than nothing. An iodine soak would probably do wonders as well. See if the vet will clip some of the dying flesh off and clean the area up for you.

 

[bbyoda]

Does anyone think that his circulation has been cut off to the back of his tail from the burn? If I mess with his tail he will move it but otherwise he’s not curling it unless he’s sleeping.

He's probably not moving it much due to the pain but it's good to hear he can move it still. Glad to hear you're getting him to the vet now. Please keep us updated!

 

[ChamCham69]

Hello All,
Cam goes to the vet in an hour. I will try to post his diagnosis ASAP. For now I wanted to share a picture timeline of his tail. I’ve included the screenshot with the date in the top center. The one without the date is today.

 

[bbyoda]

Thanks for the timeline pics. Good luck at the vet!

 

[Lindasjackson]

Good luck! I hope the vet is good and knows what to do!

 

[ChamCham69]

Hey everyone,
The vet said he was tail rot and so she will have to amputate it in the morning. She said that tail rot is extremely aggressive and usually antibiotics still don’t do the trick..

I feel that I’ve failed my friend.. I hope this forum helps another Chameleon out there..

 

[Lindasjackson]

Oh I’m so sorry! I’ll be praying for him. You shouldn’t blame yourself.

 

[bbyoda]

I hope the amputation is successful and he heals up well. I'm so glad you went to the vet!

 

[ChamCham69]

Here are a few pictures of my Cam. He’s been pretty spunky today. Climbing all over his outside plant, even hanging upside down. I got him some crickets (his favorite) and he went to town. He’s act like his old self again. I miss his beautiful tail but I’m very thankful he is doing well.

I am going to start a new forum in order to seek advise on caring for a chameleon without his tail.

 

[ElliotG]

Probably feels tons better

 

[bbyoda]

I'm so glad he's got energy and spunk post surgery. For him it probably feels great to get rid of that pain. Thanks for the update!

 

[Lindasjackson]

I’m so glad he’s doing better!

 

[MzLaurie11]

Wow a lot was amputatedbut he is so handsome all the same. I am so glad he is spunky and feeling good. now you can breath a sigh of relief that he is on the mend!

 

[CasqueAbove]

Wow a lot was amputatedbut he is so handsome all the same. I am so glad he is spunky and feeling good. now you can breath a sigh of relief that he is on the mend!

Here are a few pictures of my Cam. He’s been pretty spunky today. Climbing all over his outside plant, even hanging upside down. I got him some crickets (his favorite) and he went to town. He’s act like his old self again. I miss his beautiful tail but I’m very thankful he is doing well.

I am going to start a new forum in order to seek advise on caring for a chameleon without his tail.

For what it is worth. There was a clip floating around of a wild Cham in Florida catching a big Dragonfly. That Cam had only about 1in of tail. It was all gone and he was living wild.
Just a positive thought