Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My chameleons tail has turned black (well I got him like that).
the last portion, maybe 1/2 inch, is black. He still curls it up fine but will it fall off over time or what?
Mikey

Whether he will lose his tail or not depends on the reason the tail is like that and what is going on with it/in it now.

Below are just some of the possibilities (and I'm not a vet, so this is just from what I have seen/heard/read...
I have seen/heard of some tails where the piece will actually fall off and that will be the end of it. (No pun intended.)

However, if whatever happened to the tail allowed a fungus or bacteria to get into it, then it will likely get worse and/or spread infection further up the tail or elsewhere in the chameleon.

If there was a lack of blood flow from a trauma to the tail, it could have developed dry gangrene.

If a (dead) portion of the tail falls off leaving only the "good" portion of the tail and there is an open sore created when it falls off, then there could be (or have already been) bacteria get into it.

Hopefully it will be okay...only a vet could tell you for sure what, if anything is going on or needs to be done.