Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I got this guy/girl today. He/she is missing a part of its hind leg and the entire tail; it doesn't even have a tail base. It doesn't really even have a properly formed vent. If it was a male, the place where the hemipenes were is totally gone. Anyone ever have a lizard like this before?

That poor guy has really gone through the ringer. The injuries don't look recent and seem to have healed up nicely. Whether he is a male or not, it is likely his hemipenes have been amputated along with the tail (though it doesn't look like that tail was removed by a Vet, but due to injury...either fight with another bearded dragon or another animal).

Other than the old injuries, he seems to be healthy. Getting him to a vet to make sure there are no underlying problems, wouldn't hurt. My biggest concern will be the vent area, but if he is pooping fine without straining he should be fine. Making sure he is getting enough food will be important though as one of the primary fat storage areas is gone (ie tail) so prolonged periods of no food or insufficient food, can be very dangerous for him.

I also suggest to keep him off any abrasive substrates (ie sand) and use low wide basking spot, so he can climb them easily. With three good limbs though, shouldn't be much of a problem climbing and moving about.However with no tail, which does play some part in balance, he may not like narrow basking areas.
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PHLdyPayne

Thats what I was thinking; if he's a male he doesn't have hemipenes anymore. There's not really a vent to probe, so I'm not sure if you can sex a lizard like this, or if he would even be considered a sex at this point.

I'm going to keep him for a month and see how he does, then i might ship him out to a friend of mine in ohio who has a soft spot for "short bus" beardies

My biggest concern is that it might be a female. And that she would develop eggs and not be able to pass them.

probably the only way to know for sure how the 'passage' is like..is to get a vet to use either ultrasound or x-ray to see if the internal structures around the tail base area are intact, severed or possible restricted due to scar tissue etc.
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PHLdyPayne

Y'all are making me cry! What a beautiful lil guy! Add animal rescue to the things I wanna do when I'm rich! Y'all give him lotsa love, ok? And a good name!