Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well, my lil crestie has floppy tail syndrome. Yes, I have read that it doesnt effect their health, and that it is naturally occuring. My tank is heavily decorated with plenty of vertical branches and leaves and a cork bark ledge, and always has. The thing is, he ALWAYS sleeps up against the glass! And thats what caused him to get it. I always remove him whenever I see him sleeping on the glass and place him somewhere else. But he always goes back to sleeping up against the glass. Should I just let him continue to sleep like this, since he already has it and its irreversible? or does it get worse or anything if he continues to sleep that way? What should I do? Thanks for any help
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~Melissa~
1.3 Leopard geckos (Guido, Oasis, Gypsy, Marli)
1.0 Bearded dragon (Pharoah)
1.0 Hog Island Boa (Michelangelo)
0.0.1 Crested Gecko (Picasso)
1.0 Ferret (da Vinci)
0.1 Chinchilla (Eevie)
And Jack the cat!

Melissas Menagerie

My crested has it, and I think in his case it was a calcium deficiency that caused it. It stemmed from his initial reluctance to eat combined with my inexperience. You might want to think back if there was any time in your crested's history where he wasn't really getting enough calcium or eating enough food in general. I don't think it ever gets any better, but I'd definately make sure that he's getting the right vitamins and minerals so it doesn't get worse.
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"The serpent crams itself with animal life that is often warm and vibrant, to prolong an existence in which we detect no joy and no emotion. It reveals the depth to which evolution can sink when it takes the downward path and strips animals to the irreducible minimum able to perpetuate a predatory life in its naked horror."
Alexander Skutch

Yep, I'm pretty sure he was getting enough calcium. When i first got him i fed him every day and dusted his crickets every two to three feedings, and I was also feeding him crested gecko diet, which he ate. Now I am feeding him every other day, dusting every other feeding and still giving him CGD in addition. I really just think it was his constant sleeping on the glass, even when there is plenty of things he can sleep and climb on. Does floppy tail make their tails fall off? or easier to fall off? Thanks
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~Melissa~
1.3 Leopard geckos (Guido, Oasis, Gypsy, Marli)
1.0 Bearded dragon (Pharoah)
1.0 Hog Island Boa (Michelangelo)
0.0.1 Crested Gecko (Picasso)
1.0 Ferret (da Vinci)
0.1 Chinchilla (Eevie)
And Jack the cat!

Melissas Menagerie

Hmm.... well... I wonder if floppy tail is caused by several different things. Sounds like you did everything right. I'd like to get to the bottom of this myself, because if I get more cresteds I don't want to mess them up too.

I don't think it makes their tails more likely to fall off, since that's all controlled in the gecko's brain. Mine has had FTS for something like 2 years and still has his tail, and it functions pretty normally. In the case of my gecko it appears to be his actual pelvis that's deformed, and the tail itself doesn't have any kinks in it.
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"The serpent crams itself with animal life that is often warm and vibrant, to prolong an existence in which we detect no joy and no emotion. It reveals the depth to which evolution can sink when it takes the downward path and strips animals to the irreducible minimum able to perpetuate a predatory life in its naked horror."
Alexander Skutch

i cant remember where i read it, but i think it described the cause of FTS as disfiguration in the muscle that helps them drop their tails. if anything, i bet it hinders their ability to drop the tail.
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mike

hmmm....shame i cant edit my last message...

anyway, i found the little paragraph that i had read earlier:

Floppy Tail Syndrome
FTS is a condition when the tail flops to one side, which may be due to weakness of the caudal attachment to the pelvis to facilitate tail loss when threatened. de Vosjoli hypothesized that this may be due to lack of appropriate climbing branches in the enclosure and early calcium deficiency that weakened the precaudal pelvic bones. FTS does not negatively affect a crested gecko's ability to reproduce.
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mike

Thanks for the info guys!

With my crested, his tail just kinda curves sharply up from the base. His pelvis seems fine. in fact he looks almost normal to me, his tail is just sorta propped up a little. Thanks again!

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~Melissa~
1.3 Leopard geckos (Guido, Oasis, Gypsy, Marli)
1.0 Bearded dragon (Pharoah)
1.0 Hog Island Boa (Michelangelo)
0.0.1 Crested Gecko (Picasso)
1.0 Ferret (da Vinci)
0.1 Chinchilla (Eevie)
And Jack the cat!

Melissas Menagerie

Wierd... sounds different from my guy. There must be different kinds of FTS.
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"The serpent crams itself with animal life that is often warm and vibrant, to prolong an existence in which we detect no joy and no emotion. It reveals the depth to which evolution can sink when it takes the downward path and strips animals to the irreducible minimum able to perpetuate a predatory life in its naked horror."
Alexander Skutch