Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i was wondering if anyone could give me advice or the correct answer my freind has a foot in a half american alligator and the bottom of his were the soft part is is broke open and hanging, but he still acts normal and is eating, i was wondering if that will heal by its self or does it need stitched back together or is that even a opption?

Your friend should get this animal to a vet. I don't understand what you are talking about when you say "soft part" and refer to stuff hanging out,

With the description you gave here, any advise to the contrary would be worth exactly what you're paying for it.

Bill

he is not paying for it ill tell you the story better he got a heathly alligator from the pet store and they have another the same size, they got both in the same day and when they did one of them was like that and there giving it away, now what im talking about is lets say you raise your neck up right, you know were your jaw is? well its not the jaw its self thats like that it is the well pretty much neck right under the jaw were the teeth is is is like cut open about half a inch or less and the stuff haning down is the the flap of the skin but he is still eating what im asking is will that heal on its own or does it need stiches or can you even give it stiches, and dont say you need to go to a vet, i know but the closes vet that works on reptiles is about 4 hours away and i would hate to take it, even if it is given away for free from the pet store and travel up there and them say it isnt fixable, all i need to know is if it is healable on its on wich a few different people siad it was and a few said it wasnt

That clarifies things a bit - by the tone of your first post, I was thinking intestines were hanging out!

If it's just some skin, and you can't get it to a vet, then your best bet is to just keep the wound clean by swabbing it with some Betadine and keep the water very clean. If it's just a skin injury, it should heal. These guys take some pretty nasty beatings from other gators, including having legs taken off, and they seem to be able to deal with it. Crocodilians have a remarkable abilty to fight off infections.

Good luck

Bill

thanks so much thats helps alot

>>not the jaw its self thats like that it is the well pretty much neck right under the jaw were the teeth is is is like cut open about half a inch or less and the stuff haning down is the the flap of the skin

Could it be that we aren't talking about an injury at all? From the description, it sounds like it might be an everted musk gland.

i dont think its a gland
his tounge lays out of it a little

Check the edges of the wound. Is it still raw, and healing? Or is it old scar tissue?
If it is still healing you can try to line up the edges and...(I know how bad this sounds) Supper glue the raw edges together. If the tear has healed in an open position it will not grow back together without reopening the wound, and making it bleed. If this is the case see how it adapts to the injury before you try to fix it, or take it to the vet for pain meds first.
My vet turned me onto Supper glue. Best Damn bandaid I ever used. It is sterile, non-toxic, water proof, a hell of alot stronger then a little plastic strip, and it doesn't require stitching an allready injured and stressed animal. I have used it on tears in the foot webbing, mouth injuries, and bites from other gators. It is a great cover for nose rub also. It will loosen and peel away at about the same rate the skin heals.
It works on people too. I have started keeping a tube in my own firstaid kit.
The only warning is that you need to stop the blood flow before you try to close a wound. If you glue over a seeping wound it can pressure up and tear the wound open agian. Because of the strength of the glue it will often tear next to the orgininal injury. Leaving you with two wounds. Pockets of blood under the skin can increase chances of infection, and tissue damage.
I hope this helps someone. A $2.00 tube of glue has saved me a few hundred in vet bills allready.

OMG,you are not talking about "super" glue? The kind you mend a broken pair of eyeglasses,are you?

That's the stuff. Keep it away from mouth and eyes.
My doctor told me they would use it on people if the F.D.A. would approve it.