Reptile & Amphibian Forums

my dragon has 2 toes which have become swollen. One of which has been 'swollen' for a long long time maybe 2 years. I hadn't noticed the second until the vet pointed it out. I thought it was swollen because of some kind of deficiency but the vet said they could have been broken at some point and just healed wrong.

It's obvious that both toes are in pain because my dragon will pull away when they're touched. He normally lets people touch him anywhere. IMO, if they had been broken, at least the first one would not hur any longer after all this time. The skin around the swollen area is a lighter color than anything else... almost whitish.

How could my dragon's toes break? Does this sound like some sign of illness instead?

One other thing. Is there a list of reputable reptile vets somewhere? I would not mind paying another vet for a second opinion.

thanks!

toes can break in many ways. They could have been caught on something such as screening and broke. When young the toes m ay have been bitten by a cage mate and broke as well. MBD does weaken bones and the toes may have broken then. The fact they have not healed correctly and are causing pain suggests the break may have been pretty bad. At this stage there probably isn't much a vet can do other than removing the toes. I don't think they can break and reset the toes like they can with human bones that have not healed right. It would have been better if the toes were noticed 2 years ago.

For a list of other vets that are in your area you can check your yellow pages for vets that specialize in reptiles or check the link below.
Herp Vets

thank you for replying.

I did notice the first toe 2 years ago but it was a gradual swelling and I never saw or noticed anything that would suggest it was ever broken which is what let me to beleive it was something health related as opposed to a broken bone. Of course, I never did anything about it other than show it to a vet who said she had no idea what it was. She wasn't concerned so figured I didn't need to be either. but now a year to 2 years later there is another one and possibly the beginning of more.. so I figured it had to be something worth looking into.

sure would be a shame to have to get them amputated without first finding the cause. I'll continue my search for an answer somehow. :/

One other thing it could be I didn't think to mention earlier, is it could be blocked circulation due to unshed skin constricting around the toe. You could look for any dead skin around the area after a soak, then try and remove it with twisers carefully.