Why did my Leopard Gekko knaw off her tail?

Question

I noticed an open wound in the tail of my leopard gekko and couldn't figure out how she got it. Each day it would get more and more gaping and disgusting and then I realized she was chewing it off herself! Her little nub of a tail seems to be healing quite nicely. Is this unusual behavior for a gekko? It sure freaked the kids out!!

Answer 1

Are you sure she gnawed it off?
Leopard gecko tails are made to fall off. There is a star-shaped muscle that holds the majority of the tail in place. If ever the leopard gecko is threatened by a predator, it "drops" its tail and runs away, leaving the predator to eat its tail, which twitches to draw the predator's attention.
This can happen if you pick up your leopard gecko by the tail. It may not have come off correctly at the first drop, so she may have tried to remove it herself, or it may just have become more and more detached every day, giving the impression that she was chewing it herself.

If she DID chew it off, and it wasn't due to the tail falling off, that would be cause for concern. Although I have never heard of a gecko chewing off their own tail, it would indicate starvation or dehydration. Ensure that she is getting enough to eat and drink.

Anyway, the nub usually heals nicely although the new tail never looks quite right. You can rub neosporin on the wound every day to assist with healing. I have been leopard geckos with new tails that looked almost good as their old nails, and it was due to daily application of neosporin.

Leos carry their fat reserves in their tails, so be sure to feed her lots of good nummers; crickets, waxworms, silkworms, all dusted and gutloaded.

Anyway, she'll be fine! I know it's gross but I think you should encourage your kids to research leopard gecko defense mechanisms. They'll be less grossed out by it and would be proud to learn such a weird fact :)

Answer 2

While its not "normal" behavior...it does happen.The usual cause for them doing it is hunger..you are not feeding her enough or there is a lack of water.She stores fat and water in her tail.They will at times do this right before laying eggs to give the eggs a little something extra to develop....The tail will grow back but will be "different" and not look "normal" H

Answer 3

OK first of all that is not normal. It is a sign of severe huger. Make sure you feed your gecko extra food this week. I would recommend silk worms A leopard gecko's fav.