Carpet sleeping during the day

Hey guys, my Carpet Chameleon has been sleeping during the day a lot
He is also showing some real strange colors while basking. His face and tail are COMPLETELY white and while he isn't basking he is a dull dark green and sometimes grey. It almost looks as if he is shedding but he is not. I have several different basking zones layered under his basking light and I have never seen him over heat with his mouth open. He eats extremely well and his waste with ideal black/brown and white.



Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Carpet Chameleon, Male, and about 8 months. How long has it been in your care? about 3-4 months
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? maybe once every 2 weeks.
Feeding - I feed him crickets everyday. He eats about 9-12 crickets a day and I take what he doesn't eat out. I feed him at 9 am 3 days a week and around 2 the other days. I gut-load the crickets carrots, sweet potatoes and lettuce before they are fed.
Supplements - I dust the crickets with a light coat of calcium every day and use multivitamins and calcium with vitamin d3 2 times a month.
Watering - I have a mist king that i run 4 times a day ranging from 2 minutes to 5 minutes. I have never seen him drink water but I have caught him in the drinking position. He will not drink or eat in front of me.
Fecal Description - His fecal is black and white. Sometimes brown. He poops every day it seems. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? No
History - He was CB and he's only shed once in the time i've had him. I run the ceiling fan on low at night to sleep. In the corner of the room and sleeps in the corner of his cage so I don't know if it is a big deal or not. Where he sleeps, glass covers both sides so I wouldnt think wind would bother him. Also my fan is on low and it creates a very small breeze which I would think is less than a natural breeze.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - My cage is a combo with screen sides and glass front and back. it is 2 feet wide, 2 feet long and about 3 feet tall.
Lighting - ReptiSun 5.0 linear tube. Bought it about 3 months ago. basking light is a 75 Watt standard house bulb. Lights are on a timer and come on at 8 am and go off at 7pm. I turn the light off at 7 because it is still light in my room and it slowly gets dark according to the sunset.
Temperature - Basking temp is 77 degrees. Overnight temp is about 69-70 degrees.
Humidity - The humidity levels flucuate but go from 50% to 80% depending on the time of the day. I mist using a mister to maintain.
Plants - I have live plants, a potho and an umbrella plant.
Placement - My cage is in the corner of my room. It is near an air vent but we dont run the ac that often. I wouldnt say it is a high traffic area but i do pass him about 10 times a day. At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? about 4-5 feet of the ground.
Location - Durham NC

Current Problem - My little guy is sleeping during the day. He has also only shed once since Ive had him but he is a Carpet and its a small breed. He is about 6 inches long.

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I'm interested to see what people think about this.

Sensation: I would def get this guy a vet appointment asap none the less.

I agree, you need a vet. Your set up looks good to me, but, at least in that picture, the animal does not look well.

You might not be able to get him into a vet tomorrow. In that case, if it were me, I'd up the temps a bit (80-82 degrees at the basking point) and increase the hydration. Maybe you can add a drip (just a plastic cup or bottle with a hole punched in the bottom will work) that falls onto the leaves.

Elizadolots said:

I agree, you need a vet. Your set up looks good to me, but, at least in that picture, the animal does not look well.

You might not be able to get him into a vet tomorrow. In that case, if it were me, I'd up the temps a bit (80-82 degrees at the basking point) and increase the hydration. Maybe you can add a drip (just a plastic cup or bottle with a hole punched in the bottom will work) that falls onto the leaves.

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He only looks like this while basking. Its crazy you say that because he eats so well...

anyone have any idea?

Sensation can you take a few more pics of him, esp something closer and/or more detailed/higher res? maybe at least one more while backing and some of him normally? I agree if everything you state is true, it looks like your doing it right. I dk though, I think a quick vet visit is still worth it IMO.

Update: AS Jessica stated, here are two of Sandrachams blogs(Link 1 and Link 2), also maybe trying some new feeders as well(dubias and silkies are a good start ).

I cant tell you about his basking colors but I have a good idea why he isnt shedding.

Your gutload is lacking. I would add more greens like collard, mustard, dandilion and turnup greens. Papya, winter squash have a good calcium / phos ratio. Sandrachameleon has great blogs about different gutloads.

I bet if you balance his diet better you will see a big difference.

sensation said:

He only looks like this while basking. Its crazy you say that because he eats so well...

anyone have any idea?

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So it's a mystery. So see a vet or be consumed by worry until he recovers or dies....sorry if that's a bit blunt but ideas are just guesses unless a professional looks at him.

I have looked into vets in my area and am setting up an appointment tomorrow. I will work on the gutloading until then. Any other's have anything like this happen?

I will take more pics and have them uploaded tonight. Thanks guys

Ok guys, I added a dripper and I hope that stimulates him to drink a little bit. My camera is dead so I am charging it and hopefully will be able to take some pics tomorrow before I go to work. He isn't basking now so I have to wait another day.

Is he asleep in the picture?

Looking at the picture on my lap top he looks hot. The 75 watt seems like the basking spot would be higher then 77 degrees.

How are you measuring the temp?

Yes he is sleeping in the picture I posted.

No one has said anything about the standard 75W light. I'm wondering it could be linked because this was never a problem until I switched to it... just a thought until I can see the Vet.

It's typical for chameleons to turn "whitish" when sleeping. It's not typical for chameleons to sleep at any time during the day, even when basking (as much as that sounds like something we'd do).

What time of day does this usually happen?

all day. Usually during the afternoon and a few times during the morning.

That's really not a good sign. I am very glad you are making an appointment with the vet.

As has been mentioned, you need to make sure your basking spot is not too hot. Have you measured it since you changed bulbs?

Is he only doing it while basking?

I'm also glad you are planning to take him to the vet but you should probley double check your husbandry. Double check your temps and humidity. It may be time for a new digital hygrometer/thermometer or even a temp gun.

jessica said:

Is he only doing it while basking?

I'm also glad you are planning to take him to the vet but you should probley double check your husbandry. Double check your temps and humidity. It may be time for a new digital hygrometer/thermometer or even a temp gun.

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I have an appointment wednesday at the vet. He only turns this weird color during the day. I have a digital thermometer and it reads 77/78 at the basking spot and i also have 3 other thermometers throughout the cage. I started gutloading the crickets greens until wednesday so I hope everything goes well. I've never had this problem before with my 3 previous veileds so I'm interested in what this could be.

The only thing I can think about is supplementation. Like I say, he gets calcium everyday and d3/multivitamin twice a month. That is generic and may not apply to carpet chameleons so I want to double check that. I have recently started taking him outside now that it is warm outside and he still turns that white skeleton color while in the sun but he is more active outside. I'll post more pics before I leave for the vet and will keep yall updated on the diagnosis.

Thanks for the help guys! Its crazy because other than the sleeping and coloration, he seems perfectly healthy, eats GREAT and seems hydrated. Could be parasites? We'll see...

Hmm how strange. I'm anxious to see what the vet says

Hey guys,

He isn't responding well. I went to clean his cage and he barely moved... not like him. He fell asleep while I was right beside him NOT LIKE HIM so I am real worried. My vet appointment isn't until tomorrow at 3 but I noticed something. His eyes seem to be sunk in. I think he is dehydrated so I am giving him a lonnnnng shower. I NEVER see him drink so I am really thinking it has to be it. My mist king works great and gets everything real wet 4 times a day so I have no idea why he wouldnt be drinking... Just an update and I will update later if anything else happens.

Oh but I did take him outside and he turned beautiful green with yellow spots (his natural colors). he perked up and moved around alot of I'm sure he liked that.


As of now, I let him hang out outside for awhile and now hes getting a bath. I hope things go well. i love this little guy.