How do I feed with a syringe ...

My rescue panther cham has recovered quite well and has been using her tongue to shoot at water droplets today which is a significant improvement but I have had no success with feeding.

I tried to open her mouth to see if I could place a butterworm inside, but I don't want to hurt her. I'm not about to pry it open ...

I want to know if anyone has recipes they use .. I have one but it's more for rehydration purposes. I want her to eat some crickets/worms .. maybe some veggies (I have blueberries/collards/oranges/pears at the moment). Could I blend some of these together and feed with a syringe?

Then my other question is how do I get that syringe into her mouth? I tried with no success on getting that worm in her mouth. I don't want to hurt her. Perhaps anyone has a suggestion?????

If its to the point where she needs to be fed with the syringe then it must be done and just be careful and maybe try a soft tipped syringe. But if not just try and offer as many different feeders as possible and maybe shell like one.

If you can get her to open her mouth when misting or even when she shoots her tongue out for water, you could try to get a worm in her mouth while it is open-easier said than done since they shoot so fast I know some other people on the forum have to hand feed their chams, so I'm sure they can give you some advice.

Thanks guys - anyone who can offer advice, I'm waiting patiently but time is of the essence. She sleeps in a few hours

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Does anyone have experience with feeding with a syringe? I need some feedback from people who have experience

You really need to be careful with a syringe-especially with fluids as you can aspirate them. Try something like a credit card and gently pry open their mouths. I know it sounds scary, but once you master the practice it is not all that bad. Two people make this easier, one to pry and the other to pop the bug in.

Leilaskeeper said:

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Does anyone have experience with feeding with a syringe? I need some feedback from people who have experience

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Hello,
I have experience on feeding with syringe or hand feeding my pet chameleons.

I feed my cham with a syringe or liquid calcium but his mouth is slightly open thats why it is kinda easy for me...I dont have to pry his mouth open.

You dont wanna break his mouth by prying it open either.

Try to get him upset so he can open his mouth and you can easily feed him with crickets, worms, etc... once he starts chewing stick a couple more feeders in his mouth and he will chew them all up, or simply try to feed him while he is drinking water since he shoots his tongue out.

Hope she gets better....good luck!!

Thanks for all the advice!