Has he been in contact with any WC animals recently? Even a LTC one? I'm thinking maybe the WC is carrying something that it passed on to this male. Maybe something that a WC animal has antibodies for but a CB doesn't.

I'm sorry, I know I'm not being very eloquent today. Let me know if I'm not making sense.

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1.2.1 Ch. (T.) melleri, 1.2 Ch. (T.) jacksonii xantholophus
My work: www.gibbonsrock.com

Nope. No wc contact.

Putting this ointment on him SERIOUSLY pisses him off. Normally quite docile, He actually tried to bite me today! I hope the added stress of this process isnt going to make matters worse.

This is a fairly recent picture of his cage. Its hard to get the whole thing in the picture, as the room is fairly narrow and I have the opposite wall lined with cages for my pet bugs and hermit crabs, etc.
The cage is wood frame, latex-painted wood peg board (allows for airflow, while obsuring view) back and two sides, acrylic doors (so I can see in easily), screen top. 2 foot width, 2 foot depth, 4 foot height, on a 2 foot stand such that top of his cage is over my head (I'm 5'2") so he can look down at me if he wishes
His cage is currently painted in an orange-brown, but will be repainted in black and dark brown soon.
Normally, he hangs out away from the plants (upper one is live, lower one is fake cuz its easier to clean poop off of a fake plant), in the upper middle (near his food dish - half of his feedings are from dish, other half free-range). He spends maybe 25% of his time in the upper / hottest part of the cage and rarely goes to the lower part of the cage.
There is an oscillating (sp?) fan in the room, to ensure air circulates. I also leave the window open when weather permits.
When water is dripping, there is a low-sided plastic container on the bottom to catch the water. I remove the excess water shortly afterwards.
Misting is done a couple times a day.

Attached Images

	TruckerCage1resized.JPG (83.7 KB, 28 views)
	TruckerCage2resized.JPG (87.0 KB, 27 views)

I hope someone else chimes in on your black/brown color choice. Veild's see black as a danger color - hence when they feel threatened they turn black and brown. In some earlier discussion it was suggested that even approaching a cage in a black shirt could be threatening to them. I think the color you have it is better, however I hope someone else chimes in to agree/disagree with me.

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1.3 veileds and 72 eggs

Wow that's interesting. I had not heard that before. Mine are panthers, not vields, but its certainly possible the theory is the same for both.

I already have two cages in black. The occupants don't seem to mind... normal colouration and behavoiur, etc. but maybe they dont like it and I just dont realize.... hm.

I'm really only painting it cuz after awhile, all the scrubbing tends to wear it down. So I end up re-painting every couple years, to ensure no water penetration. I was going with black because the chams stood out better against black. But maybe I'll play it safe and go for a nice green instead. Or maybe I'll get creative and paint green leaves on a brown background.

Howdy Sandra,

I like the idea of green or even a camouflage pattern . I have read here and there about the psychological benefits for chameleons regarding environmental background colors so this sounds like the perfect time to try it out. If it takes 10 minutes to find him then you know you got the colors right .

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See Ya,

Dave Weldon
Panther & Veileds

Book Collection:
"Reptile Medicine and Surgery" 2nd ed. By Mader
"Chameleons - Their Care and Breeding" By Linda J. Davison
"Chameleons - Nature's Hidden Jewels" 2nd Ed. By Petr Necas
"The Panther Chameleon: Color Variation, Natural History, Conservation and Captive Management" By Gary W. Ferguson...
"Thoughts for Food" 3rd Ed. Edited by Ardi Abate
"Understanding Reptile Parasites" By Roger J. Klingenberg D.V.M.

Hi hows the bumps/scab's getting on??
you viv looks great,but i would change 2 things.... the stuff on the floor should go IMO and a be bare.
and would add a some more vents as the air at the bottom will stay there and get stale,a few soffit vents in the bottom will get the air moving,the hot air rising up out of the top will suck in clean air from vents in the bottom

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If everything was black and white we would not have colour.

Hi Thanks for asking.
So far, no change to the lumps. But Trucker has gone from a docile happy camper to hating me and freaked out (because I keep having to hold him while applying the darn medicine). He even hisses and mock bites now.

The stuff on the bottom of his cage is just a towel and/or papertowel; it alows me to remove the poop everyday easily, and soaks up any splashes of water that dont hit the collection bucket. Its changed out frequently, so no chance of bacterial growth either. Its not like a substrate that he could injest or be harmed by - just a soft floor Its pretty rare for him to wander on the bottom anyhow.

The two sides and back of the cage are peg board so there are hundreds of holes all the way around; there's hardware cloth screen on the top (he doesnt hang from it, so no toe damage is likely, but I use a coated wire for those cages that hold the acrobatic chams) and the doors on the front dont close tightly either (I'm not a very good carpenter) so there's plenty of air flow. There's also a big fan in the room that comes on mid-day for a few hours to ensure the room is mixed up a bit. This is a common design where I live, and works much better than the all screen enclosure I once used (but the praying mantids love it!)
Still I thank you for the advice. I think what you suggest is the right advice for most situations.

The skin leisions, whatever they are, seem to be getting worse. Certainly I am beginning to panic. I've had an old chameleon who developed age-related health issues, but I've not had a sick young chameleon before! Its devastating and my anxiety level is sky-rocketing!
New symptons

• Appears to be drinking more
• Eating a little less
• Fecal is less and urate (sp?) part of waste is half orange (could be liver issues? or dehydration?)
• Loosing weight (alarming!) ~ 28grams since beginning of this month. He's down to ~162grams (at end of August he was ~190g)

I have ceased using the Biacitracin Zinc and Neomycin Sulfate ointment stuff, as it wasnt helping, and applicaton stressed him.
Went back to vet. There goes another $200 and still no answers! Fungal culture still isnt ready - it wont be back until second week of October Vet took blood this time (not sure what she is testing for). Now have an oral Enrofloxacin (antibiotic?) to administer once daily. I'm sure he will hate that too.

Enrofloxacin is baytril.