I just fed my chameleon yesterday and today he looks extremely skinny.

ThomasFord

Member
IMG_8379.JPG




Can someone explain to my why he's so skinny rn. Should i be worried? He ate about the most hes ever eaten, about 8 juvenile crickets. Is a parasite eating his food inside of him? I don.t want to feed him every day because i dont want his bowl movements to be too big and cause a prolapse. Please help.
 
He might not be expanding his ribs and appear small, just keep an eye on him. See if he will puff up.

If you are worried about a parasite, the best thing you could do is, take a piece of its feces to a vet for an examination
 
View attachment 158752



Can someone explain to my why he's so skinny rn. Should i be worried? He ate about the most hes ever eaten, about 8 juvenile crickets. Is a parasite eating his food inside of him? I don.t want to feed him every day because i dont want his bowl movements to be too big and cause a prolapse. Please help.
No, he's just being a cham. They can really flex their ribcage a lot, so depending on their posture at that moment they can look skinny, especially fast growing juveniles (think gangly teenager). The better way to judge their body condition is to look at the base of the tail. It should be oval from top to bottom in cross section. If you see every tendon and muscle at the base of the tail he's a bit skinny. If the tail is round, not oval, he's too fat. And, BTW, feeding soft bodied insects and keeping well hydrated will do as much to prevent constipation and straining leading to a prolapse.
 
No, he's just being a cham. They can really flex their ribcage a lot, so depending on their posture at that moment they can look skinny, especially fast growing juveniles (think gangly teenager). The better way to judge their body condition is to look at the base of the tail. It should be oval from top to bottom in cross section. If you see every tendon and muscle at the base of the tail he's a bit skinny. If the tail is round, not oval, he's too fat. And, BTW, feeding soft bodied insects and keeping well hydrated will do as much to prevent constipation and straining leading to a prolapse.


oh alright, i mist extremely fequently and he doesnt look fat so im good :D
 
View attachment 158752



Can someone explain to my why he's so skinny rn. Should i be worried? He ate about the most hes ever eaten, about 8 juvenile crickets. Is a parasite eating his food inside of him? I don.t want to feed him every day because i dont want his bowl movements to be too big and cause a prolapse. Please help.

He looks pretty young to be feeding only every other day some crickets. Have you tried other feeders? I would be feeding him every day especially if you're worried about his weight. If you feed him juicy worms along with hard bodied feeders and keep him hydrated you shouldn't really have to worry about a prolapse. Unless he's had an issue with that before? I feed my guy daily and he makes some massive poos sometimes and I've never had a problem.
 
He looks pretty young to be feeding only every other day some crickets. Have you tried other feeders? I would be feeding him every day especially if you're worried about his weight. If you feed him juicy worms along with hard bodied feeders and keep him hydrated you shouldn't really have to worry about a prolapse. Unless he's had an issue with that before? I feed my guy daily and he makes some massive poos sometimes and I've never had a problem.


I've fed him dubias, and ive tried mealworms, but the mealworms didnt last long before all 100 died so now im onto crickets, i gutload them with fruits and vegetables and Kai likes to chase em down :D im looking into silk worms because those are good for putting weight on him, hes an active guy.
 
I've fed him dubias, and ive tried mealworms, but the mealworms didnt last long before all 100 died so now im onto crickets, i gutload them with fruits and vegetables and Kai likes to chase em down :D im looking into silk worms because those are good for putting weight on him, hes an active guy.

Dubias and superworms are good hard bodied feeders. I feed those both to my cham. I also feed him hornworms, which he loves!, and butterworms, waxworms (occasionally). I've wanted to try silkworms but no one ever seems to have any. So long as you have a good variety he should be good.
 
I've fed him dubias, and ive tried mealworms, but the mealworms didnt last long before all 100 died so now im onto crickets, i gutload them with fruits and vegetables and Kai likes to chase em down :D im looking into silk worms because those are good for putting weight on him, hes an active guy.
U can also get a food and weight measurement scale,this way u can keep his weight measure in progress,its easy to tell if he is gaining weight or not,keep on feeding him the gutloaded feeder n watch him grow in time,a fecal test for the vet will make sure if he is in a great condition also.
 
U can also get a food and weight measurement scale,this way u can keep his weight measure in progress,its easy to tell if he is gaining weight or not,keep on feeding him the gutloaded feeder n watch him grow in time,a fecal test for the vet will make sure if he is in a great condition also.

This is something everyone should do I think. Instead of trying to figure out their weight just by eyeballing it, you can get an exact measurement and keep records. Just know, don't try sticking them into a bowl on the scale lol, because it doesn't work. Trust me. They'll just cling to your hand.
 
This is something everyone should do I think. Instead of trying to figure out their weight just by eyeballing it, you can get an exact measurement and keep records. Just know, don't try sticking them into a bowl on the scale lol, because it doesn't work. Trust me. They'll just cling to your hand.
Lol,I usually use a basket with some perching stick for the larger cham ,put the cham in and minus the basket weight,so I know if they growing or not.
 
Lol,I usually use a basket with some perching stick for the larger cham ,put the cham in and minus the basket weight,so I know if they growing or not.
I use a plastic pan you put under a plant to catch water on my scale & hit the tare button to zero it out & put the cham in & weigh them!
 
Back
Top Bottom