Constipated Panther Chameleon? (Fecal Matter Pics Inside)

GabeCastro

Established Member
Sorry for all these posts! But if you guys went through what i had to go through to get this chameleon you'd all be just as worried as me haha. So as the title says, here's some pics of the issue.

Below you will find my questionnaire filled out w/ my problem in detail.

Pics:
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Questionnaire:

Chameleon Info:

(First time chameleon owner)
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Panther Chameleon, Male, 5-6 months old, Has been in my care for about 5 days so far. Named him Jasper.

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? Held him a few times, but i started letting him be so he can adapt to his new home.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? I mainly feed him medium sized crickets. He would eat about 6-10 every day, take them out at night before he sleeps. I gutload the crickets with flukers green cubes, red bell peppers, zucchini, & pairs. Also plan on adding Dubia, silkworks, and hornworms to his diet here and there.

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? I use reptical calcium w/out d3 for every day feed, plan on using ReptiCal Calcium w/D3 on the 1st and 15th of each month + ReptiCal Herptivite.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? I have a MistKing that sprays for 30 seconds at 8:15am, 10:30am for 3 minutes, 12:30pm for 3 minutes, 3:30pm for 3 minutes, and 5:10pm for 3 minutes. Also i have a reptifogger that i use for about 30-60 mins a day to increase the humidity. Also i have a Big Dripper that drips tap water about every 20-25 seconds w/ added Reptisafe drops. Bay Area tap water is the best water in my opinon...So i chose not to use filtered water for his mister, dripper, and hand mister.

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? I haven't seen any fecal matter yet...He's eaten about 20 crickets since i've had him for the 5 days, today being day 5. His appetite decreased because i think he's due for a shed. Since the day i've gotten him he looked a bit frosty.

History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. Bought him from a reptile shop out here in the bay area, he was kept in a super small enclosure all his life. He had substrate on the bottom of the cage and also he could see the 2 other female panther chameleons on his left/right side. They hand misted the chameleon when they opened up (11am weekends, 12am weekdays). Had a small live plant inside the cage with a few branches. Not sure about his heating source either.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? I have him in a 18x18x36" ReptiBreeze Full Mesh aluminum cage. Also have a 24"x24"x48" full mesh aluminum cage. Planned on building it up when my cham gets to around 8-9 months.

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? I use a Zoo Med ReptiSun Terrarium Hood w/ Reptisun 5.0 UVB light, also a Flukers clamp lamp 5.5'' that has a ceramic bulb holder w/ 75w Zoo Med Basking Spot Lamp. Schedule is at 7:35am cut on, 7:35pm cut off.

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? The temperature is usally around the mid 80's in his basking spot, but when he basks under the light on a perch i use a handheld thermostat that reads high 80's. Sometimes super low 90's, 92º max Which i move the lamp higher to decrease the chance of burning him. Near the screen door it reads 78º. Bottom reads 74º. I use about 4 different gages, 3 digital and 1 set that are analog. Lowest overnight temp is about low-mid 60's.

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? My humidity is always above 70%, usually when its about 30 minutes till a mist it drops to 68%. Basking Spot assuming it dries out reads at 55% humidity level.

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? one small Ficus Benjamin and a hanging pothos plant. Both have been kept for about 2 weeks and are still green as can be.

Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? It's on the right side of my desk where i'm always at. I'm a graphic design student so i spend allot of time at home/using the computer. My girlfriend always lives with me and he's currently in our room. His cage is infront of a window, theres a curtain that i wanted to replace and make it black so light doesn't shine through. I hung up navy blue bathroom curtains around his enclosure so he wouldn't be able to see me working. He also falls right asleep when his lights cut off.

Location - Where are you geographically located? I am located in Alameda, California. (Bay Area)

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

I've only had my chameleon for about 5 days. I decided to put him outside for a couple minutes in a tree with no leaves.

About 5 minutes into the tree, he starts to defecate. This is the first chameleon i've ever owned , so i have NO clue how their defecate cycles work.

Hopefully whatever was inside him got cleaned out with his last fecal matter. The petshop i bought him from didn't really seem like they knew what they were doing, let alone identify the little guy for me.

I read that orange tiny fishball looking things in their poop means it was a built up of urine? People called them crystals. In the 5 days i've had him he hasn't pooped once, so maybe he was stressed out due to all these new changes? I was reading up on another thread and someone had a similar issue with their cham. Members just stated keeping taking care of the little guy and he'll be better, just the petshop wasn't treating the cham right. Also said they may need more water? I recently just upped his mist times because it seemed as if he was going to shed.

Hopefully there is nothing wrong with him, his fecal matter just seemed a bit wrong. His colors really brightened up once he was outside and he was very active moving along the branches. Once i got a hold of him he was running all over me...Now he's back inside his cage attempting to eat.
 
Can you get a picture of him after he finished and dropped your present?:) I just want to know everything when back where it should. That was a pretty large poop. He had been working on that for a while. Not to worry, his next one will be closer to normal. What you saw was "left overs" from the pet store. The white at the beginning tells you he is hydrated just fine. i would expect the orange to go away by his next poop. If it is still there then we can discuss him needing more water. I don't see how Jasper could possibily need more water.
 
Can you get a picture of him after he finished and dropped your present?:) I just want to know everything when back where it should. That was a pretty large poop. He had been working on that for a while. Not to worry, his next one will be closer to normal. What you saw was "left overs" from the pet store. The white at the beginning tells you he is hydrated just fine. i would expect the orange to go away by his next poop. If it is still there then we can discuss him needing more water. I don't see how Jasper could possibily need more water.
Jesus...Thought i was going to have a heart attack lol. And thanks again for the reply!

Can't believe this chameleon got me being this worried.

but yes, his glands or whatever that were hanging out, went back in place and are back to normal. I figure it was a insanley large present, so i had to post another thread :/

Here's a pic to double check.

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OH! MY! GOSH!! That's almost ferret-sized poop!! Good gawd he was backed up something fierce! :eek: That looked like it hurt... I say all of that to say that I think he's good to go now... :D
 
OH! MY! GOSH!! That's almost ferret-sized poop!! Good gawd he was backed up something fierce! :eek: That looked like it hurt... I say all of that to say that I think he's good to go now... :D
good to know he's good to go, geeze. Really thought i was gunna have to rush him to the vet it was that big LOL.
 
phew! That was...well...impressive :eek: poor guy! If you could have seen my reaction lol Hope he's feeling better now and doesn't worry you further :)
 
phew! That was...well...impressive :eek: poor guy! If you could have seen my reaction lol Hope he's feeling better now and doesn't worry you further :)
HAH! Thanks...It's funny because i ran inside to get my camera, came out and BAM i guess it just hit him. Then i started snappin' away

Noticed you have a hedgehog in your sig, Lucky guy! They're illegal out here in California :( Me and my girlfriend wanted to get one but we got a LionHead Bunny haha.
 
Here is my recent thread also about poop problem ;) My girl hadn't pooped for 5 days and her's looked similar.
You can check pics here:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/no-poop-basking-odd-behaviour-please-help-91401/
Amazing, glad i wasn't the only one stressing out about this problem. I think it was a combination of the petshop not taking care of him properly, me moving him into a new home, and being overwhelmed/stressed out. Glad both our chams are healthy!!! Thats always good to hear!
 
HAH! Thanks...It's funny because i ran inside to get my camera, came out and BAM i guess it just hit him. Then i started snappin' away

Noticed you have a hedgehog in your sig, Lucky guy! They're illegal out here in California :( Me and my girlfriend wanted to get one but we got a LionHead Bunny haha.

Aww those little lionhead's are gorgeous!

Hedgehogs are native here. People feed em & there are hedgehog rescue centres everywhere. Mine's African though & wouldn't survive in the wild, so I guess there's no need to ban them.
 
Amazing, glad i wasn't the only one stressing out about this problem. I think it was a combination of the petshop not taking care of him properly, me moving him into a new home, and being overwhelmed/stressed out. Glad both our chams are healthy!!! Thats always good to hear!
Well thats chams parents job - to be constantly worried ;)
I'm sure yours is going to be better too, he just needs time to settle in.
From what I've read, being out in the sun also helps with constipation. It's good to know just in case this happens again ;)
 
Based on the content of this thread it sounds like you have a full blown case of the Chameleon Virus...

Excitement over defecation is one of the symptoms.

(I get excited too.)
 
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