5 Month Old Veiled Cham Acting Weird...

DUSCRAFT

DUSCRAFT

New Member
My Cham is named Lord Helmet (from Spaceballs ha ha) and he is about 5 months old. He has been very active and keeping normal eating and sleeping habits the whole time I've had him... Except when he's peeling... Then he's a weirdo ha ha. He lives in a 4" tall cage with a dracaena plant and horizontal pegs and vines all through it. It has a fluorescent fixture and two heat lamps. One weak one on the side and one more powerful one at the top. Plenty of cool zones and basking areas. All of the lights are on a timer as well as the cage is in a room with windows for extra light during the day. He has a drip system and I spray his cage a few times a day. We feed him crickets that have been dusted and fed veggies. We also hand feed him superworms and give him water with a baby feeding syringe just to assure he's drinking and eating. He's been fine for months and for the past few days he's not going to his usual sleeping areas at night and he's acting really lethargic and not eating (when we hand feed him... He had eaten a few crickets). I thought he might be about to peel because that's usually what he does before he peels and he still hasn't and it's day #3. He doesn't have substrate because we use and change Eco-Carpet often... So he's not impacted. I'm just concerned for my little guy. If anyone has any ideas besides "go see the vet" I'd appreciate it! I won't go to the vet because our city only has one herpetologist and he was the reason my last chameleon died of a mouth infection... He didn't seem to care that he wasn't eating and ignored the issue after we tried antibiotics and said it was normal... Then he died. So I'm taking Helmet's health into my own hands ha ha. Thanks! ImageUploadedByTapatalk1316112396.719574.jpg ImageUploadedByTapatalk1316112466.373012.jpg
 
Well i notice a few things that kinda alert me, but it may have been just the time of day etc..but it still is kinda wierd. Your enclosure looks awfully dark, the room looks dark also, the red lamps? etc... Now at first i would say it was a night time pic, but it looks as though you have a UVB streaming, witch would make little to no sense at night. I would ask that you fill out the (How to ask for help) form. Its a great enclosure, it needs to be lit up a bit or a lot. Second your cham is at 5 months and is awfully green, unless you have edited the photo to bring out the greens, a male veiled usually is showing some standard banding on its side, even when its happy as all can be, you will normally see some colors, flat green or little amounts of banding or colors in both the sides and casque usually indicate you have a female, Check for tarsal spurs on the back feet, you may have a female, whom is ready to lay eggs, females sometimes dont eat for a week before laying. Check for the tarsal spurs, it will be a tiny bump on the backside of its feet if it is in fact male, also look at a senior forum members blog (JannB) she has a excellent blog on the care of female veiled's etc.
 
What are his temps and humidity? Try sticking him in your shower and let him get sprayed with warm water for a little bit and see if that causes him to change his mood or not.

Here is some recommended information to include when asking for help in the health clinic forum. By providing this information, you will receive more accurate and beneficial responses. It might not be necessary to answer all these questions, but the more you provide the better. Please remember that even the most knowledgeable person can only guess at what your problem may be. Only an experienced reptile veterinarian who can directly examine your animal can give a true diagnosis of your chameleon's health.


Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
 
red bulbs gotta go..toss em..they are for snakes and crap like that..as for the uvb (what kind of flourecent is it..how old is the bulb) as for the basking light you need only one bulb..a regular 40-60 watt house bulb (normal color)..humidity should be from 60-75 percent, and ambient temps in the cage should be about 75, and the basking spot to warm up should be about 85..
 
after second look..it looks like a female ready to lay some eggs (they still make eggs without a male, they just dont hatch) if it is a she, she will need an egg laying bucket...
 
Wow! I didn't know that he was a she ha ha! It was a night time pic and I just turn on the lights for the pic and back off again. What do I do about the egg situation ha ha? Are you sure it's a female?
 
DUSCRAFT said:
Wow! I didn't know that he was a she ha ha! It was a night time pic and I just turn on the lights for the pic and back off again. What do I do about the egg situation ha ha? Are you sure it's a female?
Click to expand...

almost 100% positive, check for the little nubs on the back of the feet, if they arent there its a female, also>>go to Jannb's blog, it has everything you will need to know
 
Actually I do take him/her outside to my patio and mist him/her for about 30 minutes. Here's a pic of Helmet at the moment. Maybe you can gather more with this ha ha. ImageUploadedByTapatalk1316115912.644860.jpg
We have a cricket feeding bowl and he/she's been sitting in it and on the rocks in the plant.
 
DUSCRAFT said:
Does Mrs. Helmet look prego?
Click to expand...

She does look a little plump to me in the pic, but regardless i would make quick to put a layin bin in asap, females should always have access to one, that way you dont have to wait and anticipate alarms triggering, just make sure to get her nice and fed supplemented and hydrated afterwards. Take a look the link i posted for you, Jannb has some great advice and its worked for many. Good luck to Mrs Lord Helmet. :D
 
brooklynelizabeth said:
She does look a little plump to me in the pic, but regardless i would make quick to put a layin bin in asap, females should always have access to one, that way you dont have to wait and anticipate alarms triggering, just make sure to get her nice and fed supplemented and hydrated afterwards. Take a look the link i posted for you, Jannb has some great advice and its worked for many. Good luck to Mrs Lord Helmet. :D
Click to expand...

yep brook is right..that last pic..you can see the back of her foot..no spur..and yes..she looks a lil on the "fluffy" side (plump), and pretty sure its not that shes just big boned...jannb is the best at all this stuff (just imo, there are other masters on here too, lol) :D
 
Ha ha thanks so much everyone! So I have a big box I can put her in with some moist sand and it'll be away from me. Should it be cooler or warmer for laying eggs? Also, any sand is okay? I had no idea they laid eggs in sand like turtles ha ha. Any tips? I didn't research females because I thought I had a male ha ha. Thanks again to everyone on here. You guys never fail me!
 
Just read it and it's awesome! Thanks! How do I know she's ready if she is prego? Just her weird behavior and not eating?
 
Well I've put the sand bucket in her cage and have even put her in it and left... She climbs out. She's still not eating or drinking and today I saw her climbing and she was stretched out really thin... So I don't know if she's pregnant or not. She is breathing normally. She has been sleeping vertically lately and not horizontally like she usually does. I have no idea what's going on.
 
She also hasn't been hissing at me like she usually does and is only changing colors when reached for. She ate one superworm earlier and wouldn't touch anything else. Here are some shots of her that I just took. ImageUploadedByTapatalk1316286386.584336.jpg ImageUploadedByTapatalk1316286431.282895.jpg ImageUploadedByTapatalk1316286496.147548.jpg
 
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