a little worried...

[CHAMaDdIcT]

hey guys im just asking this here because i know that you have some great answers - my cham has been shedding nonstop for almost two months now hes been eating perfectly normal, and hes been hydrated, and he basks normally, and everything is regular but im just a little worried. and also he has a casque that bent overnight about a month ago, so i looked it up on here and everyone says that it was a calcium deprivation (even though i had been dusting his crix with calcium 2-3 times a week). his casque hasnt gotten better or worse so i just figured that it couldve possibly been a genetic problem or something along those lines

any feedback would be great

 

[IHaveAJackson]

How old is he?

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

about 8 months old

 

[IHaveAJackson]

I would say he is too dry

 

[Rosie42892]

What are your humidity levels at?Your temps? How often do you mist?

 

[Elizadolots]

When you say he's shedding "non stop" what do you mean? Is he doing a full body shed every couple of days? Or, does it seem like he's always got something on him shedding?

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

When you say he's shedding "non stop" what do you mean? Is he doing a full body shed every couple of days? Or, does it seem like he's always got something on him shedding?

well it seems like his shed skin never comes off and hes shedding very often, and i spray him at least once a day everyday and most days twice, and his temps are probably high 80's with the lower part being lower 80's and high 70's

 

[Elizadolots]

well...I'm sure that others more knowledgeable than I will chime in ...but in my experience, adults will often be shedding somewhere...as yours is sort of crossing into the world of "adult" maybe that's the answer...but seriously, wait for someone with more experience with your species to confirm that.

 

[pssh]

What do you mean bent casque? Is it very slight or severe?

As Eliza said, if he is just shedding different parts of his body every couple days over a few weeks then he's probably fine, just becoming more of an adult. If he's having full body sheds every couple days, that would be something to look into...

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

well its not really bad, ill try to take a pic, but im not joking when i say that it happened overnight! its as if something fell and hit his casque

 

[SpinyFranky]

well its not really bad, ill try to take a pic, but im not joking when i say that it happened overnight! its as if something fell and hit his casque

Broken/rubbery casque is usually a sign of MBD. You said your dusting w/ calcium, but what about calcium w/ d3?

spraying once a day on average sucks mate.

two is..... not as sucky.

Ideally you want to be spraying 3-4 times a day 2 mins at a time at least.

once or twice a day is going to lead him into dehydration.... unless your spraying for 15 mins or more? I kind of doubt that though.

feel the casque... is it stiff? that would probably indicate a break and it healed over improperly because no one set it. This would not necessarily be a sign of MBD, though it really could be. It could have been a nasty fall ( also a sign of MBD ) that lead him to injury.

If its rubbery thats a pretty clear sign of MBD.

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

his casque is pretty hard but im still dumbfounded on how it happened over the period of a night and i guess ill spray him more now, even though his urate has almost always been white

 

[IHaveAJackson]

Im no expert but i would say he definatly needs to be sprayed more. He may drink enough each day to be hydrated but his skin probably isnt because its not getting wet and therefore its peeling off

 

[kinyonga]

What brand and type (spiral, compact, long linear tube) UVB light do you use? Is there any glass or plastic between it and your chameleon?

What specific supplements do you use? What do you gutload/feed your insects with specifically?

When MBD appears, its often suddenly...but I can't be sure that's whats going on with your chameleon. A vet could run some tests and tell you.

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

Im no expert but i would say he definatly needs to be sprayed more. He may drink enough each day to be hydrated but his skin probably isnt because its not getting wet and therefore its peeling off

ohhhh that makes sense and i just checked his temps and the basking spot is about 82 F, and the lower part is about 76 F

 

[SpinyFranky]

ohhhh that makes sense and i just checked his temps and the basking spot is about 82 F, and the lower part is about 76 F

not to be a jerk... but that actually makes no sense.

The chameleons skin is not going to get dry and peel..... its a reptile, not an amphibian. Not that it would happen to amphibians either.

Are you running a dripper in the cage? if yes then he is probably hydrated, but spraying is for hydration + humidity.

If you are just spraying once a day then humidity is not nearly what it should be, and that is a good explanation for why it is taking your chameleon so long to shed.

To me it sounds like he is not shedding multiple times, but just one long shed. This is usually the result of low humidity, and the cure is to spray more and perhaps put a trash bag along a side or two of the cage so the humidity rises.

However as for the casque... it sounds like MBD to me, and you never answered the question about using calcium w/ d3.

 

[CHAMaDdIcT]

not to be a jerk... but that actually makes no sense.

The chameleons skin is not going to get dry and peel..... its a reptile, not an amphibian. Not that it would happen to amphibians either.

Are you running a dripper in the cage? if yes then he is probably hydrated, but spraying is for hydration + humidity.

If you are just spraying once a day then humidity is not nearly what it should be, and that is a good explanation for why it is taking your chameleon so long to shed.

To me it sounds like he is not shedding multiple times, but just one long shed. This is usually the result of low humidity, and the cure is to spray more and perhaps put a trash bag along a side or two of the cage so the humidity rises.

However as for the casque... it sounds like MBD to me, and you never answered the question about using calcium w/ d3.

well ill spray him more from now often, and i felt his casque today when i took him outside and it is hard like the rest of his body, and i give him D3 once a week and calcium 3-4 times a week