Bishop is not pooping/eating

Hpyrok

Member
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled Chameleon, Male, unsure of age, we have had him since September 30, 2020.



Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

About 1-3 per month, if he wants to come out.



Feeding - What are you feeding your cham?

Crickets

Hornworms

Dubia Roaches



What amount?

Crickets: 10-15 depending on size

Hornworms: 2-4 depending on size

Dubia Roaches: 2-3 if eating well



What is the schedule? I rotate these foods daily to every other day depending if he is eating well. If he isn’t eating well, I wait a day or two.



How are you gut-loading your feeders?

Crickets and Dubia: Bug burger, Josh’s Frogs Cricket food, greens (mustard or collard), potato (sparingly), carrots, banana (for roaches)

Repashy for hornworms



Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

RepCal Calcium without D3: daily

RepCal Calcium with D3: every 2 weeks

RepCal Herptivite:every 2 weeks



Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use?

MistKing with 1 nozzle

Distilled water only



How often and how long to you mist?

Timers set every hour to run 1 min for earlier sessions and 30 secs for later afternoon sessions.

Timers run every hour on the 45 min mark from 7:45am-4:45pm



Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I have seen him actively drink in the past, but not since I upgraded my misting timer to have 10 sessions.

Fecal Description - Recent feces have been few and far between, dry, dark brown and on 2/1 had some blood on a small dry piece. On occasion, when normal with lighter brown color and moisture, it may contain bug parts.



Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

Yes. Has been treated for Giardia in the past.



History - I purchased him from Petland who claimed he was surrendered to them. He was originally in their 18x18 Reptibreeze with another chameleon that had died. I couldn’t get him out of there fast enough. He was full sized, but they called him a juvenile. However, they had no idea of his age. My vet said that he has some scars, but is in pretty good shape.



Cage Info:

Reptibreeze XL 24x24x48”



Lighting - What brand: ZooMed ReptiSun 5.0UVB and a household halogen bulb in a ZooMed deep dome double light



Arcadia 22” D3 Reptile lamp



And a plant light.

All are on top of the vivarium.



What is your daily lighting schedule?

Timer comes on at 7am and goes off at 7pm



Temperature -

Bottom of cage 65 degrees using a dial thermometer that sits on the bottom



Basking area 79-80 degrees spot check using a Winters brand NCT150

The middle of the enclosure is about 70-71 with spot checking



Lowest overnight temp?

The overnight bottom temp is 65

The top is 71-75ish with spot checking with temp gun



Humidity - The lowest humidity is 40% in the morning and without recent plant watering. After plants are watered, it stays lowest at about 50/55%. After misting session it goes to about 70% and then dries back down to 50/55%.



How are you creating and maintaining these levels?

There are live plants in pots on the floor of the enclosure, artificial plants and perches/vines throughout the middle to the top.



What do you use to measure humidity?

A dial humidity gauge from Petco



Plants - Are you using live plants? Yes

If so, what kind? All plants are from Josh’s Frogs Chameleon plant grouping Pothos, money tree, etc.



Placement -

The vivarium is in our low traffic bonus room with a 75 gallon turtle tank. It is up on a card table. The floor vents have covers to direct the air away from the vivarium. There are ceiling fans that my daughter accidentally turns on at times. There is also a wall vent that is probably 12-15 away, but at the same high as the vivarium. The top of the vivarium is about 7’ from the ground. I do have a small radiator on low near the table holding the viv since this room is above our garage.





At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? About 7’



Location - Where are you geographically located?

St. Louis, MO



Current Problem -

Probably dehydration.

Bishop is not eating much, not producing many droppings. Had blood with the feces on Monday. Never quite gets all of his shedded skin off. He is less active than usual and generally likes to come out at times, but less so in the past month. When we brought him home, he was missing nails on one of his hind feet. They seem to be growing little nubs now. Twice recently, I have noticed him hold one of his legs with another leg one time. He is such a nice chameleon and had apparently a rough start, I want to give Bishop his best life.



I am now schooling myself with Chameleon Academy. I realize that my humidity levels and times are all wrong.



I added a Fogger and a cool must vaporizer on Tuesday. Bishop hangs out by the incoming fogger tube. I am letting it run all the time. I know he is dehydrated with lack of poop and he looks a little dry at times.
 

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I will go through your form there are some issues with husbandry.

But the blood in the fecal is a reason for a Vet visit. Blood in stool, Not pooping or eating, and having fake plants is high risk for an impaction issue. So you need to get him into a vet with actual reptile/cham experience.
 
@Hpyrok See my feedback and questions in Bold.



Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled Chameleon, Male, unsure of age, we have had him since September 30, 2020. Looks to be sub adult or adult...



Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

About 1-3 per month, if he wants to come out.



Feeding - What are you feeding your cham?

Crickets

Hornworms

Dubia Roaches



What amount? You are feeding way too much for his age... Should be reduced back to 3 feeders every other day. But I would like to see more pics of him to see what his size is... Eating this much I would expect him to be overweight at this age.

Crickets: 10-15 depending on size

Hornworms: 2-4 depending on size

Dubia Roaches: 2-3 if eating well



What is the schedule? I rotate these foods daily to every other day depending if he is eating well. If he isn’t eating well, I wait a day or two.



How are you gut-loading your feeders?

Crickets and Dubia: Bug burger, Josh’s Frogs Cricket food, greens (mustard or collard), potato (sparingly), carrots, banana (for roaches)

Repashy for hornworms



Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? Ok D3 and the multi should be rotated week to week at one feeding so that each is given 2 times a month.

RepCal Calcium without D3: daily

RepCal Calcium with D3: every 2 weeks

RepCal Herptivite:every 2 weeks


Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use?

MistKing with 1 nozzle

Distilled water only



How often and how long to you mist?

Timers set every hour to run 1 min for earlier sessions and 30 secs for later afternoon sessions.

Timers run every hour on the 45 min mark from 7:45am-4:45pm So this incorrect... Should be running a 2-5 minute sessions. But only morning and evening when temps in the cage are cooler. Then during the day the cage needs to dry out.



Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I have seen him actively drink in the past, but not since I upgraded my misting timer to have 10 sessions.

Fecal Description - Recent feces have been few and far between, dry, dark brown and on 2/1 had some blood on a small dry piece. On occasion, when normal with lighter brown color and moisture, it may contain bug parts. Blood in stool is dangerous. Being as how you have fake plants I would be concerned about an impaction issue.



Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

Yes. Has been treated for Giardia in the past. When? and have you had a fecal since?



History - I purchased him from Petland who claimed he was surrendered to them. He was originally in their 18x18 Reptibreeze with another chameleon that had died. I couldn’t get him out of there fast enough. He was full sized, but they called him a juvenile. However, they had no idea of his age. My vet said that he has some scars, but is in pretty good shape.



Cage Info:

Reptibreeze XL 24x24x48”



Lighting - What brand: ZooMed ReptiSun 5.0UVB and a household halogen bulb in a ZooMed deep dome double light.. Are you using a linear UVB light or is it just the compact bulb in the double dome? Compacts are not good for chameleons. Most that have them develop MBD. Linear T5HO fixture with a 5.0 or 6% bulb is needed then basking branch would sit 8-9 inches below it. If you do have the correct UVB then using the compact is pointless you could replace with a low wattage bulb to provide more light. Or just remove it.



Arcadia 22” D3 Reptile lamp



And a plant light.

All are on top of the vivarium.



What is your daily lighting schedule?

Timer comes on at 7am and goes off at 7pm



Temperature -

Bottom of cage 65 degrees using a dial thermometer that sits on the bottom



Basking area 79-80 degrees spot check using a Winters brand NCT150 Does this have a wired probe? He is very dark this is either due to being cold and trying to warm up or extreme stress.

The middle of the enclosure is about 70-71 with spot checking



Lowest overnight temp?

The overnight bottom temp is 65

The top is 71-75ish with spot checking with temp gun



Humidity - The lowest humidity is 40% in the morning and without recent plant watering. After plants are watered, it stays lowest at about 50/55%. After misting session it goes to about 70% and then dries back down to 50/55%. You are looking for a daytime humidity level of 30-50% max.



How are you creating and maintaining these levels?

There are live plants in pots on the floor of the enclosure, artificial plants and perches/vines throughout the middle to the top.



What do you use to measure humidity?

A dial humidity gauge from Petco These are very inaccurate. I would replace with a digital.



Plants - Are you using live plants? Yes

If so, what kind? All plants are from Josh’s Frogs Chameleon plant grouping Pothos, money tree, etc. This is good but you should not have any fake plants inside the cage. Veileds eat their plants and do not differentiate between live and fake. You can hook fake plants on the outside to help them feel secure.



Placement -

The vivarium is in our low traffic bonus room with a 75 gallon turtle tank. It is up on a card table. The floor vents have covers to direct the air away from the vivarium. There are ceiling fans that my daughter accidentally turns on at times. There is also a wall vent that is probably 12-15 away, but at the same high as the vivarium. The top of the vivarium is about 7’ from the ground. I do have a small radiator on low near the table holding the viv since this room is above our garage.





At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? About 7’



Location - Where are you geographically located?

St. Louis, MO



Current Problem -

Probably dehydration.

Bishop is not eating much, not producing many droppings. Had blood with the feces on Monday. Never quite gets all of his shedded skin off. He is less active than usual and generally likes to come out at times, but less so in the past month. When we brought him home, he was missing nails on one of his hind feet. They seem to be growing little nubs now. Twice recently, I have noticed him hold one of his legs with another leg one time. He is such a nice chameleon and had apparently a rough start, I want to give Bishop his best life. Everything your saying are cues for a vet trip to a vet that actually knows chameleons. Blood draw to check levels would be a very good thing along with an xray. The grabbing of limbs can be an issue with calcium levels as well as MBD. Also getting another fecal done to ensure there is not a parasite issue.



I am now schooling myself with Chameleon Academy. I realize that my humidity levels and times are all wrong. Good this site is a blessing and will help you tremendously.



I added a Fogger and a cool must vaporizer on Tuesday. Bishop hangs out by the incoming fogger tube. I am letting it run all the time. I know he is dehydrated with lack of poop and he looks a little dry at times. This should not be run during the day at all. You want a dry cage during the day. Hot wet air can lead to an RI. Having the cage constantly moist causes bacteria growth. Your daytime humidity levels are already too high really the ideal is 30-40% during the day a max would be 50% then at night it can be up to 100% with airflow. No stagnant air with fogging.


As I put before... blood in the fecal is a reason for a Vet visit. Blood in stool, Not pooping or eating, and having fake plants is high risk for an impaction issue. So you need to get him into a vet with actual reptile/cham experience. The other things you are mentioning tell me that you need bloodwork and an xray done. Another fecal to rule out parasites.
 
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