Cham not eating and sleeping during the day

Luke.C.Nord

New Member
Panther Chameleon Nosy Faly, 1 year old, Male, been in my care for 9 months

Handled once to twice a day

Used to mostly be dubias, now i'm trying to mix in crickets, supers, and hornworms

Supplements are Calcium without D3 and every saturday alternates between reptivite and with D3

Watering I used to use a msitking but its currently broken so i mist once a day until he stops drinking

Fecals, runny urates and kind of runny brown parts



Cage info:

Reptibreeze 2'x2'x4' with vinyl zip tied on 2 sides and towel draped over back

Lighting is reptisun 5.0 uvb long bulb and for heat i have a 100W heat bulb and a 50W ceramic and the ceramic stays on 24/7 but the heat/light bulb turns off at night

temps are 75-84 in the day and 74-82 at night

humidity goes from about 30's to mid 60's

I have one Ficus tree in the middle of the enclosure

hes not near any vents or around anything busy, he has his own quiet corner in a bedroom.

Im located in Utah



My problems with this guy is that he hasnt been eating very much if at all, I offer him a big variety of insects but he hardly ever even takes interest in them. I used to feed him pretty much only dubias but he slowly lost interest in those so i started to mix it up more but recently he hasnt been taking interest in hardly anything. I've also caught him sleeping during the day and I noticed his urates are quite runny. The brown part isn't as runny but it does seem to be a little bit on the lighter side. I think the urate thing might just be from a little extra hydration but the thing thats been concerning me is how hes been sleeping during the day. He's always been difficult for me to feed, but he responds pretty well to free range, but the crickets always end up hiding at the bottom of the tank until they die and roaches just like to hide in the very corners and never move so I'd rather just get him used to cup feeding but he never eats out of a cup. He only will eat a few crickets if I free range them and then the rest just end up dying in the bottom of the cage. I tried setting up a runner cup for him but it has had little to no success. I feel that if i can just get him back on a healthy eating schedule I could get him to eat out of a cup easier. any suggestions? also does anyone think he has parasites and if he does what should I do while i wait for my vet appointment on the 2nd of august.

r/Chameleons - Cham not eating and sleeping during the day
Another little thing i found under the microscope

r/Chameleons - Cham not eating and sleeping during the day
I found this little circle under a cheap microscope i had at home and if you look to the left theres some more little circles



r/Chameleons - Cham not eating and sleeping during the day
Here is a picture of my dude

r/Chameleons - Cham not eating and sleeping during the day
Heres a pic of his feces
 
and a 50W ceramic and the ceramic stays on 24/7
You can turn this one of after all lights go out, unless your room temperature drops below 60 at night (what I don´t think). Check care sheet for temps.


Screenshot 2021-07-26 131732.jpg
 
Sleeping during the day is not good at all. I agree that you should let him have cool nights. Misting him at least twice a day for 2 minutes would be better than just once. You could also add a dripper for 15-20 minutes daily. Humidity should be between 50-70% during the day and when it’s cool at night can go up to 80-100%. Adding live plants will make a big difference in increasing and maintaining humidity.
Are you giving Reptivite without D3 as well as Reptivite with D3? If so, he is getting too much multivitamin. Some vitamins, like D3 and A are fat soluble and are stored much longer in the body and can reach toxic levels if overdone. A visit to a vet experienced with chameleons is always a good idea and have a fecal check.
 
1-2 times a day everyday for handling? (If I’m reading that wrong correct me.)

Chameleons aren’t too keen of handling, so that might also be a stress factor for it. Should start handling it a bit less, especially while it seems to be sick.
 
ok, ill take put all this info to use, Thanks! any ideas on how I could get him to eat easier though?
Worms might work. I’ll usually set mine out on a branch and wait to watch my chameleon eat it. Mine had an appetite problem before I offered horn worms. Not a staple insect but the colors could provoke a response and help him gain an appetite.

I would try to give him one horn worm, and if he accepts try a Dubai or a super worm. Start slow and see if he’ll accept anything.

As for nighttime temps, since nobody really stated how to lower that even more (besides turning light off.) I live in Idaho and completely understand if you’re having difficulty lowering the temps even more, heats been Horrible. What I do is a have a low sitting fan and I’ll put it on throughout the night. It’s seemed to help me a bit. I don’t blast my chameleons, but enough to have a slight breeze and cool down for them.
 
Sleeping during the day is not good at all. I agree that you should let him have cool nights. Misting him at least twice a day for 2 minutes would be better than just once. You could also add a dripper for 15-20 minutes daily. Humidity should be between 50-70% during the day and when it’s cool at night can go up to 80-100%. Adding live plants will make a big difference in increasing and maintaining humidity.
Are you giving Reptivite without D3 as well as Reptivite with D3? If so, he is getting too much multivitamin. Some vitamins, like D3 and A are fat soluble and are stored much longer in the body and can reach toxic levels if overdone. A visit to a vet experienced with chameleons is always a good idea and have a fecal check.
i messed up when i said reptavite, i use herptivite if that’s any better haha
 
@JacksJill wanna take a look at that picture, thoughts on coccidia?

Runny stool is usually 1 of 2 things... hornworms have been known to cause diarrhea, not threatening... and then the bad, coccidia. Coccidia poop is usually not firm at all and has a very distinct disgusting smell. Smaller coccidia infections can be more minor though... the sleeping during the day is definitely an issue. Warm nights, while not great, shouldn't cause this. They for sure have times in the wild where temps are warm at night too, you just don't want this as a regular thing all year long.
 
the sleeping during the day is definitely an issue.
i have vinyl zip tied on 2 sides of his cage to keep humidity in because utah air is dryer than bones and i recently draped a towel on the back too so maybe all of the covering could make him confused?..
 
horn worm
i’ll pick some more up today, thanks for your responses they’re super helpful.

he also responds pretty well to crickets when i free range them, but they have a fun little habit of ending their lives in any small puddle they can find and hiding until they die off
 
i’ll pick some more up today, thanks for your responses they’re super helpful.

he also responds pretty well to crickets when i free range them, but they have a fun little habit of ending their lives in any small puddle they can find and hiding until they die off
Have you tried super worms or silk worms?
 
I use calcium without d3 every day except saturday and on saturdays i alternate between herptivite and calcium with d3
Are both calciums phosphorus-free, as well?
he has been having hornworms lately, because they’re like pretty much the only thing he’ll eat
Have you tried silkworms?
i have vinyl zip tied on 2 sides of his cage to keep humidity in because utah air is dryer than bones and i recently draped a towel on the back too so maybe all of the covering could make him confused?..
Could he be stressed from his reflection in the vinyl?
i’ll pick some more up today, thanks for your responses they’re super helpful.

he also responds pretty well to crickets when i free range them, but they have a fun little habit of ending their lives in any small puddle they can find and hiding until they die off
I say keep feeding crickets that way he at least has some food, unless the crickets are diseased or something, then stay away from them. Where do you buy his crickets?
 
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