Customize cage for MBD cham?

[foxyphoenix]

I recently adopted "Karma", a 10-month-old male veiled chameleon who has MBD. He has been to the vet already, and I have prescription calcium syrup to keep his condition from deteriorating any more.

He was kept with a "compact" (curly) UVB lamp before I got him, which I believe contributed to his MBD. Now he has a proper UV fixture. I set up his enclosure as stipulated by numerous care sheets and posts here, and double-checked my husbandry with my herp vet.

However, I feel bad for him because he is very uncoordinated and has trouble maneuvering along the branches of the plants in his enclosure. I switched the branches out for wooden bird ladders (which are slimmer and easier for him to grip), but I was wondering if the keepers here had any more suggestions to make him more comfortable. Any advice would be appreciated!

 

[mcleodschams]

My mbd cham I built a kinda babie bin jungle Jim a little larger scale kinda like your ladder idea but I built a cube of bamboo kinda looks like a hallow rubix cube lol wrapped with ivy lots of places to grab and I also have him in a shorter cage then all the rest so he can stay lower and still get the lighting he needs.

 

[jannb]

Some keepers have turned the cage on the side but still set the cage up high on a table or something. You might could also raise the bottom of the cage up. For my older guys I pack the bottom of the cage with Pothos to break their fall. I have a net now to catch one of my older guys when he falls. I'll see if I can find a picture of his tree with the with the net.

The last few pictures show the tree with his net.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/my-little-old-man-mufasa-85685/

 

[foxyphoenix]

Some keepers have turned the cage on the side but still set the cage up high on a table or something. You might could also raise the bottom of the cage up. For my older guys I pack the bottom of the cage with Pothos to break their fall. I have a net now to catch one of my older guys when he falls. I'll see if I can find a picture of his tree with the with the net.

The last few pictures show the tree with his net.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/my-little-old-man-mufasa-85685/

I love your tree and net setup! I really like the cage turning idea. The vet recommended a smaller cage so that he didn't have to climb as high to bask (or have too far to fall!), but I would love to give him more space to roam. I definitely need to put something on the bottom of the cage in case he falls.

Thank you both! I want to give this guy a new lease on life and spoil him rotten.

 

[kinyonga]

Welcome to the forum!

Concerning the MBD...liquid calcium will help to correct the imbalance but you still need to make sure that your husbandry is right to prevent it from returning. You need to provide appropriate temperatures to aid in digestion and thus nutrient absorption. The chameleon needs a source of UVB either from direct sunlight or a good UVB light. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic.

Good gutloading and appropriate supplements in balance are also important.
You can use a wide assortment of greens ( dandelion greens, collards, endive, escarole, kale, mustard greens, etc) and veggies ( carrots, squash, zucchini, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, etc.) to gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc with.

Since most of the insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phos its important to dust with a phos - free calcium powder at most feedings.

I also dust twice a month with a phos - free calcium powder with D3 to ensure that the chameleon gets some D3 without overdosing it and leaving it to produce the rest of it through its exposure to the UVB.

I also dust twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. Using one with a beta carotene (prEformed) source of vitamin A will ensure mean that there will be no chance of overdosing the vitamin A and will leave it so the owner can decide whether to use a prEformed source of vitamin A which does build up in the system.

Good luck with the chameleon!

 

[foxyphoenix]

Welcome to the forum!

Concerning the MBD...liquid calcium will help to correct the imbalance but you still need to make sure that your husbandry is right to prevent it from returning. You need to provide appropriate temperatures to aid in digestion and thus nutrient absorption. The chameleon needs a source of UVB either from direct sunlight or a good UVB light. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic.

Good gutloading and appropriate supplements in balance are also important.
You can use a wide assortment of greens ( dandelion greens, collards, endive, escarole, kale, mustard greens, etc) and veggies ( carrots, squash, zucchini, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, etc.) to gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc with.

Since most of the insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phos its important to dust with a phos - free calcium powder at most feedings.

I also dust twice a month with a phos - free calcium powder with D3 to ensure that the chameleon gets some D3 without overdosing it and leaving it to produce the rest of it through its exposure to the UVB.

I also dust twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. Using one with a beta carotene (prEformed) source of vitamin A will ensure mean that there will be no chance of overdosing the vitamin A and will leave it so the owner can decide whether to use a prEformed source of vitamin A which does build up in the system.

Good luck with the chameleon!

I've got a brand new UVB long fixture about six inches above his favorite basking spot, going through only the mesh screen of the cage. Is that okay?

Is there a specific brand of vitamin supplement that you recommend?