Diarrhea/coccidia questions

PlanetRemulak

Avid Member
My cham had a very, very runny bowel movement this morning.. best way I can describe it is diarrhea. Urate was solid and looked good. This is a completely new one on me as he’s never had a runny stool in the six months I‘ve had him. He actually hadn’t had a bowel movement all last week and I was beginning to get concerned just based on that. Not sure that him holding it in for a while would result in loose stool? I can‘t say he’s had any particularly juicy feeders, I haven’t ordered horn or silkworms in a while. He’s been eating crickets, dubia roaches and BSFL (and he’s only been getting 4-5 of the larvae during feedings). I’ll occasionally feed him blue bottle fly spikes, as well as the pupated flies. Everything is gutloaded with Repashy Bug Burger.

I did a bit of digging and read that diarrhea in chameleons usually means one of two things - too many watery feeders (like horn worms), which he hasn’t had, or coccidia. Are there any other possible causes, or is this usually pretty accurate? Freaking out more than just a little bit at this point. I’ve got an appointment with the vet scheduled for him next week, but I’m trying to get it sooner. He’s waking up every morning to bask. Appetite is definitely the same, he comes running to the cage door for food every time I open it.

In the event that it is coccidia, should I pull out all the branches and plants and toss them? Is there any way they (the sticks, at least) can be sanitized for re-use? What sort of solution should I use to deep clean?

**Editing to add that he is being misted quite a bit more often now. I added a 11:30 am misting, as well as a 2:30 PM misting to combat low RH. He’s also misted at 7 AM, 30 minutes after nights on, and at 6:30 PM, 30 minutes before lights go off. He is then misted 4 times throughout the night while he sleeps to keep humidity high. I’ve ALSO been using a dripper. Could excess moisture be the cause?
 
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I doubt excess moisture is the cause. How long are you misting for each session?

I'm with @kinyonga. You don't know if it's coccidia. Make sure you wash your hands really well before and after handling your reptiles. Also, make sure to not potentially spread it to other pets.

Your chameleon should poop again in the next one to two days. By then, you should have your answer. It's good that you have a vet appointment scheduled already. I would hold off on doing a deep clean until you know what is going on. If your animal is alert and looks normal and healthy, I would not jump to any conclusions. Looking for the next stool as well as following through with the vet appointment are your next steps. Don't worry about the following steps until you get there. Just be very careful. Treat your animal like it has coccidia, wash hands etc, and you will be good. We are all here for you!
 
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I doubt excess moisture is the cause. How long are you misting for each session?

I'm with @kinyonga. You don't know if it's coccidia. Make sure you wash your hands really well before and after handling your reptiles. Also, make sure to not potentially spread it to other pets.

Your chameleon should poop again in the next one to two days. By then, you should have your answer. It's good that you have a vet appointment scheduled already. I would hold off on doing a deep clean until you know what is going on. If your animal is alert and looks normal and healthy, I would not jump to any conclusions. Looking for the next stool as well as following through with the vet appointment are your next steps. Don't worry about the following steps until you get there. Just be very careful. Treat your animal like it has coccidia, wash hands etc, and you will be good. We are all here for you!
That’s really great advice, and thank you so much for the help/support. Hopefully the next poop is normal, but better safe than sorry. It’s kind of difficult not to go from 0 to 100 because the exotic vet we see is only in so many days out of the week. Fingers crossed its nothing bad!
 
I agree with Mendez & kinyonga —couldn't have said it better.

From a lifetime of keeping fur & scales, when I hear, "diarrhea" I immediately think, "parasite" (followed by a few other possibilities that probably don't apply here).

....
He’s waking up every morning to bask. Appetite is definitely the same, he comes running to the cage door for food every time I open it.
That's good! (y)

In the event that it is coccidia, should I pull out all the branches and plants and toss them? Is there any way they (the sticks, at least) can be sanitized for re-use? What sort of solution should I use to deep clean?
In the event that it is coccidia, you'll definitely need to do some deep cleaning. I don't want to say toss everything, but that would be the best way to ensure it's gone.

I could rattle off some disinfecting products, but I think it would be best to get those recommendations from your vet; s/he is likely to know what will work best in your area.
S/he is also best qualified to give any other treatment/cleaning advice.

And if it's NOT coccidia, you probably won't have to worry about all of that anyway... 🤞


Make sure you wash your hands really well before and after handling your reptiles.
Isn't that SOP regardless? 🤨
 
I agree with Mendez & kinyonga —couldn't have said it better.

From a lifetime of keeping fur & scales, when I hear, "diarrhea" I immediately think, "parasite" (followed by a few other possibilities that probably don't apply here).
Uuuugh.. yeah. Parasites was the first thought that came to my mind as well.

That's good! (y)


In the event that it is coccidia, you'll definitely need to do some deep cleaning. I don't want to say toss everything, but that would be the best way to ensure it's gone.

I could rattle off some disinfecting products, but I think it would be best to get those recommendations from your vet; s/he is likely to know what will work best in your area.
S/he is also best qualified to give any other treatment/cleaning advice.

And if it's NOT coccidia, you probably won't have to worry about all of that anyway... 🤞
Thank you for the reassurance, and that’s good advice. Just going to assume he’s got it until we get some answers from the vet. If this DOES turn out to be a parasite, I can only assume it came from a feeder.. I currently don’t have any other reptiles.

Isn't that SOP regardless? 🤨
For sure! Been hand-washing regularly, pre-Covid.. before it was cool 😉
 
Thank you for the reassurance, and that’s good advice. Just going to assume he’s got it until we get some answers from the vet. If this DOES turn out to be a parasite, I can only assume it came from a feeder.. I currently don’t have any other reptiles.
You should be able to get that within 24-48 hrs. except the weekend is upon us. :(
I think it's a good assumption. Herp Vet told me to always assume they've got something—even if/when they don't—to establish good hygiene habits.

Hang in there. ;) :) (y)
 
You should be able to get that within 24-48 hrs. except the weekend is upon us. :(
I think it's a good assumption. Herp Vet told me to always assume they've got something—even if/when they don't—to establish good hygiene habits.

Hang in there. ;) :) (y)
I’ve got the weekend and until this Wednesday to wait :( my herp vet isn’t there every day of the week since he usually works at a zoo, but it’s coming up fast! @Klyde O'Scope you’ve been such a big help. Thank you so much for the well wishes and the support!
I sure hope he doesn’t have it! Here’s hoping his next poop is normal!
@Lindasjackson thank you so much to you and Eustis! I so appreciate it!
 
I’ve got the weekend and until this Wednesday to wait :( my herp vet isn’t there every day of the week since he usually works at a zoo, but it’s coming up fast! @Klyde O'Scope you’ve been such a big help. Thank you so much for the well wishes and the support!
That shouldn't prevent you from taking a sample in first thing Monday. In all likelihood, the vet won't be doing the fecal him/her-self; it'll be done by a tech/assistant.
 
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