Do chameleons like to walk on the bottom of the cage?

What's your temp, UVB lighting, humidity, and supplementation schedule, and how long have you had him?

Typically, it may be a sign of metabolic bone disease (too weak to support themselves), but it just may be that they're trying to travel elsewhere or they're too hot and trying to get down low to cooler temps.
 
I own my 1 and only blue bar ambilobe so I am by no means an expert or close to it but from what I understand through my research is that these little guys are tree folk and seldom like to be on the ground unless for a few reasons which are 1. female who may be looking to lay eggs. 2. they may be ill. I may be off but if I compare it to just my own my guy has never walked along the ground of his cage and does not even want to be put on the ground if I handle him. That being said wait for other responses and perhaps some of the senior members of this site will be able to be more clear as to their behavior. They're normally great at it.
 
The answers I posed in my previous post should give us a good starting point to see if there may be something wrong/he may be sick. We really couldn't say without knowing about his husbandry, history, etc.

And the tips of their tongue can be black.
 
i keep him at about 75 with basking spots varie since its a giant climbing tree with different levels. I actually just got him 3 days ago at a reptile expo. And he will be getting with d3 and multi vitamin on the 9th like my other panther. and his humidity it 70-80 depends
plus i mist him 4 times a day
 
hi there
if you could fill this out below it will give us a better understanding of your setup as a whole..:)
he could be down there for many reasons so filling it out gives us a clearer picture

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?
 
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okay, well i have a male panther chameleon about 8-9 months ive had him for 3 days.
Ive handled him twice hes usually skiddish until you hold him for a bit then he calms down.
i feed him silkworms (which he doesnt like to much) And regular large crickets. about 6-10. I usually turn his lights on then wait 15 minutes for him to wake up but usually feed my baby panther first.
i have repti cal w/d3 and without/d3 and herptivite multivitamin
i use without d3 everyday and with d3 mixed with multivitamin on the 9th and 20th of each month.
i mist him about 4 times a day and i watch him drink he hasn't pooped yet i think i need to look.
And im trying to get an appointment with the vet tommorrow.
And im trying to conctact the previous owner about his history.
All screen cage which is 4x2x2
i have a 100watt basking bulb and a slimline zilla uvb bulb
humdity stays at about 70-80
i have 2 small ficcus since big ones arent around where i am yet since its winter. And then a bunch of fake folliage
The cage is on the floor i know i need to move him off it and he is by a vent.
im located in the northeast in pennsylvannia hope you guys can help me out!
 
hi there
thanks for filling that out.:D

whats the temp at his basking area? and how are you measuring it?

its good to give them about an hour to wake up and warm up before they eat.get there tummy all warm before breakfast.
you dont want the humidity to stay high.they need peaks of high humidity not constant high humidity.i let the humidity drop to 50% before i re-mist making sure its fully dry first.do you let the enclosure fully dry out before you re-mist?
you say hes by a vent.is there a draft coming from it?

how often is he going down to the bottom?

i just read your previous post from yesterday about him sleeping during the day.have you taken him to see a vet?
with him sleeping during the day and going down the bottom they could both well be symptoms of ill health.
 
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sorry i missed the part where you stated you are trying to get a vet appointment.

if i was worried about my cham like you are and he was showing these symptoms i would get him checked out.

keep us updated :)
 
Its not unusual for a chameleon to tour a new cage territory top to bottom for a few days.

Its also not particularly concerning if a chameleon occasionally visits the bottom of the cage, though they usually spend most of their time in the top half of the cage. If the chameleon is spending most of its time near the floor, that is something to worry about.
 
My cham started visiting the bottom of the cage when he was young. He still climbs down once a day and sometimes will spend a whole day on the bottom then climb a few inches up to sleep. He is now almost 5 years old and in good health. I think sometimes they just like to explore.
 
My cham did this everyday for about a month so I decided to renew his cage design after doing so he was no longer boared enough to want to go all the way to the bottom trying to find new things. Not saying this is whats wrong but it madey cham stop,when I added more plants and vines
 
If you've only had him three days, it's most likely not anything you did, and unless where ever he was before you got him wasn't caring for him properly and he does indeed have MBD, he's probably still just exploring and trying to see where he can get to. He ran out tree, so he figured he'd try to see how far he can go on ground. If he's walking around or even looking around while on the ground, he's fine. If he's just lying still down there, or is down there all the time, that's when I'd begin to worry.

If you do go to the vet, fecal will test for potential parasites, bloodwork will test organ function, and X-rays can detect MBD.
 
i have a vet appointment tommorrow checking for parasites and mbd :p

And he spends most of his time near the top and i saw Him walk down twice in 5 minutes but not since then. And i do let the cages fully dry out before misting but i also have a repti fogger for extra sometimes misting doesnt do the trick!
 
and he was walking around on the bottom. But sometimes kept his tail on the post so he could get back up. i can show pictures of my full setup in the morning!
 
going to the bottom twice in 5 mins is not a raise for concern.thats why i asked how often he was going down there as i thought for you to post it would have been more.:)

my boy goes down the bottom sometimes.it can be normal and just them exploring.

with you only posting 2 days ago about him sleeping during the day which is not normal this could also have been another symptom of illness.
now i know hes not going to the bottom often im sure its just him going for a wonder.
 
Mine goes sometimes on the bottom,but it's because he sees a cricket. :)
But just like xcrystalx said,exploring! It is totally fine.
 
It should only be a concern if they're down there all the time and can't/doesn't want to get back up, or if you put them back up but they keep falling or climbing back down.
 
I agree with some of the other posters that this behaviour is normal and fine, the walking on the bottom of the cage to explore. My Panther does this every day. He goes on his 'patrol' of his enclosure and if I let him out to free range early in the day, he will patrol my house. Later in the day I find he stays up high.

My two Jackson's have not been caught venturing down at all to date but I've only had them for 2 weeks. Perhaps it's a slight different in species. I have heard that panther males will go in search of a mate so that could be the reasons behind my Pete's patrols.

If he is sleeping during the day, there is a problem that needs to be rectified but I can't advise on what that may be with my current experience.
 
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