Food strike

[MauiThePanther]

So I recently changed the substrate in my panthers chameleon cage and gave him fresh material of the exact same substrate I took out and replaced his plants with different plants to make his cage more colorful. Well now he’s suddenly crawling all over his cage all day everyday, he hasn’t been eating, I discovered 2 small black spots on his underside which I’m assuming is from his stress. This has been going on for 2 weeks now and the stress marks have been present for about 2 days. What can I do to get this guy to start eating and goi g back to his daily routine.? I’m making myself sick stressing out about what to do for him, and I’m really trying to resist myself from making him eat.. any ideas or opinions on what my best interest is for him? He’s 11 months old & is a Nosy Be Panther Chameleon.

 

[Beman]

2 weeks without eating is not a long period for a healthy cham. Have you tried any other feeders that he may prefer?

 

[kinyonga]

Is he pooping?

 

[MauiThePanther]

Is he pooping?

Yes and no. Hell pee which is starting to become the dehydrated color (slightly yellow) and his stool is very very small like a rodent droppling.. I watched him drink yesterday though.

 

[MauiThePanther]

2 weeks without eating is not a long period for a healthy cham. Have you tried any other feeders that he may prefer?

I’ve tried silkworms, super worms, super mealworms, Phoenix larva, was worms, hornworms, crickets and I even tried without supplements.

 

[Beman]

I’ve tried silkworms, super worms, super mealworms, Phoenix larva, was worms, hornworms, crickets and I even tried without supplements.

Does he hand feed for you outside of the cage?

 

[kinyonga]

Just asked about the poop to know if he was eating. If it's small he's not eating much or could be impacted. If he's not been eating anything then there won't be any poop..just urates. Please post recent photos of him and the whole cage.

 

[MauiThePanther]

Does he hand feed for you outside of the cage?

No I’ve never been able to get him to hand feed or tonge feed. He’s very shy when he eats. I used to have to leave the room just to get to eat. Then over time he gained trust allowed me to observe him eat. Everything was fine until I changed his cage but from the books I bought, this is way out of time frame for him to still be acting like this.

 

[MauiThePanther]

Just asked about the poop to know if he was eating. If it's small he's not earring much or could b impacted if he's npbeen eating something he shouldn't. Please post recent photos of him be the whole cage.

 

[Beman]

How different is it from the first set up? Did you move the location? They can take a week or two to settle back in. He is at a stubborn age too where he is maturing. So looking at all those feeders... How often are you feeding that much?

 

[MauiThePanther]

I usually give him 4/5 crickets and 4/5 super worms every other day.. I usually allow them to gutload before feeding. But haven’t always been on top of the gutload schedule in the past when he ate before. I use rapashy “Calcium Plus “ As a supplement. They usually knock most the dust off themselves in that shooting gallery crawling around before he finds the appetite for them. (In the past when he WAS eating)

 

[Beman]

I usually give him 4/5 crickets and 4/5 super worms every other day.. I usually allow them to gutload before feeding. But haven’t always been on top of the gutload schedule in the past when he ate before. I use rapashy “Calcium Plus “ As a supplement. They usually knock most the dust off themselves in that shooting gallery crawling around before he finds the appetite for them. (In the past when he WAS eating)

Yeah I prefer the LoD version of the repashy with the T5 fixtures. Some chams can have issues with the repashy and we have seen gout in them.

I will say at a year old they are fed 3-4 feeders 3 days a week typically. So he is already getting a ton. I would expect him to be heavier then he is with how often and how much he is getting. Have you gotten a fecal done on him recently?

 

[MauiThePanther]

No, I’ve had him 4-5 months and we haven’t been to the vet yet..shame on me I know. I’ve never been and hoping I can get him back in his normal behaviors before going and spending hundreds of dollars for something I could’ve corrected.

 

[Beman]

No, I’ve had him 4-5 months and we haven’t been to the vet yet..shame on me I know. I’ve never been and hoping I can get him back in his normal behaviors before going and spending hundreds of dollars for something I could’ve corrected.

Well the reason I ask... Is with that food intake I would expect him to be heavier at almost a year old. I would get a fecal to ensure there is not a parasite issue. The stress from the cage change up could have set off a parasite issue causing the lack of appetite. I would call your local reptile vet and see if they will allow you to drop off the fresh fecal to be tested and then do a follow up appointment if it comes back positive. Limiting his stress would be important and a vet that sees reptiles would understand this. They don't need to see him to run a fecal. They need to see him to treat for a parasite though. Then he would have to be taken in. Most fecals only cost 25-65 dollars. If it is a parasite issue you will not be able to correct it on your own.

 

[MauiThePanther]

Well the reason I ask... Is with that food intake I would expect him to be heavier at almost a year old. I would get a fecal to ensure there is not a parasite issue. The stress from the cage change up could have set off a parasite issue causing the lack of appetite. I would call your local reptile vet and see if they will allow you to drop off the fresh fecal to be tested and then do a follow up appointment if it comes back positive. Limiting his stress would be important and a vet that sees reptiles would understand this. They don't need to see him to run a fecal. They need to see him to treat for a parasite though. Then he would have to be taken in. Most fecals only cost 25-65 dollars. If it is a parasite issue you will not be able to correct it on your own.

Okay as of right now he has a bed sheet on the front half of his cage where we can see him from and half the back half (by the walls) uncovered for ventilation. I’ve checked on him a few times and actually caught him drinking some water today. He has moved around his cage too much either which is an improvement to the past few days with his behavior. Trying to limit to commotion and traffic he see’s. Just wanted him to be able to focus on himself and keep from distracting and stressing him even more. If nothing changes within the next week or so I will be driving a few hours to go drop off a fecal test. I plan to only have the sheet up 3-5 days. Hopefully we see some good news! & Also is there a recommended way to get their attention to make them wanna way? I’ve always had problems with getting him to try wax worms and little feeders like that since I’ve had him at 5 months old. Is this a normal thing for them to be picky?

 

[Beman]

Okay as of right now he has a bed sheet on the front half of his cage where we can see him from and half the back half (by the walls) uncovered for ventilation. I’ve checked on him a few times and actually caught him drinking some water today. He has moved around his cage too much either which is an improvement to the past few days with his behavior. Trying to limit to commotion and traffic he see’s. Just wanted him to be able to focus on himself and keep from distracting and stressing him even more. If nothing changes within the next week or so I will be driving a few hours to go drop off a fecal test. I plan to only have the sheet up 3-5 days. Hopefully we see some good news! & Also is there a recommended way to get their attention to make them wanna way? I’ve always had problems with getting him to try wax worms and little feeders like that since I’ve had him at 5 months old. Is this a normal thing for them to be picky?

Picky is very normal. They are like toddlers without the ability to throw their plate at you. superworms they can get hooked on and not want other things. Waxworms are not the best for nutritional value. Silkworms are really good if he will take them.
Hopefully he snaps out of it. But if he does not then I would definitely get a fecal done.