Furcifer pardalis crown discoloration (BLACK)

[xeonic]

Hello My name is Tino I am new to the forums. And Chameleons.
I have a Two year and 7 month Furcifer pardalis named Snickers.
Recently I have noticed discoloration on the crown of his head, and bridge of nose. It used to be a light red color, and now has turned dark almost black. I will post picture for you to all look at. If anyone has any thoughts as to what it is please let me know. I suspected possible UVB burn but there has been no scabbing or flaking/pealing of the skin. I am using Two reptisun 10.0 tubes 48 inch and Five reptisun 10.0 bulbs along with one T-rex 160W Mercury Vapour bulb for basking. Keeping his Humidity at 80% at the middle of the tank which lowers at the tap of the tank. The tank is misted four times a day, and have a fogger running all day, Using reverse osmosis water. Also there are Two Ceramic heaters inside the tank. One is 100W the other is 75W. the 100W is caged in wire so Snickers cannot burn himself. the 75W doesn't get hot enough to burn on, but I do have wire preventing direct contact with the bulb on the bottom.

The Pictures from Left to Right are before to current.

Video of his Glass terrarium.
http://youtu.be/IkiUgkmbrcI

 

[Thezillaman21]

idk\ about\ that\ set\ up\ im\ not\ good\ with\ products\ other\ than\ what\ i\ use.\ my\ kinyongia\ multi\ has\ this\ happen\ to\ its\ normal\ i\ think\ it\ has\ to\ do\ with\ shedding\ process.\ and\ i\ have\ seen\ plenty\ of\ chams\ with\ discoloration/on\ thier\ crests

 

[Escalade]

I'm no expert but from what I have read you shouldn't use 10.0 tubes on chams only 5.0's but let a more experienced member clarify this.

 

[Thezillaman21]

your uvb\ should\ be\ 5.0\ and\ your\ other\ lights\ are\ a\ bit\ warmer\ than\ needed.\ i\ dont\ think\ panthers\ like\ heat\ as\ 6much\ as\ 5veileds

sorry\ for\ the\ hard\ to\ read\ test\ 6my\ co6mputer\ is\ broke\ and\ i\ cant\ press\ the\ letter\ that\ co6mes\ before\ y.

 

[Escalade]

ok i reread your thread, you have 8 bulbs on that little tank? Thats definitely not good, what is the temp in the cage and the basking spot?

 

[Thezillaman21]

ok i reread your thread, you have 8 bulbs on that little tank? Thats definitely not good, what is the temp in the cage and the basking spot?

yeah\ not\ good\ i\ did\ it\ too.\\ and\ 100w\ is\ enough\ to\ burn\ i\ ha5ve\ a\ 60w\ and\ it\ gets\ about\ 90\ with\ in\ a\ foot\ of\ it.\ dude\ go\ on\ flchams.com\\ and\ read\ about\ basic\ cha6meleon\ care\ because\ i\ think\ your\ slow\ cooking\ your\ cha6m

 

[xeonic]

your uvb\ should\ be\ 5.0\ and\ your\ other\ lights\ are\ a\ bit\ warmer\ than\ needed.\ i\ dont\ think\ panthers\ like\ heat\ as\ 6much\ as\ 5veileds

sorry\ for\ the\ hard\ to\ read\ test\ 6my\ co6mputer\ is\ broke\ and\ i\ cant\ press\ the\ letter\ that\ co6mes\ before\ y.

As for heat I live in Canada and its Winter. Currently I don't think I have enough heat as I haven't been using my ceramic heaters much. Currently set to 1 hour four times a day. When I check Snickers he is cold to the touch. I think I need to invest in a proper Thermometer.

 

[JonRich]

To the OP. Did you say you have two 48" 10.0 UVB?
If so that is overkill IMO! Have you housed him this way for the entire time you've had him?

Also are you from Europe?

 

[Thezillaman21]

yeah\ not\ good\ i\ did\ it\ too.\\ and\ 100w\ is\ enough\ to\ burn\ i\ ha5ve\ a\ 60w\ and\ it\ gets\ about\ 90\ with\ in\ a\ foot\ of\ it.\ dude\ go\ on\ flchams.com\\ and\ read\ about\ basic\ cha6meleon\ care\ because\ i\ think\ your\ slow\ cooking\ your\ cha6m

ok\ TAKE| THE| HEATERS| OUT!\ ACTUALLY| TAKE| E%VERYTHING| OTHER| THAN| THE| PLANTS\ AND\ THE\ CHA6M\ OUT.\ START\ AT\ THE\ BEGGINING.\ YOUR\ LIGHTS\ ARE\ NOT\ CHA6M\ APPRO5VED\ GET\ THE\ 5.O
AND\ A\ 40-60W\ BULB\ FOR\ HEAT.\ ALSO\ IDK\ IF\ THAT\ CAGE\ HAS\ 5VENTALATION\ WHICH\ IS\ I6MPORTANT.\ HTTP://WWW.FLCHAMS.COM/ABOUT_PANTHER_CHAMELEONS.ASP

THIS\ IS\ WHAT\ YOU\ NEED\ TO\ KNOW!!!

 

[JonRich]

As for heat I live in Canada and its Winter. Currently I don't think I have enough heat as I haven't been using my ceramic heaters much. Currently set to 1 hour four times a day. When I check Snickers he is cold to the touch. I think I need to invest in a proper Thermometer.

I also have a all glass enclosure, granted not as large as yours. But I have one 100w incandescent household bulb and my Chams basking spot is in the low 90*. I live in NYC and I have had temps in the low 20s and still kept the basking spot temp stable at 90's

 

[Solid Snake]

Hello My name is Tino I am new to the forums. And Chameleons.
I have a Two year and 7 month Furcifer pardalis named Snickers.

Snickers is beautifull

Recently I have noticed discoloration on the crown of his head, and bridge of nose. It used to be a light red color, and now has turned dark almost black. I will post picture for you to all look at. If anyone has any thoughts as to what it is please let me know.

He doestnt appear to be burned as far as I can tell. He looks like he has basking colors displayed in the latter pics.

I suspected possible UVB burn but there has been no scabbing or flaking/pealing of the skin. I am using Two reptisun 10.0 tubes 48 inch and Five reptisun 10.0 bulbs along with one T-rex 160W Mercury Vapour bulb for basking.

One 10.0 light would suufice, but a 5.0 is recomended. ALL of those bulbs are putting out too much uvb INDIVIDUALLY.

Keeping his Humidity at 80% at the middle of the tank which lowers at the tap of the tank. The tank is misted four times a day, and have a fogger running all day, Using reverse osmosis water.

This is fine.

Also there are Two Ceramic heaters inside the tank. One is 100W the other is 75W. the 100W is caged in wire so Snickers cannot burn himself. the 75W doesn't get hot enough to burn on, but I do have wire preventing direct contact with the bulb on the bottom.

I would place the heat emmitters around the cage(outside) to heat up the center area where the cage is. I have no experience with heat emmitters though. That sounds like ALOT of heat. My cham is almost always "cool" to the touch, they do not need to be at 80 degrees internal temp 24/7!

Welcome to the forum, you will find everything you need to care for Snickers here. You are basicly slow cooking him from the sound of it. Dont panic! He should be ok, please fill out the how to ask for help form (can be found in the health threads, top of list) and we will see what needs to be changed so Snickers is comfy He really is beautifull...

 

[Thezillaman21]

Ok I'm on iPod now.
Chameleons are cold blooded so they are never ganna be like a dog that will warm you up if u cuddle with em. Those UVB lights I think are stronger than they need to be by far! A 5.0 UVB is plenty. As for temps the glass cages hold heat. Also UVB can't go threw glasss so I'd guess having Those 10.0 UVB lights is like having a 15.0 because the UVB ray just keep bouncing around. You let you Cham just have no UVB for a few while u get a 5.0 they go for abOut $13-20. Your cage is honestly an oven from the sounds of things. I'm truly shocked your cham is alive. Study up more man chameleons are difficult if u don't keep researching them. I hope that no perment damage has bn done.

 

[xeonic]

Please explain how the lights are over kill. I have a Four foot by Four Foot tank. If you think there is too much UVB you probably are right, I am by far not an expert. As for heat I have to disagree. I have one thermometer 17 inches away from the 160W Mercury Vapour bulb I use for basking and its reading 79F. The rest of the tank is cold unless Snickers is directly below the top of the enclosure. The reason I have the 10.0 instead of the 5.0 as the 5.0 is rated effective for UVB induced photo conversion of vitamin D3 in reptiles skin at distances up to 12", and the 10.0 is 20". I also have mesh at the top of my tank which can reduce UVB out put by 50%. The reason I have so many lights, is my tank is 48" wide and high. I wanted the UVB to be able to actually be effective without the the Chameleon having to bask to get UVB radiation. Should I just use the Mercury Vapour basking Bulb?
As for Heat the Chameleon is cold to the touch unless he is basking. I will have to get more thermometers and place them through out the tank to get proper readings but I'm sure they are around room temperature unless I turn on the Cermaic Heaters which are only for short periods. Also I have my House temperature set to 70F.

 

[Solid Snake]

The lights COULD be overkill as we are under the assumption you have 8 of them. This could be to much uvb, and could damage his eyes. A 10.0 is fine, if lifted off the top of the cage a little, I have used one right on top of the cage for months before though with no ill effect. If you fill out the form, it will hit all aspects of your current care info, them we can critique what you are doing with him, and fix it if neccissary. I recomend this because these animals are so fragile, and if theres somthing the matter with your husbandry, its better to correct it now than when you get your next chameleon. How far away from the basking spot is the basking bulb? Does the chameleon change color when its outside its cage? The bottom of the cage should sit at roughly 70, your basking should max out at 85ish. Please fill out the form.

 

[EvilLost]

. I am using Two reptisun 10.0 tubes 48 inch and Five reptisun 10.0 bulbs along with one T-rex 160W Mercury Vapour bulb for basking.

WHAT!? You have SEVEN 10.0 tubes in there?! You said your tank is 4'x4'....compare to mine...



I use *ONE* Reptisun 5.0 on my 2'x2'x4' SCREEN cage. The rest is 6500K daylihgt bulbs...


EDIT: @SolidSnake: Don't believe the box.

 

[xeonic]

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 - Glass 48" x 48" x 20" Width x Hight x Length
Lighting - X 2 48" reptisun 10.0 tubes. x 5 reptisun 10.0 Bulb. x1 160W Mercury Vapour T-Rex Bulb in corner for basking.
Temperature - 72F cage temp. 79F 17" from 160W T-rex bulb (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? 70F House thermometer and one
Humidity - 80 at middle of tank, which lowers towards top of tank, using fogger, and monsoon 400 and reverse osmosis water.
Plants - Bromelaids. 1 zebra plant, and forget the name of the 3rd. all plants non toxic according to ASPCA website.
Placement - Cage located in living room. Near Window. sitting on low standing table. Traffic Medium/high.
Location - Canada, Alberta.

Current Problem - darkening of the Skin on crown and bridge of nose.

 

[Solid Snake]

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Glass 48" x 48" x 20" Width x Hight x Length

Lighting - X 2 48" reptisun 10.0 tubes. x 5 reptisun 10.0 Bulb. x1 160W
Take out one of the 4' uvb bulbs and put in a daylight/plant growing light instead.
Mercury Vapour T-Rex Bulb in corner for basking.
The watt seems right, im not familiar with the bulb, but I believe it outputs uvb as well, some one confirm/deny this?
Temperature - 72F cage temp. 79F 17" from 160W T-rex bulb (cage floor to
basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? 70F House thermometer and one
Good deal
Humidity - 80 at middle of tank, which lowers towards top of tank, using fogger, and monsoon 400 and reverse osmosis water.

Plants - Bromelaids. 1 zebra plant, and forget the name of the 3rd. all plants non toxic according to ASPCA website.

Placement - Cage located in living room. Near Window. sitting on low standing table. Traffic Medium/high.

Location - Canada, Alberta.

Current Problem - darkening of the Skin on crown and bridge of nose.[/QUOTE]

Well how about the top part of the form? Anyhow, are these other 5 uvb bulbs linear or the CF type? Im having trouble figuring out from the photo how you have that many lights going! But thats way to much for sure. I would also move the 10.0 up. The chameleon will need to regulate its uvb, it should not be able to "bask" at any point of the cage, heat, light, humidity, everything should have a gradient to it within the cage.

 

[xeonic]

oops forgot to fill out the first half. ALso Everything running on Power is run for 12 hours on a timer. Heat Lamps 1 hour x 4 times in a 12 hour day time.


Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Panther 2 1/2 years.
Handling - Hardly ever.
Feeding - Crickets, Silk worms, Butter worms, Super worms. Crickets gut loaded using fulkers gut loading food, potatoes and kale. Fed every day. dusted with calcium and vitamin supplements.
Supplements - rep-cal phosphorous free calcium With vit.D3, rep-cal multivitamins. crickets dusted with calcium x2 weekly. crickets dusted vitamins x1 weekly.
Watering - Pump drip system, water changed daily with tap water, filtered with brita filter. and a mansoon 400 with reverse osmosis water x4 daily for 30 seconds. Fogger running all day.
Fecal Description - Brown poop. Solid with white tip. Never tested for parasites.
History - Previosly in a small Mesh tank, with 160W T-rex Mercury Vapor bulb by previous owner who owned him only 6 months.

 

[Solid Snake]

The silks and crickets is what you want to feed mostly. Supers and butters are treats, and should be fed very sparingly. Dont use the flukers, throw it away. Go get some oranges, put them in the fridge, cut a new slice for the crickets to eat everyday, ok every other day, just make sure they have lots of orange to drink from. Then read sandrachameleons blog on gutloading the crickets and feed them lotsa good stuff like butternut squash and collard greens and such. The flukers is not an appropriate cal/phos ratio for the chameleon. Its not toxic or anything, you just cant realy get good nutrition out of it. It sounds like Snickers stays plenty hydrated. My main concern is the amount of uvb light hes getting, and the heat emitters being IN the cage. You need to make sure he can be cool if he wants, and that the temps arent high enuff to cook him. My temps get down to 55ish at night(for winter) and the ambient daytime temp is about 60 somtimes. My cham can go get warm if he likes, but the 60 degrees doesnt seem to bother him/stop him exploring all day, and only basking occaisonally. So dont be worried about freezing him unless its below 50, worry more about "cooking" him with to much heat, like I said, you need a gradient for everything, even branch size for a healthy cham.

 

[xeonic]

Solid Snake. There are x 5 CF and x2 Linear.
Picture a Linear light fixture 48" long. then place 4 CF bulbes along that 48".

here is a picture hope it helps.