Gatorade????

[baggedd5087]

so my vet told me to force feed bottled gatorade down my cham cause he is dehydrated and hasnt ate in a week. this doesnt sound like a good idea cause of the high fructose corn syrup. it seems like its too sticky he holds his head and body straight up and down. im worried he is loosing weight and seems so lathargic. I cant get any food down him. i wanna take him back to the vet but its a four hour drive both ways and ive already missed 3 finals in college. and the vet said it might be a vitamin a overdose cause i was using vitamins instead of calcuim but i stopped that. and its been about 7 and a half weeks since he shed last his last one was october 24 he should have shed on november 24

Cage Info:
Cage Type - 2x2x4 all screen
Lighting - Repti-Glo 5.0 18" tube, 40 watt household bulb with silver dome, 12 hours on, 12 off
Temperature - 84 F @ Basking Spot, 72 at bottom of cage
Humidity - it ranges from 55 to 75 using humidifier
Plants - Pothos, Corn plant, Schefflera Arboricola
Placement - In My Room thats quiet with no air drafts
Location - Grand Junction Colorado in the dry desert

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Male Veiled 3 1/2 months old
Handling - Once a day for a few seconds
Feeding - Gut loaded 1/4" crickets with carrots, apples , about 10 a day. one mini super worm a week
Supplements - Rep-Cal Herpitive once a month, Rep-Cal Calcium with D3 twice a month, Zilla calcium feeder spray w/o d3
Watering - Mist 2 times a day for about a minute, Little dripper dripping all the time, i see him drinking alot
Fecal Description - Dark with white runny urate with white fluid, never been tested for parasites
History - Got Him From FLChams a month and a half ago
Current Problem - His eyes have been closed all day, hasnt ate in a week

 

[jessica]

Try unflavored pedialyte. It has all the electrolytes you need without the fructose corn syrup.
You should be able to find it in the baby section at grocerey store.
Hope your baby gets well soon!

 

[baggedd5087]

Thank you ill try that the poor guy just sits under his basking lamp with his eyes closed

 

[jessica]

Poor lil dude

Well try to get that pedialyte if he's dehydrated it will help him feel better and it wont be sticky lol

 

[baggedd5087]

ill do that for sure i might head back up to denver tomorrow after my math final to get some blood work done just to be safe. the things you do for the animals you love

 

[jessica]

It really is amazing how fast they become a part of the family

 

[panthercham]

This seems to be an ongoing concern as you posted in https://www.chameleonforums.com/help-asap-33531/

The not eating in a week is a concern but not as major as getting him hydrated. If it was a vitamin A overdose then hydration is the best thing for him. Is it only a week that he hasnt been eating or longer?

Unflavored Pedailyte is better than Gatorade as it doesn't have the sugar, flavoring or artificial colorings in it and is an electroyte replacement drink.

Misting.....use very warm tap water so that it comes out warm and not cold and mist for more than a minute. Also increase the misting a few more times a day.....if you see him drinking a lot that is good but give him more access to water at this time to see if that helps.

What do you mean by he holds his head and body straight up and down when he drinks?

The vet that you saw is he/she a good herp vet? Did you use http://www.herpvetconnection.com/colorado.shtml? If not then ring Gary Rechten in Grand Junction.....he seems to be close to you and you wont have a 4 hour drive.

 

[baggedd5087]

This seems to be an ongoing concern as you posted in https://www.chameleonforums.com/help-asap-33531/

The not eating in a week is a concern but not as major as getting him hydrated. If it was a vitamin A overdose then hydration is the best thing for him. Is it only a week that he hasnt been eating or longer?

Unflavored Pedailyte is better than Gatorade as it doesn't have the sugar, flavoring or artificial colorings in it and is an electroyte replacement drink.

Misting.....use very warm tap water so that it comes out warm and not cold and mist for more than a minute. Also increase the misting a few more times a day.....if you see him drinking a lot that is good but give him more access to water at this time to see if that helps.

What do you mean by he holds his head and body straight up and down when he drinks?

The vet that you saw is he/she a good herp vet? Did you use http://www.herpvetconnection.com/colorado.shtml? If not then ring Gary Rechten in Grand Junction.....he seems to be close to you and you wont have a 4 hour drive.

he hasnt really ate much since i got him maybe like four crickets a day and a mini superworm once a week but ya its been exactly on week since he has ate

and ive been having to force feed him water since i posted the help asap thread
i have upped his misting to about 10 times a day i let his cage dry out then i spray again

This isnt a very good pic cause my digital camera took a dump and stopped working so i had to take it with my phone

and my mom told me gary moved outta town she is a vet tech and knows like every vet but ill try and see if he is still there

 

[Chameleonboy]

Any sort of wheezing or popping noises coming out of him? If so he may have a URI (upper respiratory infection)

You may want to give him a warm shower and see if that helps.

Are you using a coil bulb by any chance?

-Clemonde

 

[baggedd5087]

Any sort of wheezing or popping noises coming out of him? If so he may have a URI (upper respiratory infection)

You may want to give him a warm shower and see if that helps.

Are you using a coil bulb by any chance?

-Clemonde

no popping or wheezing when i give him water and he opens his mouth it kinda pops but i think thats from the water

and im using a linear tube not the coil ive done my reserch

 

[Chameleonboy]

Is he able to eat anything? Does he open his eyes at all during the day?

-Clemonde

 

[baggedd5087]

he will eat 1 cricket a day if i rip off all the legs, his eyes arnt closed all day if there is any noise he will open his eyes and check it out, so id say his eyes are open 40% of the day

 

[Chameleonboy]

What do his urates look like? Why not give him a nice lukewarm shower and see if that helps? Is he drinking on his own?

-Clemonde

 

[baggedd5087]

his last bowel movement was about 3 days ago his urate was runny and white. how do you shower them? just put him on a plant and stick it under the shower head? he isnt drinking i give him 1 cc of gatorade (vet told me to do that) and 1cc of water. his lips look really dry and are kind of shrivled up

 

[CNorton]

Okay, first things first...DON'T MISS FINALS!! No animal is worth jeopardizing your future over! Most teachers will not give you a second chance.

Now that we've put things in perspective, onto the cham. His color isn't looking good and since you've observed him closing his eyes, I would treat this as a life or death situation. Don't be afraid to give him water and even force feed him. DO NOT DUMP VITAMINS OR CALCIUM INTO HIS MOUTH! I would forced feed a well gutloaded cricket or two and see how he does. Let the crickets go to town on some oranges. That will give the cham some natural sugars and help him bounce back. Then you can worry about dialing in the nutrition.

Not sure how to force feed? With one hand, grab gently behind his head. This will piss him off and cause him to gape (open his mouth) for you to conveniently slip a cricket halfway into his mouth. He should bite down and then you let him do the rest. If he needs help, and you value your fingers, use some tweezers or better yet something softer than won't injure his mouth when he bites down.

I really hope the best for you and your dude! Hope this helps!

 

[Chameleonboy]

Put a plant in the shower and aim the water on the wall let it bounce off so that it hits the plant. Any shots of his Poo poo? I don't know about the Gatorade so I don't want to tell you false info. Any chance you can get him to eat more? i would for sure give him a shower and see how he reacts. MAKE sure it is not to hot or not to cold just perfect.

-Clemonde

 

[baggedd5087]

Okay, first things first...DON'T MISS FINALS!! No animal is worth jeopardizing your future over! Most teachers will not give you a second chance.

Now that we've put things in perspective, onto the cham. His color isn't looking good and since you've observed him closing his eyes, I would treat this as a life or death situation. Don't be afraid to give him water and even force feed him. DO NOT DUMP VITAMINS OR CALCIUM INTO HIS MOUTH! I would forced feed a well gutloaded cricket or two and see how he does. Let the crickets go to town on some oranges. That will give the cham some natural sugars and help him bounce back. Then you can worry about dialing in the nutrition.

Not sure how to force feed? With one hand, grab gently behind his head. This will piss him off and cause him to gape (open his mouth) for you to conveniently slip a cricket halfway into his mouth. He should bite down and then you let him do the rest. If he needs help, and you value your fingers, use some tweezers or better yet something softer than won't injure his mouth when he bites down.

I really hope the best for you and your dude! Hope this helps!

cool thanks ive tried everything to get him to gape at me but he has just no energy so i use a peice of straw and place it in between his lips and he will open his mouth and i can get some fluids in. im scared im gonna hurt him he is so small his head is about the size of a marble. and his color usually isnt brown like that he has been bright bright green since he has gotten sick

 

[baggedd5087]

Put a plant in the shower and aim the water on the wall let it bounce off so that it hits the plant. Any shots of his Poo poo? I don't know about the Gatorade so I don't want to tell you false info. Any chance you can get him to eat more? i would for sure give him a shower and see how he reacts. MAKE sure it is not to hot or not to cold just perfect.

-Clemonde

i tried to take pics of his poo but thats when my digital camera stopped working and my phone doesnt have a good enough camera on it but ill try the shower after my math final tomorrow

 

[dtown]

I love these little guys... I really do!! But it happens to be that no one said anything about missing your finalls?? Isn't that the most important thing here??????

 

[CNorton]

I love these little guys... I really do!! But it happens to be that no one said anything about missing your finalls?? Isn't that the most important thing here??????

I guess I don't count...?