Help 911 chameleon problem need help asap

C

chameleonsam

New Member
Chameleon info:

My Chameleon: Vield Chameleon, sex unknown about 11 weeks old

Handling: About once a week to clean the cage

Feeding: Meal worms from Petco dusted with zoo meds reptivite reptile vitamins with D3 and i leave about 5 to 6 worms in his tray and he eats about 3 every other day. First month so i havent switched food.

Watering: spay mist and dropper

Fecal Description: Watery not exactly firm, light brown with white at the end

Current Problem: 5 days he hasnt been eating regularly and hasnt really been oppening his eyes at all and his acting abnormal he use to be very active but seems to have slowed down.

Tempature: High 90's low 80's

Plants: I have artificial plants along with an artificial tree and also a real Pothos plant.

Humidity: I have a humidity thermostate and it usually stays between moderate and forrest.

Lighting: 2 x 5 1/2 Basking Spot light with day and night bulbs which are 60 watts each

Cage Type: Ten Gallon Terranium

Placemet: Quiet corner in my room on top of a corner table adjacent to a window

Location: Lynwood, CA
 
do you have a uvb bulb? If not you need one. 90 degrees plus is way too high a temp especially in a 10 gallon tank. Baskaing temp should be around 80. You said it is a terrarium and not a fish tank right? I would say temps too high and you need a uvb bulb. No heat or lights at night. Plain calcium without d3 at every feeding and the one with d3 twice monthly along with a multivitamin. Also check the back of the back heel for a little spike or nub. If one is not present then you have a female, if so, you have a male.
 
No i dont own a Uvb Bulb i only have the basking spot light with the day and night bulbs. Yes it is a terrarium not a fish tank. The tempature usually stay at 90 degrees the highest and the lowest would probably be 85. Also he doesnt seem to be oppening his eyes do you have any idea what can cause this to happen its already been a week and i see no change..
 
Can you post a picture of the animal so we can see what it looks like?

Like said above, you need a UVB light (a good one that most chain petstores carry is reptisun 5.0, preferably the tube type.) You also need to start supplementing with a plain calcium without D3 at just about every feeding. Use a plain calcium with D3 2-4 times a month (it depends on the brand, so report back to use which brand you use so we can give you some guidelines) and use the reptivite 1-2 times a month.

How are you measuring the temps? Digital thermometers tend to be more accurate. The analog thermometers sold at most pet stores can be as much as 10+ degrees off (which can be a death sentence to a young chameleon.) 90 degrees is too hot for such a small tank and young chameleon. It should be in the low to mid 80s in the basking spot, and in the 70s for the rest of the cage. Do not use a night time heat source unless the cage gets below 60 degrees at night. A lower temp at night time (preferably a 10 degree drop or so) is good for the animals. Is your cage an actual terrarium like the exoterra type with vents at the bottom or is it like a fish tank? Fish tanks are not really suitable, especially if this is your first chameleon. It is a lot harder to keep the temps appropriate and keep the chameleon well with a fish tank, and will, generally, lower your chances of success.

Mealworms are a poor choice of feeder to use regularly like this. They have too much chitin (shell is too hard) and are too fatty. The hard shell can cause impaction in the chameleon, which is a blockage of the intestines, and it can be fatal. You should at least get some crickets for it to eat for most of the time, with mealworms used more like treats.
 
What would be the ideal temperature for my vield chameleon since you guys are telling me to drop it that way i can keep it at that certain temperature also he just shed about 2 weekd ago....
 
Grrr...I'm sorry if this comes off rude...but can you at least do A LITTLE research before you go off buying an animal like a chameleon? Judging from your setup, this was an impulse buy, and you did 0% research, and probably listened solely to a petstore employee.

Otherwise, do as the others suggested, and get him a proper setup NOW.

Also, mealworms are nowhere near an acceptable diet for something like a chameleon. It needs to be fed appropriately sized crickets, with a variety of other healthy insects, mealworms and waxworms should be treats if not offered at all.
 
Jon114 said:
Grrr...I'm sorry if this comes off rude...but can you at least do A LITTLE research before you go off buying an animal like a chameleon? Judging from your setup, this was an impulse buy, and you did 0% research, and probably listened solely to a petstore employee.

Otherwise, do as the others suggested, and get him a proper setup NOW.

Also, mealworms are nowhere near an acceptable diet for something like a chameleon. It needs to be fed appropriately sized crickets, with a variety of other healthy insects, mealworms and waxworms should be treats if not offered at all.
Click to expand...

Yes ugh.

I really don't want anyone to come off rude, but this is so typical of the impulse buy.
RESEARCH...

  • Lowest temp should be around 65 NOT 80
  • You need the uvb bulb
  • calcium every feeding, calcium with d3 twice a month
  • no night light (I learned this too)
  • screen cage is preferred
  • CHAMELEONS AREN'T BEARDIES :(
 
Jon114 said:
Grrr...I'm sorry if this comes off rude...but can you at least do A LITTLE research before you go off buying an animal like a chameleon? Judging from your setup, this was an impulse buy, and you did 0% research, and probably listened solely to a petstore employee.
Click to expand...
SaintJimmy said:
Yes ugh.

I really don't want anyone to come off rude, but this is so typical of the impulse buy.
RESEARCH...
Click to expand...

Calm down. We are trying to help a new owner, not scare them off. A lot of people start off thinking that pet stores are going to be the best source of info. It's not their fault, and how would they know if they were never taught any different? Sometimes petstores are fairly good sources of info.

ChameleonSam, the best temps are going to be about 80-85 for the basking spot, and in the 70s for the rest of the cage with the bottom being the coldest.
 
@pssh thanks very helpful do you think it would be better if i was to get rid of the basking light and just get the uvb buld light also what are the best kinds of calcium i can dust his worms with?
 
chameleonsam, I agree 100% with the above advice. Lower the temps. and get a UVB. I learned the hard way years ago about listening to pet store employees and watched my collared lizard die of MBD. I had no idea what was going on or that anything was wrong. I decided then and there to never listen to just one persons advice...especially when they are trying to make money off of you. Read the care sheets on this forum and post questions. There are a lot of very knowledgeable chameleon lovers on here and they are great about giving honest advice. I worked at a big chain pet store and used to get into trouble for not selling animals to people when they came in without any knowledge. I would tell them to go home, research the pet they wanted and make sure it was the right pet for their family. Look around online and you can find good all screen enclosures for your chameleon. If worse comes to worse go get a mesh pop up laundry basket with a top that zips closed until you can fid the enclosure you need. Don't give up just take the advice from these forum members, research and go get the UVB light asap..
Virginia
 
Well, it depends on your ambient temps in your home and his cage. It's possible that the UVB will generate enough heat, but I've never had that experience myself (I live in northern california.) I would keep the day bulb just in case it isn't warm enough (plus you will need it later for when he is older and needs higher temps.) For now, turn off the heat lamp and see what the temps are. If they are warm enough, you can leave it off, but make sure there is enough light in the room that he can tell it's daytime. If it isn't warm enough, raise the bulb so that it is about 80-85 degrees in his basking area.

As for calcium, as long as it is phos. free it should be fine. Just make sure you get a plain calcium without D3 AND a plain calcium with D3. Once you find some, just let me know the brand you got and I'll try and help you figure out how often to use the calcium with D3.

For now, if you could post a photo of him, that would be very helpful so that we can see if there is anything obviously wrong with him right now. Also, if you can post a photo of the back of his hind feet, we can sex him for you.
 
Also, I suggest taking those water holding ball things out of the cage. If he eats one, it could cause a very serious impaction that could require surgery to remove. If you really want to keep them in there, you should cover them with screen so that he absolutely cannot get to them. You'd be surprised how big objects can be swallowed by chameleons. I've seen some swallow giant sticks that end up sticking out of their sides between their ribs.
 
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