help! I fed my chams hornworms and they are all sick

[JENNIFER NORTHERN]

If anyone knows what can happen when you feed hornworms to chams, please talk to me.

My chams have only had hornworms to eat for the past 4-5 days. I'm out of crickets. Within 3 days they all are sick. One has died two days ago and another female has died. I have taken all of them to the vet and was given burtrin (sp) but it hasn't helped. My little cham baby is black. She doesn't feel well either. All of them are sick.

Can anyone help me?

Jen

 

[jrh3]

Where did you get the hornworms from?

 

[jrh3]

Maybe some more info.....how are you watering them? What kind of cage are they in? Any substrate at the bottom? What kind of lighting? Are the veiled chams?

 

[OldChamKeeper]

Did you feed the hornworms tomato plant leaves? They are toxic if so.

Hydration is key to flushing out any animal's system but I'd head for a reptile vet that is willing to help troubleshoot the issue.

 

[JENNIFER NORTHERN]

My cages have the 5.0 UVB all fairly new, heat and full spectrum lighting
Misting twice a day
clean cages with plants

Everything has been the same for 2 years until 6 days ago when I fed hornworms from Michigan

Blood work shows high phosphorus levels, vet said that the kidneys are in trouble
Cham is not pooping at all
Really high CBC count - fighting infection

Vet said they got an infection bacterial from the hornworms. I'm trying to keep my little girl alive. She isn't pooping yet and she has a big tummy.

Vet said to soak her in warm water. I'm doing that and also forcing fluids to flush the kidneys.

Does anyone know of anything else I can do?

 

[ChamDE86]

Did you get the hornworms from the wild or did you purchase them via pet store?

 

[nick barta]

Your vet is only guessing where the infection came from, I would not conclude it was the hornworms. Infections in chameleons are typically upper respiratory infections which is not based in feeders generally.

The kidney failure is an end result of the systems fighting infection, and is often what kills chameleons.

You might want to consult another vet to see if treatment can be more specifically pointed to the problem.

I know this is tough on you, do your best, hopefully your little one will survive.

Nick