HELP PLEASE !

[Cameron_G24]

My almost 4 month old chameleon has been sitting in the same spot in his cage. (Top right corner near heat lamp on the side of the cage). The past week and a half he has barely been eating. And I just noticed in the past 2 days his eyes have been closing all the time and they are now sunken in. He isn't usually as dark as he is in the pictures but he hasn't been nearly as bright lately as well.

Vitamins Once a Month
Calcium without D3 with every feed
Calcium with D3 Once - Twice a month

I mist regularly and have dripper on regularly in 20 minute variables.

Humidity at night is in the 60s and Humidity during the day is Mid 40s

Basking temp is 80-85F, Rest of cage is around 70F

UVB is 11" Reptisun 15W T5HO

Lights are on and off in a 12 hour cycle.

Main diet is crickets but I give wax worms and super worms as treats every once in a while.

Hasn't pooped recently either that I can see. I found a super worm shell that kind of looked like poop so I am cutting those out because I'm not sure he's digesting those right.

I feel like I've provided and done everything I can do.

Please help!

 

[Cameron_G24]

I forgot to add. He is also being very lethargic and slow with his movements as well. Again this all started happening very recently.

 

[MissSkittles]

Hi. Your poor little guy needs a vet asap. Besides wondering about your uvb being a T5 and seeing only artificial plants, which come with hazards, there’s nothing jumping out from what you say or your pics. He may have parasites or some other issue not related to husbandry. He is very dehydrated now and does not look good at all.

 

[CalamityCrow]

Your little buddy needs a vet visit ASAP.

He's showing a lot of signs of distress, and they hide what they can until they can't hide it anymore. He's definitely in crisis right now.

You seem to have good husbandry going on, so I'm not sure what could cause his issues (maybe hidden parasites or an impaction?)... So yeah, vet visit. Tonight or tomorrow if you can.

 

[Cameron_G24]

Yeah I figured as much. The plant on the very bottom is real. I don’t know how he could be dehydrated with the amount that I mist and the amount of times I turn his dripper on.

I’m assuming it’s because he’s been so lethargic the past couple days that he hasn’t been going over to his dripper enough.

I’ll try and find a vet asap.

 

[Cameron_G24]

So I’m assuming that I just live in a horrible location because their is only 1 exotic vet remotely close to me but they can’t get me in until the 2nd week of February.

Since I bought him at petco do you all think that they would be any help?

 

[Beman]

Petco will not be of any help to you. They take them back in if it is in the time window they allow and then put them in a cage in the back until they can get them into a vet.

This does not look like dehydration to me the way his face is sunk in. This looks like he is getting close to death. I just want to be really honest with you with what I am seeing so you know the severity of the situation.

How much was he eating every day prior to going off food? Can you post a pic of the entire cage lights to bottom so I can see if anything stands out?

 

[Cameron_G24]

Update: Morty has sadly passed away.

He was eating 5-7 crickets a day if he was hungry. If he wasn’t he always had access to food. I gave him wax worms and super worms as snacks occasionally.

It sucks putting in so much work and effort into him and him dying so suddenly. I can’t think of any reason for this. I’m in complete shock.

 

[MissSkittles]

I’m so sorry.
Sometimes we tend to forget that not everything is related to husbandry. He could have had any number of health problems that weren’t visible.
Keep him close to your heart. I wish you peace and healing.

 

[SteveH]

Sorry to hear that

 

[Cameron_G24]

Here is the entire fixture from top to bottom.

 

[Mitcchar]

Update: Morty has sadly passed away.

He was eating 5-7 crickets a day if he was hungry. If he wasn’t he always had access to food. I gave him wax worms and super worms as snacks occasionally.

It sucks putting in so much work and effort into him and him dying so suddenly. I can’t think of any reason for this. I’m in complete shock.

Are you sure your cham was a boy? I got a Veiled Chameleon from PetSmart about a year ago and the told me it was a boy. Turns out it was a girl and it does 6 months later from being egg bound. It looked exactly like yours with the sunken eyes and the dark colors. That’s the only explanation I have. I’m so sorry for what happened, and I’m sure Morty loved being in your care and loved you until the end.

 

[Lindasjackson]

I’m so sorry!

 

[CalamityCrow]

Aw man, I'm SO sorry! Sending comforting vibes your way. You'll remember him fondly, and know that you did the best for him that you possibly could.

 

[Beman]

View attachment 334062
Here is the entire fixture from top to bottom.

I am sorry for your loss... It could have been as simple as he got a piece off of the fake plants and could not pass it. Or he could have had parasites which without treatment can cause them to slowly decline.

Chameleons are a harder reptile to keep. They really need everything perfect to thrive. And small things can take them down. Makes it harder when you do not have a Vet nearby that actually knows how to care for them.

 

[Cameron_G24]

Are you sure your cham was a boy? I got a Veiled Chameleon from PetSmart about a year ago and the told me it was a boy. Turns out it was a girl and it does 6 months later from being egg bound. It looked exactly like yours with the sunken eyes and the dark colors. That’s the only explanation I have. I’m so sorry for what happened, and I’m sure Morty loved being in your care and loved you until the end.

Yeah. He had very prominent tarsal spurs.

I’m done with Petco/Petsmart. When I was originally looking for a chameleon I had to tell one of the workers at petco that they had a very sick chameleon in the cage that they were trying to sell. Eyes closed, eyes sunken. Basically looked like Morty in his last 2 days.

 

[Mitcchar]

Ya PetSmart really doesn’t know what they are selling

 

[suprdude]

That sucks, sorry. Probably not your fault; animals (including humans) die from things for a huge variety of reasons

 

[ChamelaChameleon]

Ya PetSmart really doesn’t know what they are selling

Yesterday, i met a person in Pets-a-dead, that was on her 3rd Pets-a-dead Chameleon. The 1st one died from eating the fake plants. 2nd died (didn't know why) and the current one has sunken eyes and looks like it's about to die. There is so much not good with her husbandry that made me feel uncomfortable giving advice. SHE NEEDS HELP FROM A KNOWLEDGEABLE/EXPERIENCED SOURCE!!!!! She was buying bark for the substrate. I explained impaction. She did not buy the bark. I gave her a small bit of advice- fake stuff must go, calcium with all feedings. I directed her to CF for a specific review. It was all BAD! I gave her my cell number- I hope she calls so that I can continue to refer her to CF for a review. I also purchased the Pets-a-dead kit. I was overdosing Carmelo with D3. As luck would have it, I stumbled upon CF and all is well with my guy- Carmelo. When I here stuff like this, it reminds me to be grateful for the advice I've gotten from CF.

Ya PetSmart really doesn’t know what they are selling

 

[Beman]

Yesterday, i met a person in Pets-a-dead, that was on her 3rd Pets-a-dead Chameleon. The 1st one died from eating the fake plants. 2nd died (didn't know why) and the current one has sunken eyes and looks like it's about to die. There is so much not good with her husbandry that made me feel uncomfortable giving advice. SHE NEEDS HELP FROM A KNOWLEDGEABLE/EXPERIENCED SOURCE!!!!! She was buying bark for the substrate. I explained impaction. She did not buy the bark. I gave her a small bit of advice- fake stuff must go, calcium with all feedings. I directed her to CF for a specific review. It was all BAD! I gave her my cell number- I hope she calls so that I can continue to refer her to CF for a review. I also purchased the Pets-a-dead kit. I was overdosing Carmelo with D3. As luck would have it, I stumbled upon CF and all is well with my guy- Carmelo. When I here stuff like this, it reminds me to be grateful for the advice I've gotten from CF.

I personally feel like the care an animal receives is a direct reflection of how it will live... Beman is a Petco baby. He will be 5 in June. They had him a week before I got him. So he had very limited exposure to bad husbandry there. Then I being a new keeper started learning like crazy to make all the correct changes very quickly. People will always buy from chain stores. It just is how it goes. We are lucky to have sites like Chameleon Forum, Chameleon Academy, and Neptunes chameleon to provide right husbandry. Not all people will seek out additional information. And sadly not all people that do will take what is advised seriously. That too is the way it is.

When a new keeper buys a baby at a chainstore and does not know what they are looking for as signs of healthy then they automatically are starting out on a bad note. Then when they do not provide all the correct husbandry this adds risk. Unfortunately Veileds are cheap and often tossed away like they are not important or amazing animals. Due to their price point they are an impulse buy animal.