Help

[DIGGS]

Hi there,
looking for a little bit of insite on care and supplementing.
i have one 6 month old veiled (Congo) that i rescude from a pet store that wasnt giving the care that it should have. i believe he was developing slight MBD He has been very shakey and unsure latley when getting around sometimes grabs his face while climbing, but grip is very strong. His current enclosure is 18 x18 x 36 full nylon mesh, no subsrate, with a dripping system, timed humidifier, 1x 18 inch zilla 5.0 UVB, 50watt zoomed basking bulb and a 30 watt night glow all timed for 12 on 12 off lighting secuances. live plants include pothos, ficus and jade plants. all temps are to spec and humididty is monitored and kept at 50-55% and misting is 3 times daily. Supplements include calcium +d3 twice a week and a multi vit 2 times a month all administered my dusting the crickets. crickets are also fed fruits and veggies, leafy greens. i hated to see him in the pet store the way he was and like to think hes in a better environment now. no vet is available... if anyone has any insite it would be greatly appreciated

 

[Kate]

Hi there,
looking for a little bit of insite on care and supplementing.
i have one 6 month old veiled (Congo) that i rescude from a pet store that wasnt giving the care that it should have. i believe he was developing slight MBD He has been very shakey and unsure latley when getting around sometimes grabs his face while climbing, but grip is very strong. His current enclosure is 18 x18 x 36 full nylon mesh, no subsrate, with a dripping system, timed humidifier, 1x 18 inch zilla 5.0 UVB, 50watt zoomed basking bulb and a 30 watt night glow all timed for 12 on 12 off lighting secuances. live plants include pothos, ficus and jade plants. all temps are to spec and humididty is monitored and kept at 50-55% and misting is 3 times daily. Supplements include calcium +d3 twice a week and a multi vit 2 times a month all administered my dusting the crickets. crickets are also fed fruits and veggies, leafy greens. i hated to see him in the pet store the way he was and like to think hes in a better environment now. no vet is available... if anyone has any insite it would be greatly appreciated

Hi and welcome. Thank you for rescuing the little fella. The symptoms you describe do suggest that he could be developing mbd. I use calcium without d3 with every feed. Calcium with d3 once every two weeks and a multivit twice a week. This schedule can vary depending on brands. If you are using a night light it would be best to ditch it. They need a temp drop at night to slow

down metabolism in order to sleep. Also they have a parietal eye that can detect light thus disturbing sleep. There is a form to fill in that will help us a bit more. Link below. Can you post pics?
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[DIGGS]

My Chameleon - veiled 6-7 months, male
Handling - only when he feels like crawling onto my hand, but very dosile
Feeding - mostly gutloaded crickets 12-15 daily, leafy greens
Supplements - exo-terra multi vit (2x monthly) exo-terra cal+d3 (3 times a week)
Watering - self dripper constant, misting 3 times a day
Fecal Description - solid brown and white
History - found him at a pet store

Cage Info:

Cage Type- 18x18x36 nylon mesh
Lighting - 1 18inch zilla 5.0 UVB, 50 watt zoo med basking lamp, 30 watt night glo(always heads under it when the lights go out) all timed 12on\off
Temperature - 65 bottom of cage, 90 under the basking lamp, night temp drops to 72
Humidity - 50-60% controlled my a humidifier that is also timed to monitor and contol consistant humidity. all temp and humidity are monitored my 2 dig therms and 2 dig hydroms
Plants - fake plants as well as, ficus,pothos and a jade plant
Placement - living room, no vents or drafts, very low traffic. hung three feet from ceiling
Location - Edmonton Alberta

Concern- very shaky and uncertain, sometimes grabs his face while climbing. i believe he had MBD do to the lack of care provided at the pet store

HERE ARE SOME PICS

he doesn't like the carmera

 

[Kate]

As said before no night light. Also multivits ok every two weeks. Change you calcium with d3 to every two weeks and get some plain calcium without d3 to use every day. Your gutloading inscects is not good suggest you look up blogs by sandrachameleon they are very good. it is a good idea to try different feeders to give him a variety. Keeping chams is a steep learning curve. It's addictive and more worrying than looking after children.LOL

 

[DIGGS]

very worrying indeed lol
k ditching the night light
as far as gutload, i usually give them romaine lettuce, green beans and squash.
i will pick up calcium with no d3 tonight and start a new supplement schedule asap. thank you so much. any other suggestions? just wanna make him happy

 

[Kate]

Your veg sounds ok. Sandrachameleon knows loads about gut loading etc. your night temps will drop when you ditch the night light but they can drop as low as 55 without any problems.

 

[DIGGS]

wonderful, in fact i was just reviewing some of her blog now. ive owned many scaly friends but this is my first cham... that being said there is ALWAYS loads to learn! And so much worry involved. every little thing this guys does im researching lol. like i said, if hes happy and healthy, ill be happy and healthy!

 

[DIGGS]

any idea why he would be grabbing his face while climbing?

 

[carol5208]

I hate to be a downer here but your chameleon does have MBD(metabolic bone disase). His front right limb(and probably front left too) have an extra joiint. This is not normal. This has nothing to do with your care but the prior care of either no or not enough calcium, insufficient uvb lighting or a combination of both. He does not look like a severe case but he does have it. His legs will always look like that but you can halt the progression of the disease by following what everyone has told you. Good of you to get him out of that pet store. Good luck with him!

 

[Jamall]

my girls arm looks similar would I say also Mbd?

 

[Jamall]

Sorry would you say Mbd

 

[carol5208]

yes, their arm should only be bent at the elbow and then straight. Sometimes they break the bones and then they heal. Did you get her that way? If you have had her from early on and been doing all the right supplementation and uvb exposure it could be a break that healed or something. Does her other front leg look like that? If so, then yes it is a mild case of MBD.

 

[Jamall]

yes they only look like that when she lays on branches when she walks they are straight she has no problems getting around or anything of the sort very interesting thanks

 

[carol5208]

yes they only look like that when she lays on branches when she walks they are straight she has no problems getting around or anything of the sort very interesting thanks

her limbs look very skinny also. What are you feeding her. What are you supplementing with on your feeders and what kind of lights do you use?

 

[carol5208]

In the close up picture I am not so sure now of MBD, but they do look thin. After the bend in her elbow there is that little dip, but it could just be muscle. The back ones I am not so sure about either. They look a little strange but it could just be the angle or way she is holding the branch

 

[Jamall]

I'm not sure what u mean by dip ill look into the subject some. More there's another

 

[carol5208]

she looks ok in the those pics. I guess it was just the way she was holding her legs. She does look kinda round and plump though. Has she ever laid eggs?? Do you have a laying bin in the cage for her to lay?

 

[Jamall]

No I do not have a laying bin in her cage I was planing on doing the whole trash can deal whenever she goes to the bottom and starts clawing around. It has to be coming soon I keep track of her weight and she's gained over ten grams in ten days.