I bought my chameleon charlie in December he is roughly about 5 months old and I've got my suspicions that he might be a girl....... So any way I have noticed he isn't interested in his food and I picked him up and he wobbled and nearly fell off my finger. So I monitored how much he wasn't eating and it was about a week so decided to take further action and advice and gave him the supplements by syringe but it's like he nearly dies on my hand. I don't no what to do with out stressing him out. I live in stickport and would really appreciate someones help. Please x
Help!!
- Thread starter Francesca
- Start date
Chameleon Info:
* Your Chameleon - veiled chameleon,not sure of sex,roughly 5 month old,had it about 2 month
* Handling - nearly 3 times a day not for too long as i want it to remain warm
* Feeding - grade 3 hoppers,was advised 5 a day,about 7pm every night,whats gut loading??
* Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
* Watering - i have a fountain that has calcium in the water,never see it drinking and i spray twice a day mid morning and 7pm
* Fecal Description - browny black poo with white blob
* History - no previous history
Cage Info:
* Cage Type - glass cage with mesh roof (exo terra)
* Lighting - black hood with two bulbs one heat lamp and one uv bulb
* Temperature - genrally around 70-90
* Humidity - i spray it and make sure the bark is wet
* Plants - no live plants just fake although i have twigs from the garden but i washed them before using them
* Placement - ocated in my room under the stairs that lead to a room upstairs but its on a table
* Location - stockport/manchester
Current Problem - not eating really wobbly
* Your Chameleon - veiled chameleon,not sure of sex,roughly 5 month old,had it about 2 month
* Handling - nearly 3 times a day not for too long as i want it to remain warm
* Feeding - grade 3 hoppers,was advised 5 a day,about 7pm every night,whats gut loading??
* Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
* Watering - i have a fountain that has calcium in the water,never see it drinking and i spray twice a day mid morning and 7pm
* Fecal Description - browny black poo with white blob
* History - no previous history
Cage Info:
* Cage Type - glass cage with mesh roof (exo terra)
* Lighting - black hood with two bulbs one heat lamp and one uv bulb
* Temperature - genrally around 70-90
* Humidity - i spray it and make sure the bark is wet
* Plants - no live plants just fake although i have twigs from the garden but i washed them before using them
* Placement - ocated in my room under the stairs that lead to a room upstairs but its on a table
* Location - stockport/manchester
Current Problem - not eating really wobbly
Elizadolots
New Member
First, can you post a picture that shows the back feet? That would help with the he/she question.
Second, gut loading is feeding the feeders. What you feed the feeders is what your chameleon gets, so you want to feed them quality food.
Third, are you not supplementing? You didn't give that information.
Fourth, when you say "fountain" what do you mean? Is it a bubbler where excess water falls away, or is there a pool of water around it?
Finally, you're probably handling it too much. It's the rare chameleon that appreciates being handled. I really suggest you back that off to "only when I need to".
Second, gut loading is feeding the feeders. What you feed the feeders is what your chameleon gets, so you want to feed them quality food.
Third, are you not supplementing? You didn't give that information.
Fourth, when you say "fountain" what do you mean? Is it a bubbler where excess water falls away, or is there a pool of water around it?
Finally, you're probably handling it too much. It's the rare chameleon that appreciates being handled. I really suggest you back that off to "only when I need to".
If its lifting its head end up in the air and opening its mouth its a bad sign...can be organ failure, if its a female and by some chance she is carrying eggs, it could be that her eggs are filling her up and making it hard to breath...could be MBD...too many things to guess at.
IMHO you need to get it to a vet today.
You don't mention supplements other than putting calcium in the water in a fountain. Fountains are a bacteria breeding ground unless kept very clean...and adding calcium IMHO would make it worse.
Here's some information that might help with your husbandry.......
Exposure to proper UVB, appropriate temperatures, supplements, a supply of well-fed/gutloaded insects, water and an appropriate cage set-up are all important for the well-being of your chameleon.
Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.
Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.
Since many of the feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium).
If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).
Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite.)
Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)
Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.
Here are some good sites for you to read...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/
IMHO you need to get it to a vet today.
You don't mention supplements other than putting calcium in the water in a fountain. Fountains are a bacteria breeding ground unless kept very clean...and adding calcium IMHO would make it worse.
Here's some information that might help with your husbandry.......
Exposure to proper UVB, appropriate temperatures, supplements, a supply of well-fed/gutloaded insects, water and an appropriate cage set-up are all important for the well-being of your chameleon.
Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.
Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.
Since many of the feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium).
If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).
Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite.)
Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)
Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.
Here are some good sites for you to read...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/
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Thanks guys for the help I rang Manchester pets aquatics and they advised that I was to return it back to where I had bought it from as it was deffinatley a girl. But before I sent it back I mixed warm water with blue powerade drink and soaked it in it for 10 mins as it was extremely de hydrated. So after doing that she perked up alittle enough to travel back to where she came from ( Stockport pet warehouse) I simply said that you sold it to me as a boy and it is not so now SHE is hopefully going to make a full recovery back where she came from.
