I think frank is dying. Please help!

FrankTheTank

FrankTheTank

Established Member
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Veiled Cham. 2 yo male. Had him since 6 weeks old
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? I don't anymore
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?crickets Dubai roaches mealworms superworms. Use store gutload and carrots and other veggies
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?use the guidlines in this forum for supplementing
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?mist the cage and pour water in dropper. Saw him drink the other day
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?feces look normal dark brown color. Not tested for parasites.
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:glass/screen
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?combo 3x2x2 1/2
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?badking lamp and terra uv bulbs
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?80 on floor 88 basking temp. 74 overnight
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?stay around 40% all day and 7p0 when I mist
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?none arm
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?3 ft off ground.
Location - Where are you geographically located?
Alabama
Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about. He hasn't been eating and now he is laying at the bottom of his cage and barely moving. He is usually a good eater and in all out of variety to try.
 

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1st thing that comes straight to my head is 1 MBD and 2nd I think you should take him to the vets asap to get a full health check to make sure, hope he gets better soon though :)
 
He does look near death. He also looks very dehydrated and depleted, but a cham that is dying can suddenly look this way even he didn't a short time before. The fact that you've had him so long without problems is puzzling. One or two things in your husbandry raised little flags however.

He shows patches of old shed marks which suggests long difficult sheds. You have no live plants in his setup but I see you are in AL, so maybe the cage humidity levels weren't low. His nighttime temps are quite warm....they tend to do better if the temp drops more at night. When did you last change out your UV bulb? What color were the urate portions of his fecals? If orange or rust colored he was extremely dehydrated. I'd suspect he might have been kept too warm and dry.

I don't know if a vet could help you at this point, but might help rule out an internal injury, intestinal blockage, or infection.
 
Carlton said:
He does look near death. He also looks very dehydrated and depleted, but a cham that is dying can suddenly look this way even he didn't a short time before. The fact that you've had him so long without problems is puzzling. One or two things in your husbandry raised little flags however.

He shows patches of old shed marks which suggests long difficult sheds. You have no live plants in his setup but I see you are in AL, so maybe the cage humidity levels weren't low. His nighttime temps are quite warm....they tend to do better if the temp drops more at night. When did you last change out your UV bulb? What color were the urate portions of his fecals? If orange or rust colored he was extremely dehydrated. I'd suspect he might have been kept too warm and dry.

I don't know if a vet could help you at this point, but might help rule out an internal injury, intestinal blockage, or infection.
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His eyes are sunken in like he is dehydrated. My hibiscus died not too long ago. I am actually finishing up his mansion cage this week complete with a monsoon system. What awful timing. I feel like it is my fault for not misting him enough. I feel so horrible.
I just got a babies medicine dropper and he drank two viles of water out of that. He didn't even move when I picked him up and he felt very week. Tried to put a mealworms in his mouth but he wouldn't swallow it.
Vet is closed for tonight and I don't have the money for after hours visit :(
 
FrankTheTank said:
His eyes are sunken in like he is dehydrated. My hibiscus died not too long ago. I am actually finishing up his mansion cage this week complete with a monsoon system. What awful timing. I feel like it is my fault for not misting him enough. I feel so horrible.
I just got a babies medicine dropper and he drank two viles of water out of that. He didn't even move when I picked him up and he felt very week. Tried to put a mealworms in his mouth but he wouldn't swallow it.
Vet is closed for tonight and I don't have the money for after hours visit :(
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Can you get some Pedialyte from a local grocery? If he'll lick it from the dropper warm some and give it. This will give him a bit of energy and some electrolytes to keep him going. He probably can't digest much of anything right now and you don't want undigested food sitting in his gut.
 
1.Like those above, I agree that he looks dehydrated. Until you can get to a vet, which is a must at this point, try using a syringe to give him water and bug juice to ensure he still has enough nutrition.

2. Someone above mentioned gout, and that could be an additional problem. How much of his diet is made up of by the meal/super worms? They should only be about 20% of his diet. They are too high in protein and fat to be a "staple" feeder, and if fed too much gout may occur.
 
Mijah139 said:
1.Like those above, I agree that he looks dehydrated. Until you can get to a vet, which is a must at this point, try using a syringe to give him water and bug juice to ensure he still has enough nutrition.

2. Someone above mentioned gout, and that could be an additional problem. How much of his diet is made up of by the meal/super worms? They should only be about 20% of his diet. They are too high in protein and fat to be a "staple" feeder, and if fed too much gout may occur.
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It's a recent addition to his diet. Only bc he stopped eating. I have given him three droppers of water. How do I make "bug juice"?
 
By "Bug juice" do you mean mashing up a feeder to administer via dropper? I wouldn't wory about that right now. The severe dehydration is the first concern because if not properly hydrated, any food items may only create more stress on him.
 
Well he's "taken" 3 droppers of water and almost a full dropper of pedialyte. He may have mbd. I know it's not my supplements so my UVB bulb must have been bad. I feel like the worst caretaker in the world. I was so wrapped up in getting his new cage ready that I neglected the one he's in now, and neglected him as well.
We'll see how he is in the morning and take him to the vet but it's not looking good for franklin right now. Prayers are appreciated and very welcomed.
 
Oh I completely forgot to mention the worst part. We leave for California on Wednesday for a whole week and I won't be able to find Someone that can handle a sick chameleon. None of my friends have reptile experience. I'm really freaking out right now
 
If anyone knows someone in the atl, ga area that is very kind and generous I will be willing to pay them to watch and care for him. Any help is greatly appreciated
 
carol5208 said:
Who was going to watch him for you before he got sick?? You could ask your vet.
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Well my aunt was going to come by and give him some mealworms to hold him over but with him being sick he will need to be feed every few hours and/or given his medicine. I had the timer for his monsoon set for his new cage that I've been working night and day whenever I have a chance just to get it done before my trip and now all this. I feel so awful about the timing.
Do they let chameleons on planes???
 
Tay And A said:
He needs vet care plain and simple
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Yes I am taking him as soon as they open. Hopefully they aren't on holiday. I don't know what I'd do then. I couldn't afford to get a callin vet. They won't do payments around here and there's only one reputable reptile vet in the area. Itll be a sad new year if we lose Franklin.
 
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