I think my cosmo is sick

[Jojoscosmo]

It happened over night , I woke up and he was inactive and he turned a pale yellow color from his usual green. Even when he’s lying he doesn’t want to move and he lays his head down like he’s unable to pick it up.

the one on the left is him today and the other is him yesterday

 

[kinyonga]

I wish you had continued your earlier April thread.…
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/new-cham-owner-…-very-paranoid-and-worried.189733/

We might have been able to help you before he got into this state.

Did ir ever start eating? How big are the insects you’ve been trying to feed it? What insects have you been trying to feed it?

When its outside in the sun, what temperature is it? Can it get out of the sun into the shade? Does it have access to water?

 

[Beman]

I agree with ^^^ also this appears to be a female not male. By the looks of the pictures the chameleon is dying. I hate to tell people this but I find it better to be honest. You can try getting it into a reptile vet and see if they can help her. Although at this point in decline that is very rare.

 

[Jojoscosmo]

I didn’t continue the thread because he started eating the next day , he eats standard meal worms maybe 2 a day and he’s usually under a tree when in the sun. He has access to water but he hasn’t had any in a few days which I thought was normal . He just regained some colour and started walking around the house a few minutes ago. I’m in Egypt so average temperature is around 30-34 ° Celsius.

 

[Jojoscosmo]

I agree with ^^^ also this appears to be a female not male. By the looks of the pictures the chameleon is dying. I hate to tell people this but I find it better to be honest. You can try getting it into a reptile vet and see if they can help her. Although at this point in decline that is very rare.

I’ll be going to a vet later ( it’s by appointment ) and I’m devastated to hear that . I’ve also speculated it to be a girl but the person I bought it from referred to him/her as a male so … I’m confused . I’m a first time Cham owner and I thought I was doing things right :///

 

[eclipse24]

I wouldn't blame yourself but he does need to go to a vet right away. His eyes are sunken in which is a clear sign of dehydration and other illnesses.

 

[Beman]

I’ll be going to a vet later ( it’s by appointment ) and I’m devastated to hear that . I’ve also speculated it to be a girl but the person I bought it from referred to him/her as a male so … I’m confused . I’m a first time Cham owner and I thought I was doing things right :///

Things happen... Unfortunately there is a ton of bad info out there to be found. So the person you got her from may have read all the wrong stuff and decided male.

With Veileds specifically we confirm gender by seeing the back of the back feet. Males will have a tarsal spur and females will not. With the size of your cham we can see by pattern and casque height that it looks to be female and not male. Males exhibit barring in their coloring and most commonly have very pronounced casque height.

If she does not make it come back so we can give you info for correct husbandry in case her prior owner gave you incorrect info. This way when your ready to get another one you will be fully prepared for everything.

 

[Jojoscosmo]

Hello , I’m updating y’all

The reptilian vet said that in this case my baby is very healthy but the problem is that the store I bought *her* from probably got her from the wild as they are native in Egyptian green lands . I was told that cosmo would not last long in captivity and I was given recommendations on where to set her free . I hope what I’m doing is the right thing :,) . I’m devastated but if it adds years to Cosmos life then so be it .

 

[kinyonga]

I don’t think it’s a veiled chameleon.

 

[kinyonga]

If it’s WC it might have parasites.
Also, if it wasn’t WC I don’t think it would be legal to release it or maybe not fair to it either.

 

[kinyonga]

Have you tried dripping water very slowly (one drip per second) on the very tip of its nose?

Mealworms are not a good feeder choice either…do you have crickets, locusts, roaches?

 

[MissSkittles]

Hello , I’m updating y’all

The reptilian vet said that in this case my baby is very healthy but the problem is that the store I bought *her* from probably got her from the wild as they are native in Egyptian green lands . I was told that cosmo would not last long in captivity and I was given recommendations on where to set her free . I hope what I’m doing is the right thing :,) . I’m devastated but if it adds years to Cosmos life then so be it .

Even though your chameleon species may be native to your area, it doesn’t mean that it will survive if you set it free, especially with it already being sick. It will quickly fall prey to a predator or just die from being too weak and sick to find food and water.

 

[Jojoscosmo]

Even though your chameleon species may be native to your area, it doesn’t mean that it will survive if you set it free, especially with it already being sick. It will quickly fall prey to a predator or just die from being too weak and sick to find food and wate

Even though your chameleon species may be native to your area, it doesn’t mean that it will survive if you set it free, especially with it already being sick. It will quickly fall prey to a predator or just die from being too weak and sick to find food and water.

The vet specifically told me that if she stays with me she’ll not live long . He said this usually happens to chameleons taken out of their habitat and now idk what to do. Any advice ?

 

[Jojoscosmo]

Have you tried dripping water very slowly (one drip per second) on the very tip of its nose?

Mealworms are not a good feeder choice either…do you have crickets, locusts, roaches?

Yesss ! And I got the crickets but no change :/

 

[CalamityCrow]

The vet specifically told me that if she stays with me she’ll not live long . He said this usually happens to chameleons taken out of their habitat and now idk what to do. Any advice ?

I disagree with your vet - your girl is very thin and definitely not healthy. Her front leg seems to be swollen too, compared to her back? I'd look at another opinion if you can, ASAP.

Sometimes creatures taken from the wild have what we call "Failure to thrive" and they pass away without any real identifiable cause. That's not horribly common if your husbandry is on point though. The vet telling you to let her go into the wild will guarantee she dies, and in my opinion it's odd and not good advice. Maybe the vet was trying to save you from seeing your pet die.

Your little gal definitely is having some issues, and like said above, I'm not sure she'll survive. I hope she does! But definitely read through the threads here and read through everything at https://chameleonacademy.com/ to get an idea of what a veiled chameleon needs. They're wonderful little pets and I hope this experience hasn't turned you off from it.

If possible, I'd get her in to a different vet TODAY if you can. Her lack of eating may be to other factors. If she's wild-caught, she probably has parasites and I could see that being a cause. Same with odd temperatures, lack of water/sunlight, etc. They need a lot of specific things so sometimes it's hard to pinpoint the issues.

 

[MissSkittles]

The vet specifically told me that if she stays with me she’ll not live long . He said this usually happens to chameleons taken out of their habitat and now idk what to do. Any advice ?

I agree with the advice given by @CalamityCrow From the way your poor little chameleon looks, it’s very possible that no matter what you do, it is not going to survive. Once they reach a certain point, there’s little to be done to save them. Setting it free will just save you from seeing it die.

 

[Jojoscosmo]

This has been very informative thank you!! And never would I get out off I love these tiny creatures and would sell a kidney to watch them survive in my care thank you again