Is my chameleons head ok?

[AmayaD.Pastel]

I have noticed in this last month that my 3 year old chameleons head crown seem to be damaged. He eats well, sleeps good hours, and has water available all day long. This concerns me because i thought it was just a shed but it didn’t peel. Seems dry, and like there a crack going around the top. What do i do? Is this something to make me worry.

 

[Gloriawood]

First off, hi and welcome to both you and your handsome guy! I am by no means and expert, but to me it looks like he may have gotten burned at some point and that portion had now died off. What kind of lighting are you using and what temperature? It also seems that your guy is carrying some extra fat in his cheek pads, how many feeders and how often is he getting them? Have you done a husbandry review before?


Could you possibly post some pictures of his setup, including the lighting?

 

[AmayaD.Pastel]

he bulbs are at 100 but there high up compared to his climbing cage. Oh i didn’t even notice that was cheek fat. he’s had that ever since he was little

 

[AmayaD.Pastel]

 

[AmayaD.Pastel]

he bulbs are at 100 but there high up compared to his climbing cage. Oh i didn’t even notice that was cheek fat. he’s had that ever since he was little

i’m also useing uv light and a heat lap at 100 volts (light and dark light)

 

[Gloriawood]

Hmmmmm looks like it should be far enough away that he can’t burn himself…..I’ll let some more experienced keepers chime in. But he has definitely damaged it somehow. I’ve only been keeping a year, so my knowledge is limited. But there are plenty of people here who know tons and I’m sure they will chime in.

 

[AmayaD.Pastel]

thank u

 

[elizaann2]

Hello and welcome!! He is such a beauty!! I am not sure about his casque either, my thought would be a thermal burn as well. @MissSkittles can you weigh in?

Have you taken your boy to a vet to get it checked out?

 

[MissSkittles]

Hi and welcome. I agree that this looks like a thermal burn. With our male veileds, the distance between basking branch and lights can be deceiving because of their tall casque. I’m not sure I understand if you’re using a 100w basking bulb or basking temp is 100. Either would be too much. Generally for most people a 60w or 75w bulb is all that’s needed to obtain ideal basking temp of 80-85 with a distance of about 9” between lights and branch. You need to use a digital thermometer with a probe to determine the temp where the top of his body and casque will be. Also, I can’t tell if your uvb is a T8 or T5. If you have a T5, you want your uvb strength to be either 5.0 or 6%. I do see evidence of past injury or burns to his back - his spikes are missing and shortened. For the casque burn, you definitely should have him seen by a vet who will give you an antimicrobial cream (usually silver sulfadiazine) and possibly antibiotics. The burned section will eventually shrink and pull away and fall off. Hopefully there will be some healthy flesh in the process of healing below it, to which you’ll need to apply that cream.
I know you didn’t come here for more, but I do have to comment on your enclosure and offer suggestions to improve it. First, your big guy needs many more branches and vines to travel as he does his routine patrols. It is a challenge to attach things, but there are some fairly easy options. There are Dragon Ledges https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/ and recently I’ve started using garden trellis that I’ve secured to the enclosure frame with wire. I’ll attach some pics below. To prevent it from sliding down, I added a couple of small screws to each frame to secure some wires to and this is secure enough that I can even attach plants. Speaking of plants, veileds like to nibble theirs, so it’s extra important to have only safe live ones. It only takes one bite of a fake leaf to cause a potentially fatal bowel obstruction. Pothos is one of the best plants for chameleons. Usually it’s nice to have a taller center plant like a schefflera or weeping fig and then some vining plants around it. I attach my fake plants to the outside of my enclosures for added privacy. Some plants will need a special grow light. You want to create a leafy forest edge. This will help with how to add live plants. https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/ Adding live plants will also help to take care of excess water drainage and will add some great enrichment for your handsome guy.
I hope I’ve been of some help. If we can help in any other way, just ask. Sending healing vibes for your guy.