just passing urates

[Justinschramm05]

my veiled is just passing his urates, and not the actual feces. He has had what i think is a sperm plug for some time, but i cannot remove it. I have a fairly ill-tempered veiled that doesn't tolerate being held. What to do??

 

[kinyonga]

You could take him to a vet and have it removed.
Its not good that he's not passing feces.

 

[Jam]

I would get your chameleon to a vet ASAP. I lost my first veiled chameleon to an impaction -- she was doing something very similar and just passing urates. I was not very educated at the time, unfortunately, and did not recognize this as a huge problem since she acted normal for some time. Despite 3 days of intensive care at the vets we still lost her. in fact she died in my hand I still feel horribly responsible for it and it will haunt me forever.

 

[Dave Weldon]

my veiled is just passing his urates, and not the actual feces.
He has had what i think is a sperm plug for some time, but i cannot remove it...

Howdy Justin,
How much and how long has he been eating and not pooping?

Describe his hydration levels. How much and how often?

What part of the world are you located?

 

[PardalisGirl]

Time for the vet!

It's time to take your boy to the vet. Something is not right. Keep him totally hydrated until you get him in. He's passing urates so lots of drinking should not be a problem.

 

[Justinschramm05]

Yeah, I was told at first it was a sperm plug, I posted pictures and that's what everyone thought it was. He never passed it though, and it's not protruding enough for me to pull it out. I just noticed 2 days ago, he's just passing urates and not actuall poop. Still eating and drinking well. Bulge at the base of the tail. Just introduced silkworms to his diet about a week and a half ago, have those been known to stop up chameleons?? Kinda hesitant about going to the vet, the last two times I took an animal to the vet, they were killed by carelessness and lack of experience with reptiles. Plus it cost me an arm and a leg for them to kill em' I'm attaching some pictures of what the tail base looks like today.

 

[Justinschramm05]

Another Pic of Tail Bulge

another pic of the tail

 

[Will Hayward]

I didn't think I would get to use these images so soon! What you chameleon has is very very likely a sperm plug. Normally the chameleons would shed these rubbery hemipenis "linings" out with passing feces. What you are seeing is a buildup like in the photo example below:

A warm shower before hand or even a soak will help in some cases to relax the muscles. With larger blockages, I think this might be a good idea. Here is how Kristina Lucas soaks chameleons safely: https://www.chameleonforums.com/baths-1518/#post10287

Take your two fingers (with gloves), index and thumb, at the end of the blockage, down towards the end of his tail and gently massage with a bit of pressure. Moving upwards slowly, the hemipenes should start to come out of the vent, and the sperm plug should start to become visible. At this point on it can be left up to the chameleon sometimes to exude them, prompted by your stimulations. You may have to actually help slowly, gently and carefully pulling out the plug.

Once passed, they should resemble something like this:

Thanks to Ken for the Photos.

Here is the thread they were posted in: Swealing of Hemi-bulge and irritation.

The contribution from Dave Weldon: Seminal (Hemipenal) Plugs and Seminal Exudates

 

[Justinschramm05]

i've tried rubbing the vent, but I never saw anything come out. There's nothing protruding, like in your pictures. was your cham just further along in this process? Was the cham able to deficate? How long did u let the plug build up?

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

i've tried rubbing the vent, but I never saw anything come out. There's nothing protruding, like in your pictures. was your cham just further along in this process? Was the cham able to deficate? How long did u let the plug build up?

Here is a link to the thread those photos came from. In the thread one of the experienced chameleon breeders had the owner soak the chameleon in warm water for 20-30 minutes, and then remove the plugs. Read this thread and see if it helps your situation. The fact that he's not passing feces seems very critical. I'm no expert, but the folks who responded below are very experienced and give sound advice. I would consider following it. Let us know how it goes.

https://www.chameleonforums.com/swealing-hemi-bulge-irritation-6559/

 

[Justinschramm05]

Plugs Removed!!!

Thanks guys for all ur help, I gave him a warm soak, that removed the plugs myself. Hopefully his pooping will return to normal again.

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

Thank you for the update. Those must have been irritating him big time. Let us know when he goes back to pooping. Oh...and...wash your hands

 

[Justinschramm05]

Yeah, I came home from work today and saw he already pooped. Back to normal!!

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

Yeah, I came home from work today and saw he already pooped. Back to normal!!

Raising chameleons has really taught me the value of a good poop!