Leon is dying

[Leon911]

Here's the last pic I took of him in his bed and one of my favourites that I took of him with a close up lense

 

[nightanole]

I generally dig a hole about a foot down, put them at the bottom (normally in a rag for my own personal comfort) and place a big rock over them and bury it back up. Havent had anyone dug up in over 25 years. Hell the neighbors cat got dug up twice, and brought back into the house once...

 

[jajeanpierre]

Here's the last pic I took of him in his bed and one of my favourites that I took of him with a close up lense

I'm sorry for your loss. You did something very right to keep him going so long.

To bury him, just dig a hole in your back yard or garden. You don't have to go down far if you cover the top with heavy rocks or wire so an animal can't dig him up. You don't need a box or anything, but for me, I have MAJOR grief when I throw dirt directly on an animal I loved.

I am sure from your description of Leon's last few hours that he probably was too out of it to notice, but the next time you have a chameleon that is dying, please just put it somewhere safe such as nestled around the base of one of the plants. Put him somewhere where he won't fall and will feel safe hidden in cover. Dark is good. Or put him in a small dark box with wadded up damp paper towels in it. Chameleons are not pets that need or want any emotional reassurance or support. From Leon's point of view, wrapping him in a blanket and taking him out of his cage would have been akin to him being wrapped in the jaws of a predator, which is not what I think you wanted him to feel as he lay dying. Wrapping him in a towel was comforting to you, not him. As I said before, I doubt he was all that aware anyway, but I can't let that picture go without commenting.

I'm truly sorry if my comments have caused you pain. That is the last thing I want to do to someone who truly loved their chameleon and obviously took very very good care of him since he lived such a long life. This is written for other chameleons and their owners.

Again, sorry for your loss.

 

[Andee]

I end up just digging deep enough so he won't get directly dug up, sometimes wrapping them in cloth. But usually I let the animals that do the decomposing work do their work. It's just them going back into the Earth's life cycle just like everything else, just like they would in the wild.

 

[Leon911]

Thanks everyone - yeah I hear ya jean I just laid him on that towel and wrapped it up when I was certain he has stopped breathing. In that picture I posted he is dead. I think he went out sometime during the night. Appreciate all the advise and support.

 

[Andee]

Honestly, you did a really good job, chameleons in general do not live long especially compared to most species of reptiles. Most species of reptiles live around 15-20 years (at least the ones easily found in the pet trade) and some even longer. However it just can be a lot of pain with chameleons. I have never connected with any reptiles as profoundly as I do chameleons as a species. Which is interesting cause I really like reptiles. They are just amazing creatures. I am now starting to face the fact that my first chameleon I have ever had is hitting his senior years and is starting to decline. It's frustrating that they don't live longer because the way so many people connect with them... they are just amazing animals that have their feet wrapped around our hearts.

 

[Chachi]

Actually I'm fairly certain he died in the night, not breathing and appears stiff. What do you guys do with the body? I wanted to bury him outside but don't want an animal to get him

I buried my old jackson in a tupperware under the tree in my front yard. We put a huge rock there to keep pests away.