Meller Emergency

[Keiness]

I woke up to find my largest Meller in a total state of stress. He was fine, he's been eating but not keen on drinking which i've been working out (afraid of the spray bottle and ignored the drip).

He's black and dark brown, pacing constantly, flapping his lobes and hissing and things (which i've never seen him do). Also, hes starting to shed. I think it's because he needs a bigger flex, i've been trying to track down a 260 but they have been discontinued. I took him out and he calms down a little, but now he's back to his first state, and he gets worse when I put him back in the flex.

I put him in the shower for about 10 minutes to try and get him hydrated, but he turned even blacker and i was worried about worsening the issue.

Up to this point, he's been fine, nothing has changed.

I'm really worried for him, should I put him back in the shower despite the hate? Misting him results in hisses. Should I run out and buy him a tree to see if he can relax on it? Rush him to the vet?

 

[jannb]

I would try free ranging him on a large tree. A vet visit may also be in order.

 

[Chase]

I woke up to find my largest Meller in a total state of stress. He was fine, he's been eating but not keen on drinking which i've been working out (afraid of the spray bottle and ignored the drip).

He's black and dark brown, pacing constantly, flapping his lobes and hissing and things (which i've never seen him do). Also, hes starting to shed. I think it's because he needs a bigger flex, i've been trying to track down a 260 but they have been discontinued. I took him out and he calms down a little, but now he's back to his first state, and he gets worse when I put him back in the flex.

I put him in the shower for about 10 minutes to try and get him hydrated, but he turned even blacker and i was worried about worsening the issue.

Up to this point, he's been fine, nothing has changed.

I'm really worried for him, should I put him back in the shower despite the hate? Misting him results in hisses. Should I run out and buy him a tree to see if he can relax on it? Rush him to the vet?

LLLReptile has 260's for like $70. Is a 260 big enough for a full grown Mellers? Heres the link

http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog...nd-explorariums/-/260-gallon-basic-reptarium/

 

[luevelvet]

I've noticed ours to be very immediate in their responses to changes or anything bothersome in their enclosure. I think free ranging him for the day will definitely help to buy you time to figure out what's going on.

Have you changed anything about the cage at all? I mean aboslutely anything, even the littlest things can bug them. Last week it was the river rocks I placed on top of the plant soil in each pot. He enjoys nibbling on some dirt occasionally and I guess he didn'tl ike being blocked from that. As soon as I removed the rocks, he was happy again... go figure...

But try to think of anything at all that couldve changed and go from there. Sometimes I put ours outside when he starts pacing his cage. I've come to learn they like a bigger cage sooner than say something like a Veiled or Panther. They also like having options between which tree to hang out in, so something tall *and* wide helps a good deal for their everyday well being.

These are just a few things we've noticed since we've owned a mellers. much different than anything else I've cared for. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Luis

 

[Eric Adrignola]

Sounds like a behavioral problem... Check out the melleridiscovery.com and see if anything there matches what you're seeing. Dark colors and weird behavior sounds like it might be mating season! With my deremensis (whihc are pretty close in many ways), the males would suddenly become active, change colors, and turn nasty. Normally, they were 100% not active, pure green, and friendly.

Is there a female nearby? or another male? Certainly, when they get in the mood, most cages are too small for single males. They go looking for another one, and just pace and paw until they get out - that's why free-ranging is so nice for melleri.

 

[Keiness]

Good News!
I went out in search of a ficus and a pothos, and a few hours later when i returned, he's looking better. I did notice he pooped, im not sure if chams have issues with constipation, and if that could have also been a issue with the sudden change in behavior.

Leaves had been taken out and put back in his cage, though he had seemed fine with this until the morning.

We do have a young meller, but he's only seen her once. Also, I don't know if "he" is male, we assumed as such as when I first adopted him, he'd always roam out of the flex.

Right now a 260 flex is the biggest I can think of, for a cage suited to a Meller. The only area I can free range him in, is my own room (until a few years down the road) as I don't feel safe with him, if I let him free range in the reptile room.

Right now he's in the shower once again, on the Ficus and looking for the first time ever, not terrified of it, and smacking his lips. So I think this should help with his drinking issues.


(and by the way, his name is Commodore, he was wildcaught and adopted from a woman who couldn't keep him. No idea on the age, someone told me 10 months, but I doubt it)

 

[Syn]

If that's a picture of "him" he's looking good. Not sure about Mellers but "he" doesn't really look 10mo.

 

[luevelvet]

you'd have to get a weight and length to come close to estimated age, however, I agree. He doesn't look all that grumpy there. He looks likes he's holding good weight and the eyes don't look bad at all.

If you don't feel safe free ranging him full time (neither would I in most cases) there's nothing wrong with letting him hang out in a few trees by a window while you work in the same room. It's what we do. Often times we'll throw him outside while we do yard work and he absolutely loves it. With ours, I've noticed that the lack of boundaries for a few hours is enough to put a smile on his face for the rest of the evening!

Luis