My chameleon is not eating and today I noticed he closes his left eye very often

Irelavg

New Member
  • Your Chameleon - Lenny is a veiled chameleon , im not sure of the sex, he’s about 3-5 months and I’ve had him for 1 week
  • Handling - I never handle him because he doesn’t let me get anywhere near him
  • Feeding - I am feeding him super worms and meal worms about 6 a day 3 in the morning 3 in the afternoon, I am guy loading strawberries ,carrots, and green peas. He hasn’t been eating he ate one worm in the last 3 days he is still drinking water
  • Supplements - I am giving him the repti calcium without D3 and the zoo med reptivite out of the 7 days I’ve gave him calcium 4 days and vitamins 3 days
  • Watering - I have a dropper on all day and I mist waster tree times a day for about 2-3 minutes . Yes I’ve seen him drinking multiple times a day , usually twice
  • Fecal Description - white and brown he pops every days. I haven’t test him for parasites.
  • History - I got him from petco , he didn’t eat the first day I got him but he started eating the next day regularly and stopped 2 days ago. He is still active. He just shed

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - screen cage, 16x16x30
  • Lighting -Zoo Med light holder with a forty watt house bulb and a Zoo Med UVB I let the lights on 12 hours every day.
  • Temperature - 75-80 in basking spot 70 on cage floor. The lowest temperature over night is 60. I measured the temperature with the zoo med digital thermometer
  • Humidity - I create humidity by spraying everyday and I also have 2 live plants, I don’t have a humidity thermometer
  • Plants- I have two live house plants
  • Placement - the cage is in my room next to the closet with no fans air vents or high traffic areas near him
  • Location - I live in Oxnard Ca.

Current problem- my chameleon has only eaten 1 worm in two days and today I started noticing his left eye closing it is not sinking, but he closes it once in a while
 

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What are the houseplants?
Please post a couple of recent photos of it. Does he look like he is going to shed?

The things below likely don't have anything to do with the eye but are comments I have...
You can check the heels to see if there are tarsal spurs or not...
http://www.adcham.com/html/husbandry/glossary/tarsalspur.html

Regarding supplements....its recommended that you dust the index s just before feeding them at almost every feeding with a phosphorous-free calcium powder... And twice a month with a phosphorous-free calcium/D3 powder and twice a month with a vitamin powder.

It's important to feed/gutload the insects with a wide variety of greens and veggies and a bit of fruit...dandelion greens, kale, endive, escarole, squash, zucchini, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, carrots, pear, apples, melon, berries, etc.

I would bump the basking temperature up a couple of degrees.

I would recommend that you don't feed mealworms very often and add crickets, silkworms, roaches, blk soldier flies, hornworms, once in a while waxworms....etc.
 
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Here are some photos of my baby
 

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These are the plants I have for him
 

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If he's been rubbing his eye (while shedding) on the diefenbacia it may be irritating his eye. I don't know what your other plant is either...but diefenbacia are not a safe plant to use in their cages. Try ficus, pothos, hibiscus, scheffura...or other non toxic plants that have been well washed both sides if the leaves.
 
Then that plant could be part of the problem. I would get it out if there.
Not sure if the lack of eating is just because if the shedding or there is more to it at this time.

@Irelavg Also...see my previous post for the correct link to the tarsal spurs for sending your chameleon.
 
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Okay I’ll take the plant out , and about how much more should I let him go without food ? He is drinking water regularly
 
Ok, so about his eating, he might not be interested in the works, or he may not see them all the time with them being in the dish at the bottom. I recommend trying to mount the food dish to a branch in the cage just because veileds are arboreal, meaning that they live up in the trees and rarely go to the ground. So he might be looking for food up in the trees, meanwhile the food is on the ground. That's just in case if you still want to feed the worms.
Now about the eye. Personally, I had my first veiled chameleon go blind because he didn't get enough water. Veiled chameleons need rain (or a heavy misting/ dripper) to clean their eyes. I know that you said that you do spray him, and that he has a dripper, but I was just telling you this info in case if you feel like somehow your chameleon doesn't get enough water. I hope that this helps you, sorry if it doesn't.
 
Ok, so about his eating, he might not be interested in the works, or he may not see them all the time with them being in the dish at the bottom. I recommend trying to mount the food dish to a branch in the cage just because veileds are arboreal, meaning that they live up in the trees and rarely go to the ground. So he might be looking for food up in the trees, meanwhile the food is on the ground. That's just in case if you still want to feed the worms.
Now about the eye. Personally, I had my first veiled chameleon go blind because he didn't get enough water. Veiled chameleons need rain (or a heavy misting/ dripper) to clean their eyes. I know that you said that you do spray him, and that he has a dripper, but I was just telling you this info in case if you feel like somehow your chameleon doesn't get enough water. I hope that this helps you, sorry if it doesn't.
 
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