My first chameleon

[Markarian]

Greetings,

I'm new to the forum, and new to chameleons as well. I just picked up Karma, my veiled chameleon, three days ago from a local pet store (who, in turn gets them from a local breeder). She was a hand-fed baby and is now about 3.5 inches from snout to vent. Any idea on how old she is?

In any case, I purchased her after conscientiously talking to the store's so-called expert in reptiles, buying the necessary supplies and taking the advice to heart, but I noticed a bit of discoloration on the tip of her tail. He said it was just excess skin from shedding, but after doing more research, I worry it might be necrosis. I brought her back to the store and met with another employee who seemed a lot more knowledgeable. She agreed there was a problem and that the lizard had indeed lost a portion of its tail from a bad shed already. She gave me a medication (the name escapes me) which I was to gently apply with a cotton swab daily. While this hasn't exactly endeared me to my new Cham, the excess skin is finally coming off and she is regaining some color in that area, though there is still a black tip. Any ideas?

Anyway, after treating her tail and making her extremely cranky, I gave her a peace offering of a mealworm, which she eventually ate. After that, she fell asleep on my fingers, and was not to be easily budged after that. I took the opportunity to snap this pic. I'm looking forward to getting to know her better and find out more about chameleons in general. So far, she's been very interesting to watch and always entertaining to feed.

 

[Solid Snake]

Hello!
Welcome to CF!
We are glad to have the both of you here!

I agree that the tail does not look normal, or like shedding.
Its likely infected from the previous bad shed that amputated the first portion.

The chameleon can live a fully functional life if missing a bit of its tail, so its not a major issue.

Infection however is.

Its also notable that sleeping in full daylight is a sign of illness.

We have a "how to ask for help" form that I greatly recommend you fill out.
It will go over all the different aspects of your husbandry.
Everyone here will then critique it, and share their opinions that you might gain important information, faster, that may have to do with the issue.

Again, WELCOME!

Here is the form:

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?


Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.


Pictures are helpful

 

[Markarian]

That's quite a bit of information to ask for, considering I just got her! I appreciate your wanting to have as much to work with as possible, but I've lurked on many pet forums where newbies whose care regimens and setups don't measure up get torn to shreds and heavily guilted by die-hard hobbyists and stay at home moms into spending way more money than they really need to. I don't mean to take a defensive tone, but pet forums have some very passionate--and knowledgeable--people, and emotions can sometimes run high.

That being said, what would you recommend for the tail outside of what I am doing already (if anything)? I can get the name of the medication tomorrow.

Also, she's not sleeping during the day as far as I know. It's the middle of the night here and that picture was taken in my office with a fast macro lens, and some postprocessing to bring things out more.

Thanks for everybody's help. I wasn't trying to come off as super-defensive, just cautious in light of things I've seen elsewhere, though I try not to be judgmental.

 

[Chase]

That's quite a bit of information to ask for, considering I just got her! I appreciate your wanting to have as much to work with as possible, but I've lurked on many pet forums where newbies whose care regimens and setups don't measure up get torn to shreds and heavily guilted by die-hard hobbyists and stay at home moms into spending way more money than they really need to. I don't mean to take a defensive tone, but pet forums have some very passionate--and knowledgeable--people, and emotions can sometimes run high.

That being said, what would you recommend for the tail outside of what I am doing already (if anything)? I can get the name of the medication tomorrow.

Also, she's not sleeping during the day as far as I know. It's the middle of the night here and that picture was taken in my office with a fast macro lens, and some postprocessing to bring things out more.

Thanks for everybody's help. I wasn't trying to come off as super-defensive, just cautious in light of things I've seen elsewhere, though I try not to be judgmental.

No one is going to tear you apart... We're nice here

That being said, I think you should go ahead and fill out the "How to ask for help" post. It really would be beneficial, as some of us can spot something very quickly and suggest how to fix it. Now I understand you just got her, but maybe if you can get the information from the shop?

As for what to put on the tail, I would use Neosporin. I have used this before on nipped tails, and it has worked very well... Just make sure you put just a little on it, if you put too much, it causes it to be a gunky, and hard to reapply later on.

LPR08

 

[Solid Snake]

Hahaha.
No offense taken at all!


I completely understand.

I do think you will find those people here.

I think that you will find them to be the minority though, and that CF is a mostly laid back cheerful place, with very understanding, polite, helpful people, who have a great amount of knowledge to share.


We dont put up with rude people or their behavior.

I see how it could seem like a lot of info, and for only having the animal 3 days I definitley see your point.

Im sure you can understand that we see people say the same thing you have, only to return a month or two later to have a problem that could have been easily fixed before, and is now dire.
We just want to help.
If for some reason you cant trust me that we want to see the info soley because we care about the animal, and want to help in a friendly manner, then I know you will if you just stick around the forum.

Not that you should fill it out, thats JMO.


To answer your question, I would take the animal to the vet.
If the infection has spread to the inside of the animal, it will reqiure more medication to clear up.
Higher temps can help fight infections.

 

[Markarian]

Well thanks for the understanding. It's reassuring to know that people are aware of how pet forums can get (or forums in general for that matter), and are willing to talk about it.

Anyhow, I'll go ahead and post my form now. But before I do I just want to say that I currently am recovering from both this major purchase and having just had my cat treated at the vet, which have both strained my finances, so any solutions to this tail problem that don't involve a vet immediately would probably be best given my circumstances. I do want to find a good herp vet, I was just honestly not expecting to have to go to one within a week of purchasing a juvenile cham.

Thanks again for understanding and I look forward to quite an adventure with this most unusual pet.

---

Your Chameleon - Veiled chameleon, pretty sure is female, in my care for three days
Handling - Try not to handle her too much, but do want to associate myself and human contact with treats, to which she does respond and eats out of my hand.
Feeding - Right now I'm feeding her mealworms, one medium, three to four times a day, as well as pinhead crickets fed on fresh greens for snacks.
Supplements - I'm dusting the mealworms in RepCal calcium with no phosphorus or D3
Watering - Right now she gets misted two to three times daily and drinks often. Am considering building a trickle water feature in her enclosure with a built in humidifier and screen to prevent fouling. The fogger will deplete the water rapidly enough to likely require daily refreshing of the water supply.
Fecal Description - Poop is brownish black, normal as far as I know?
History - Came from a pet store that obviously did not specialize in chams. Was housed with a Jackson's that was known to be aggressive. The employees did mention that the breeder for my veiled hand-raises them.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - Custom enclosure built into a well-ventilated bay window with plenty of shade. Is approx 36x18x18, but will be much larger when complete and she is grown.
Lighting - Using both a basking lamp as well as a CFL 5.0 UVB lamp
Temperature - Cage temp is in the 80s near her lamp, and I'd estimate to be in the high 60s at the very bottom overnight. She moves back and forth between the two areas every so often.
Humidity - I am misting her cage often and will be adding a fogger next week when it arrives.
Plants - I have a white butterfly (ASPCA says nontoxic) and a Wandering Jew, and have seen her eat the former.
Placement - Cage is next to my desk, but it is a quiet area. Top of the cage is currently around 5' off the ground, but the window portion makes it look like she's 7' off the ground. Will have much more vertical space soon.
Location - Pacific Northwest.

 

[Solid Snake]

Your Chameleon - Veiled chameleon, pretty sure is female, in my care for three daysMale veileds have a "tarsel spur" behind their back feet, like a heel. Its the easiest way to sex them.
Handling - Try not to handle her too much, but do want to associate myself and human contact with treats, to which she does respond and eats out of my hand.
If shes not stressed out by this, great! Veileds are known for there tempure, so you are doing ok, for now.
Feeding - Right now I'm feeding her mealworms, one medium, three to four times a day, as well as pinhead crickets fed on fresh greens for snacks.Dont feed the meal worms too often. They are not very nutritious and high in fat. Chameleons also treat them like desert, and will hold out for them and eat nothing else.
Supplements - I'm dusting the mealworms in RepCal calcium with no phosphorus or D3 Great. You will need Cal w/ D3 as well as the plain calcium. You will also need a multivitamin. The cal w/ D3 and the multi should be used twice a month. Alternating sundays with them is easy. Repashy also makes a product called Repashy Calcium Plus, its an all in one that you use everyday, so it makes things easier. Theres nothing wrong with other vitamins.
Watering - Right now she gets misted two to three times daily and drinks often. Am considering building a trickle water feature in her enclosure with a built in humidifier and screen to prevent fouling. The fogger will deplete the water rapidly enough to likely require daily refreshing of the water supply.
2-3 times is recommended. A "dripper" is pretty much necessary for drinking water. They can be purchased, or made from putting a tack through a dixie cup, or any other way you can think th drip water slowly. They drink off of leaves generally, so most people run a dripper that drips down/off leaves for drinking.
A fogger isnt a bad idea, but unless your suffering from severe lack of humidity it is uneeded. Mistsystems like MistKing can make your life super easy, but they are expensive.
Fecal Description - Poop is brownish black, normal as far as I know?
Darker med brown with a white tip is normal. The white tip is a urate(like a bird) and if its orange or yellowish, it can indicate dehydration.
History - Came from a pet store that obviously did not specialize in chams. Was housed with a Jackson's that was known to be aggressive. The employees did mention that the breeder for my veiled hand-raises them.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - Custom enclosure built into a well-ventilated bay window with plenty of shade. Is approx 36x18x18, but will be much larger when complete and she is grown.
Lighting - Using both a basking lamp as well as a CFL 5.0 UVB lamp
Temperature - Cage temp is in the 80s near her lamp, and I'd estimate to be in the high 60s at the very bottom overnight. She moves back and forth between the two areas every so often.
Temps can go as low as 50F at nite. A basking of low-mid 80s is good. She will need a temp gradient during the day, from 70ish to the 80ish, that she can move to and fro from. This is ALL important.
Humidity - I am misting her cage often and will be adding a fogger next week when it arrives.
Plants - I have a white butterfly (ASPCA says nontoxic) and a Wandering Jew, and have seen her eat the former.
Placement - Cage is next to my desk, but it is a quiet area. Top of the cage is currently around 5' off the ground, but the window portion makes it look like she's 7' off the ground. Will have much more vertical space soon.
Location - Pacific Northwest.

I just spouted my opinions and info that came to mind.
Hope it was informative.
If she isnt displaying any abnormal behavior, and you keep her tail wound clean, Id say it would probably heal with time.
Theres still risk of a spreading infection though.
I dont have any experience with a wound like that though.

Yes forums get hayness, this one can at times, but really there are enough good members to keep it chill.
We have great mods too, no really, I promise.
Good luck to you in your chameleon adventure, its one you wont forget...

 

[Markarian]

Thanks for all the advice, it really is reassuring to hear I'm doing some things correctly. I was told I didn't need the D3 supplements because she is getting so much natural sun, even during the winter. I got worried when I read about chams getting oversupplemented, so I wasn't sure.

Ah, I knew the mealworms were too good to be true! She certainly does love them. As I've seen how big these chams get, am I to assume I'm going to have to start breeding my own crickets soon?

 

[Solid Snake]

Thanks for all the advice, it really is reassuring to hear I'm doing some things correctly. I was told I didn't need the D3 supplements because she is getting so much natural sun, even during the winter. I got worried when I read about chams getting oversupplemented, so I wasn't sure.

Ah, I knew the mealworms were too good to be true! She certainly does love them. As I've seen how big these chams get, am I to assume I'm going to have to start breeding my own crickets soon?

Chameleons can not overdose on D3 from the sun.
They can only OD on the stuff from supplements.
Even if your chameleon gets sun often, it doesnt hurt to throw in the D3 even once a month.
Its a good safety measure to make shure shes getting what she needs.
She will use the D3 from the supplement, and if/when she needs more, from the sun.

...see though, told you we wouldnt bite!
j/k

 

[Bernie]

Hi Markarian - welcome to the forum.

You will get good help & advice here its a great forum with some great helpful people.

I can relate to your current position - the first Chameleon I bought was sick and it only became apparent a few days after bringing him home. Its devastating.

I would definitely try and get your Cham to a vet as soon as you can - Chams can go downhill quite fast so its always good to address things as fast as possible.

Good luck. I hope she makes a good recovery.

 

[carol5208]

hi and welcome to the forums! I see you have recieved some great advice already and looks like you have things on the right track. I am just curious though as to how she/he gets natural sun during the winter in Washington? Do you mean through a window? If so, then your cham is not recieivng any uvb rays as those type of rays do not pass through glass.
Just thought I would mention that!!!

 

[Markarian]

hi and welcome to the forums! I see you have recieved some great advice already and looks like you have things on the right track. I am just curious though as to how she/he gets natural sun during the winter in Washington? Do you mean through a window? If so, then your cham is not recieivng any uvb rays as those type of rays do not pass through glass.
Just thought I would mention that!!!

Oh that's definitely true, but I do have a UVB light on her enclosure as well.