Nahla's tongue is not functioning

[SaveNahla]

I got my veiled chameleon in November of 2009 and she has been fine up until two weeks ago. Suddenly she stopped being able to shoot her tongue and capture crickets. She will try and eat by getting a centimeter from the cricket and try to make it stick to her tongue but it wont. I don't know if there is something wrong with her saliva or her tongue.

I tried to give her powered calcium crickets everytime when she used to eat but there was a few times when i did not. Could this have done this to her? It was suggested online that i vary her diet, should i try this? Also i noticed that whenever i tried to spray water on her plants, she wasn't drinking so i moved on to having her drink from a cup. Maybe this did something to her tongue or her saliva?

Please help...

 

[kinyonga]

There are a number of things that can lead to tongue problems...injuries, infections, dehydration, calcium issues.

 

[Elizadolots]

Do you see her drink from the cup? It's actually pretty normal for them to "sneak drink" when you aren't looking. There are people here who say they've never seen their chameleons drink. It's unusual for them to drink from a cup. Even if she does drink from a cup, I think you should still be misting her as often as you were. Chameleons absorb moisture from the air and require a fairly humid environment.

Maybe you could post a picture? As you are new, you might not be able to upload one here, but if you have a photobucket, or Flickr account, you can upload it there and then link to it here.

 

[SaveNahla]

Yes I have seen her drink from the cup. I do still mist her but maybe i should do that more. Ill try to get a picture up tonight. Did you say you wanted of it of her drinking from the cup?

 

[Olimpia]

I think you should fill out the "how to ask for help" form: https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

Fill that out as honestly as possible, and with as much detail as you can, inclue a photo of your girl and another of her enclosure. This will help us get as much info about her as possible to try to make an educated guess about what could be the problem. It could be something as simple as supplementation, but we don't know without a little more info.

But I don't think drinking from a cup or not being supplemented a couple days is what did it. I hope we can figure it out!

 

[PardalisGirl]

Questions....

I think we need to get more information on your cham and set up. Please visit the thread in the Health Clinic forum (where you posted this thread) on "How to ask for Help".

You comment that you were feeding her dusted calcium crickets when you fed her. That is way too much supplimentation of calcium.

Several things can cause tongue issues. MBD, Vitamin A deficiency and dehydration for starters.

I've never had a cham that drank still water from a cup. I suggest you do frequent mistings.

Anyway, please take the time to fill out the information requested in the "How to ask for help" section and do post a picture. Pictures say a lot!

 

[Elizadolots]

Don't worry about getting a picture of her drinking, just a couple of shots that show her body and head clearly (it can be one where the body is clear, one where the head is clear....).

Just copy the items in the "how to ask for help" thread that's been linked, paste that into a reply and type in your information. Be as complete as possible. When it gets to fecal description, that means: what does it look like, not how often does she poop (though, if you want to give that info too, that's great). Pictures of poop are also always helpful if there happens to be something fresh).

 

[SaveNahla]

Okay so here's a video of Nahla trying to catch a cricket.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfkzwC_2X0Q

Notice something weird with her tongue?

And heres the "How to ask for help" thing:

Species:Veiled

Sex: Female

Age: 6 months

Handling: I don't handle her very often, Maybe once every two-three weeks.

Feeding: Before she was sick i fed her probably more than 12 crickets everyday, once in the morning and again at 8pm. I gut load my crickets with Flukers cricket food.

Supplements: Reptocal (vitamin D3 and calcium) I dust the crickets as often as possible.

Watering: Drinks from a cup (not still water; I start to pour it and she will catch the falling water)

Fecal Description: normal (except for less of it)

Cage Info: Regular aluminum cage.

Lighting: I got the recommended lighting fixures (not sure about the name) i sometimes do change them irregularly because they are not on timers. I switch to night light around 9-10pm

Temperature: Humidity, Im not sure of. I know that when I am at school Nahla doesn't get misted. I have damp soil on the bottom of her cage though. Temp does not get very cold at night.

Plants: Ficus and umbrella plant

Cage Placement: My cage is two feet off the ground.

Location: North California

 

[Olimpia]

First thing I see off, of the bat, is the feeding times. You shouldn't feed reptiles that closely to "lights off" since they depend on the heat to digest properly. Feed her before school and when you get back at 3-4, that's better for her digestive system.

However, that doesn't do much to answer your question.... hmmm. Well, she shouldn't get D3 every day either, it might be over-supplementation. But it's tough for me to say, I don't really know why she wouldn't use her tongue.

 

[jannb]

First thing I see off, of the bat, is the feeding times. You shouldn't feed reptiles that closely to "lights off" since they depend on the heat to digest properly. Feed her before school and when you get back at 3-4, that's better for her digestive system.

However, that doesn't do much to answer your question.... hmmm. Well, she shouldn't get D3 every day either, it might be over-supplementation. But it's tough for me to say, I don't really know why she wouldn't use her tongue.

Sometimes a tongue problem can be caused by a supplement in-balance.

 

[Elizadolots]

I don't know that it looks that odd...is it possible she's just timid because you're there? She's hitting an age where she's likely to slow down on her eating.

As Olimpia mentioned, you're supplementing more than is usually recommended here. I don't think you really need a "night light". From what I understand they like a nice dark night (I wrap mine in towels).

 

[gabzzy]

She is so cute, and is trying so hard to catch, but seems her tounge is not extending, if it interfears with her feeding i would b at the vet with mine right away; she is precious, hope u find an answer an that she will regain use of her tounge again soon, such a darling lil luvbug

 

[Ellron]

Do you see her drink from the cup? It's actually pretty normal for them to "sneak drink" when you aren't looking. There are people here who say they've never seen their chameleons drink. It's unusual for them to drink from a cup. Even if she does drink from a cup, I think you should still be misting her as often as you were. Chameleons absorb moisture from the air and require a fairly humid environment.

Maybe you could post a picture? As you are new, you might not be able to upload one here, but if you have a photobucket, or Flickr account, you can upload it there and then link to it here.

When I first saw a real chameleon, at a petco, it was drinking from a bowl. I didn't follow their example.

 

[jessica]

Does her tongue look a little swollen in the video or is it just me?

 

[SaveNahla]

Well I haven't been able to give her supplements since her tongue has stopped working. Will a supplement in balance go away with time?

 

[jannb]

I would recommend a vet visit.

 

[SaveNahla]

Does her tongue look a little swollen in the video or is it just me?

Yea thats what i thought. That would probably indicate an infection wouldn't it? I hate to say it but my family is limited on money and therefore its hard to get Nahla to a vet. Plus the only place I can think of asks for 75% up front.

In the meanwhile, does anyone know of the best way to hand feed (or plain feed) a chameleon with this type of problem? She likes hunting the crickets and recently decided she would not accept them from my hand anymore.

 

[Elizadolots]

Have you ever fed her worms in a cup? Or cup fed her crickets? I'm wondering if that might not be a good way to discover if she's able to eat without watching her. I just think she looks very nervous in the video (mine are always appalled to find they're eating in front of me! It's like I've caught them doing something dirty....they try to hold their mouths still "who me? I'm not eating anything....why would I be eating anything?" It's actually the same look the dog gives me when I catch him with a cricket in his mouth.)

There are a number of people here who've hand fed their chameleons. Hopefully one will step in with advice on how to do it.

 

[SaveNahla]

Have you ever fed her worms in a cup? Or cup fed her crickets? I'm wondering if that might not be a good way to discover if she's able to eat without watching her. I just think she looks very nervous in the video (mine are always appalled to find they're eating in front of me! It's like I've caught them doing something dirty....they try to hold their mouths still "who me? I'm not eating anything....why would I be eating anything?" It's actually the same look the dog gives me when I catch him with a cricket in his mouth.)

There are a number of people here who've hand fed their chameleons. Hopefully one will step in with advice on how to do it.

Thanks lol ill try getting her some worms. But she used to have no problem eating in front of me. Is she growing out of it, you think? lol

 

[Elizadolots]

Based on what I've read here, it's not unusual for a chameleon coming into adulthood (as yours is) to get more shy about doing just about anything in front of anyone. They sort of lose their baby trust and gain some adult precaution.