NEW HABITAT- is this normal..

[kelsxox]

Soo I just purchased my vielded chameleon.. pretty sure she's a gurl.. got someone trying to help me figure out if she's one or not lol.. but anyways, I just brought her home yesturday & i got her all set up in her new 'jungle'.. She hasn't eaten very much, i'm woundering if thats just her getting used too and comfy to her new habitat? It's a large repti breeze .. Shes about 6-7 months old right now, she's usually at the top of the habitat.. (i need to add some more things in it & the dish at the bottom of the cage is just for meal worms and excess water that falls).

Right now i have a "exo tera light cycle unit" on a 12 hour timing schedule. (for some reason it turned back on in the middle of the night?) . I've got a 18'' repti sun 5.0, and a 18'' nature sun hooked up to it right now & a 100 watt red heat light. that i turn off at night as well.

Someone please help!

 

[mbprime]

She might just not be eating because she just moved in. Some chameleons and most reptiles/pets go through a phase of figuring things out, plus the shock of being in a totally alien place. I will let someone else answer your light question, but I do question the 100W bulb as possibly being too hot.

Do you know the temps? The humidity? Two important things for her, or possible him though I think it does in fact look like a female, but some more foliage would help her feel secure and not so always out in the open.

 

[grimjob]

You should defiantly get more foliage, a big dwarf umbrella tree in a pot will do well and some more vines so she has more access to the hole cage, also you will want to get just a plan bright light chameleons reconize the bright light as being a heat source, and if you get a pic of the back of her heals we will b able to tell you what gender it is, that cage is a good size she will have fun exploring it, also she is a beautiful looking veiled

 

[JaxKiwiTiger]

Welcome to the forums! Just my 2 cents here...you definitely have an awesome size cage, should be great for her (looks more like a "him" but can't tell if it has spurs on the heels). Gotta make some changes though, definitely get way more foliage in there asap, she needs it to feel safe. And is that sand on the bottom?? Get rid of it, she might ingest it accidentally while hunting. Get rid of that water bowl too. They don't drink from bowls, plus stale water can give chams URI's. Other than that, you've got the right idea, and you've definitely come to the right place!

 

[Bernie]

Hi. I am not sure if you are aware but the arm looks a little curved which could mean your Cham has MBD.

It could just be the picture, perhaps someone else could give their opinion on it.

 

[Robyrango]

Hi. I am not sure if you are aware but the arm looks a little curved which could mean your Cham has MBD.

It could just be the picture, perhaps someone else could give their opinion on it.

I think Bernie is right..

 

[carol5208]

you need to get some type of feeding cup and suspend that up much higher in the cage. She should not have to sit on the bottom of the cage to eat mealworms. That is unnatural. Please post a pic of the back feet so we can determine the sex.I think it is a female from the spots, but could be wrong. A male willhave little bumps on thae back feet called spurs, females will not. I think it is a female by the spots. What are your temps? You do not need a heat light unless your cage temps fall below 60 or so. Maybe it is just the angle but in that picture it appears that your chameleon's casque(top of head) could reach the basking light. If that is true, move the branch down. She/he could get burned. Also, I would replace that orange light with a plain white ordinary housebulb. Try a 40 watt to start and try and get a basking temp in the low 80's range. If that is not enough, then adjust with a 60 and so on. Also she/he could eat the sand and become impacted. Please remove and leave cage floor bare. What supplements are you using to dust your feeders with, if any? Her one arm does look a little curvy but not horrible. Curvy limbs are a sign of Metabolic bone disease. It looks borderline to me. The second picture is seems more apparent then the third.

 

[laurie]

Good morning and welcome to the forum. Now that you have a chameleon your life will never be your own again. You will find all of us worry about our chams most of the time. We even post pictures of poop so the others can see how the cham is doing. You will get a lot of good advice, and I see you already have. Don't be upset as we all try to help you make thing perfect for your new cham. All the info you have been given is for things that need to be fixed. If you came here for help, we are all here for you. If you use the ideas given you are half way there.

My concerns would be lights to close to cham, how often you mist & does he/she have a dripper and what supplements do you have? I would also get the sand out asap, that is a problem you don't need to have. Yeah, one thing down off the list. See you can feel like you have made the cage better already.

Again welcome and ask anything we can help with.

 

[JaxKiwiTiger]

I think Bernie is right..

Didn't catch this the first time, but I 3rd the notion that your cham probably has MBD. The leg joints should be pointed, not rounded. In that 3rd pic, it looks like he/she is putting a lot of weight on its tail, probably because it's painful to support his/her own body. Best case scenario for this cham would be calcium injections from your friendly neighborhood exotic vet.

 

[kelsxox]

I mist about 3 times a day, once in the morning about an hour after she's woken up and gotten time to warm up, again during mid-day and again usually a half hour before the lights go out! I read on one of the blogs on here that you can put an ice cube at the top of the cage as a driper so that's what i been doing so far? Is this a good idea or should i make my own from a cup?.

Right now i've got exo tera Calcium & Multi Vitamins.. any advice on how often I should give her each them a week/month. Others have told me calcium everyday, multi vitamins once or twice a week and vitamin with d3 once or twice a month ?? Opinions ..

& heres some pics of her lil feeet, she got mad at me trying to take picturess. lol

 

[JaxKiwiTiger]

No visible spurs so looks like you got yourself a girl, with MBD nonetheless...that second pic is just painful to look at looks like she has 2 joints, but ykw it's prob not your fault since you just got her, but I'd talk to whoever you purchased her from b/c they obv don't know what they're doin.

 

[K9Luvn]

Welcome to the forum!! Nice cage you have and I'm sure you Chameleon is going to love it especially once you get it finished so it will be more suitable for his health and happiness. You have found the Forum that is very compassionate and knowledgeable about Chameleons and will be happy to help you in all areas. Never be afraid to ask as question as that is how we all learn. I'm still a work in progress... learning from reading the blogs, FAQ's and forum threads daily.

I almost made a terrible mistake earlier in the week. I love having real plants in my enclosure and almost put in English Ivy... which could have been deadly for my Cham. Please make sure you read the Safe Live Plants List http://www.flchams.com/safe_plant_list.asp so that as you add plants and you can make sure you get the right ones. I also always wash my new plants with soapy water and rinse well. I take out the fertilized that they are usually planted in and I replace it with organic soil and top the pot off with river rocks to my chams to don't try to get into the to the soil.

I can't wait to see your set up when it is completed... seems we are always making them better and better!

 

[camimom]

Your cham def has MBD.
So two options, take her back, or fix her up.
its not so advanced yet, so you have a good shot of her recovering and living a normal life.

but a vet visit is probably in order.

 

[kelsxox]

What can i do to treat her for that? I'd hate to take her back, i'm already so attached.. She hasn't eaten anything yet since she's been here (2 nights) i'm woundering if maybe she's stressed because she's in a new habitat or what.. the crickets been climbing up the cage so i dusted them with calcium and put them in a cup lower to the branch she's always sittin on...

But back to the MBD, what is everything i can absolutely do to fix this ? & What caused it?? Please hellpppp

 

[camimom]

What can i do to treat her for that? I'd hate to take her back, i'm already so attached.. She hasn't eaten anything yet since she's been here (2 nights) i'm woundering if maybe she's stressed because she's in a new habitat or what.. the crickets been climbing up the cage so i dusted them with calcium and put them in a cup lower to the branch she's always sittin on...

But back to the MBD, what is everything i can absolutely do to fix this ? & What caused it?? Please hellpppp

she may nto eat because shes in a new place. dont worry, even perfectly healthy chams do this.

regardng the mbd- its not totally hopeless. she needs proper supplements.
possible even a liquid calcium that you can either put some in her mouth everyday (but this can lead to her aspirating it) or you can get a needle syringe, and inject the calcium into a worm, then feed the worm to her. this can help stop the progression of the mbd, though her leg will always look like that.

what caused it is- lack of calcium, or lack of proper uvb, possibly even just born that way... combination, depends on how she was taken care of before you got her.

 

[kelsxox]

she may nto eat because shes in a new place. dont worry, even perfectly healthy chams do this.

regardng the mbd- its not totally hopeless. she needs proper supplements.
possible even a liquid calcium that you can either put some in her mouth everyday (but this can lead to her aspirating it) or you can get a needle syringe, and inject the calcium into a worm, then feed the worm to her. this can help stop the progression of the mbd, though her leg will always look like that.

what caused it is- lack of calcium, or lack of proper uvb, possibly even just born that way... combination, depends on how she was taken care of before you got her.

The guy at the pet store is an idiot, everytime i send my mom there to get me a specific kind of light or other thing for the cage, he cons her into buying something different, (hense the reason why i have a water dish) before i got her, i did lots of research so i had an idea of what i was doing .. i just went and peeked on her and she had her eyes closed?? Whats going on with this, there not soposed to have them closed during their day routine right? or even take naps.. ahh i'm so scared for heerr..

 

[camimom]

The guy at the pet store is an idiot, everytime i send my mom there to get me a specific kind of light or other thing for the cage, he cons her into buying something different, (hense the reason why i have a water dish) before i got her, i did lots of research so i had an idea of what i was doing .. i just went and peeked on her and she had her eyes closed?? Whats going on with this, there not soposed to have them closed during their day routine right? or even take naps.. ahh i'm so scared for heerr..

what lights are you using, wattage, uvb brand, type etc?

pet store people normally are.

you need to get the supplements asap. and i really think a vet visit is needed. you need to get xrays to determine the extent of the mbd and all that fun stuff.

eyes being shut is bad. no napping during the day.
the lights could do this, which is why i asked about the wattage, or it can be because of the mbd and she just feels like poop.

 

[kelsxox]

what lights are you using, wattage, uvb brand, type etc?

pet store people normally are.

you need to get the supplements asap. and i really think a vet visit is needed. you need to get xrays to determine the extent of the mbd and all that fun stuff.

eyes being shut is bad. no napping during the day.
the lights could do this, which is why i asked about the wattage, or it can be because of the mbd and she just feels like poop.

I've got two floresants. One 18'' 15 watt ZooMed Repti Sun 5.0 UVB and UVA, & One 18'' 15 watt Zoomed NatureSun .. a 100 watt zilla red night light.. i use during the day, another thing the owner coned my mother into getting when i sent her there for a 75watt basking light..

I've got exo tera multi vitamins and calcium but my girl isnt eating! not impressed.. & i'm not sure if theres a specialized reptile or chameleon vet in timmins ontario ..!

 

[camimom]

I've got two floresants. One 18'' 15 watt ZooMed Repti Sun 5.0 UVB and UVA, & One 18'' 15 watt Zoomed NatureSun .. a 100 watt zilla red night light.. i use during the day, another thing the owner coned my mother into getting when i sent her there for a 75watt basking light..

I've got exo tera multi vitamins and calcium but my girl isnt eating! not impressed.. & i'm not sure if theres a specialized reptile or chameleon vet in timmins ontario ..!

ok. uvb, good.
the other two, you dont need.
you can use a regular house bulb for basking.
NO RED LIGHT
dont need it, and they don tneed lights at night.
i think there are vets, i know there is a list here somewhere..... of vets by country... let me see if i can find it.
if there is, you need to hit a vet... get the internal nutrient levels under contrl before the mbd gets worse.

 

[camimom]

here,
https://www.chameleonforums.com/area-area-country-vet-list-32880/

vet list.
find one, go to one, and get your cham back on track!