New & Inexperienced!

Amanda1801

Amanda1801

New Member
Hiya!

I'm completely new to keeping chameleons - always wanted one but never got round to researching etc. - bear with me!

I have...aquired a chameleon from someone - yemen chameleon, male, approx 6 months old - despite being totally inexperienced, and only knowing the very basics, I took him on as he was totally stressed out, being fed a bad diet (no calcium, crickets way too big for him etc. etc. etc.), inside of the vivarium was bone dry (even I know you need to mist them!), vivarium has 4 glass sides and a mesh top, so not the best for ventilation etc. with only basic climbing facilities - in short, he's better off with me as someone who is willing to invest the time, effort, money and knowledge in making him happy and healthy. He's already (in 3 hours) happier, handlable, and eating nicely. He looks in reasonable health externally - skin looks good, he's moving well, no wounds, and is going to my vets for a health check in a couple of days (perks of working for a vet!)

I was just wondering if anyone has any pearls of wisdom, can offer any advice, online reading, book recommendations etc. - I have read up on the basics, but obviously want Colin to have a long and happy life!

Thanks in advance!!

Amanda & Colin!

P.S. - The beast himself! http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos...82953241_100000150017800_633707_5696337_n.jpg

Edit!: what can I gut-load mealworms with easily?
 
Welcome to the forum amanda! You will definetly find almost everything you need on this forum, theres just so much information! Congrats on undertaking a chameleon :D and its awesome that you are willing to take better care of it than its previous owner, lots of brownie points for that. Ok now down to the questions :p

I think you should fill this out so that people will have more information to work with:

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?


Also first i think you should get an all screen cage for your cham :) As for a gutload carrots, apple, orange, almost any kind of vegetables. Ive read that spinach actually binds calcium so thats a bad gutload, and tomatoes are poisonous as well. If you have any doubts on a vegetable just ask and people would be more than willing to help you out :)
 
Thanks for getting back to me so quickly and being so welcoming! I was expecting lectures on getting a chameleon and not having researched etc.!

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?yemen, male, approx 6-7 months old, had him about 1 & a half hours!

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?I don't think he's been previously handled much, he bit the guy several times while he was getting him out for me to take home. He was handled all the way home by my flatmate though (car was cold!) and was very laid back about it. Was handled well while setting up his viv too, no problems, nice green colour. Fully intend on regular handling so that he is used to being handled if the need arises - vet visits etc.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? He came with crickets that were far too big, so they are out at the moment. Tonight I picked him up some mealworms, and he has had some mealworms and a bit of grated carrot. He was eating nicely within 15 minutes or so of being in his viv, so pleased with this! He also came with some wax worms. Gut loading on bits of fruit/veg

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?I assumed (wrongly!) that he would come with calcium and vit powders, and will be getting some tomorrow. Any recommendations on brand/what to look for? I was intending on dusting the food 2-3 times a week, and maybe adding it to the insect food? Obviously I'm aware of the risks of over-supplementing, but this is one area I'm a bit unsure about.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?At the moment, I'm misting the viv. I'm thinking I'll prob have to give a good misting twice a day, and when he has a bigger viv, will probably get a water droplet system going. Not seen him drinking yet

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?Not seen any yet!

History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.His previous owner was clearly a bit special :p

Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Crap! 4 glass sides, mesh top. The doors on the front do open outwards though, so until he's in a more suitable viv, will be opening them to increase ventilation (while watching him like a hawk!). It's about 2ft tall, 1ft wide, 1ft deep

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?Not sure on the brand etc. - he has a UVA/UVB source, and a 100W heat lamp - the bulbs are spiral ones - ive heard things about the UV output on these being much less than advertised time wise - anyone heard this? At the moment I'm intending on 12 hours a day (he also has a night light - is this better/recommended?) and lights on 8am, off 8pm as thats easy for me to do manually until i get timers for his lights (tomorrow is going to be expensive!)

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?No idea because his previous owner had no thermometers or anything! Again, will purchase tomorrow....

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
See above... swap thermometer for humidity monitor....

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?Not yet, but will hopefully when he has his new pad :)

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?
Corner of my front room, on my drinks fridge (we're students, what can I say?!), away from windows, draughts and the like, quiet area. The top is about 5ft from the floor.

Location - Where are you geographically located?
Bristol, England :)

Amanda
 
Welcome to the fourms Amanda and the wonderful, wacky world of chameleon ownership! Let the obsession begin!!! A couple of things, you will need to get three supplements. Calcium without d3, calcium wd3 and a multivitamin. The cal/wd3 you can dust your feeders a couple of times a months with this. The calcium without use at just about every feeding and use the multi couple of times a months also. The 100 watt basking bulb is a bit high and will make your temps high also. I would get a 6o watt regular house bulb for basking. Get yourself a Reptisun 5.0 linear bulb. We all have had great success using these bulbs. Also, not to feed too many mealworms. Keep your crickets as a staple and meals as treats. you can also feed Dubias Roaches, locusts, silkworms, hornworms, waxworms, phoenix worms, butterworms....well that should get you started. There are breeders on the internet that sell these worms. Just google it! Good luck and again welcome! Also, get a dripping system, espcially if you do not see your chameleon drink when you mist and a temperature gauge and humidity gauge. I forget what the temps are for young veilds, but I know someone will chime in after me hopefully or you can do a search on here and you will find the info that you are looking for!
 
Hello Amanda, glad to hear you care enough to take this guy on and do the right things for him. You might need to know most of the people on here are USA. not all of us as we have lots of wonderful members from all over. The only reason I bring this up is that things in England are often done differently.

The glass viv is very common in England. I don't think they are quite like what you describe, just not sure. We have a fantastic keeper in England, on the Isle of Wight, Miss Lily (Tiff to us) who can mentor you along. She is super helpful. She will better know brands, etc there than a lot of us. She not the only one from England, just the one I know best.:D

The information Kinyonga suggested will be very helpful, and we are all here for you.:D:D
 
hey amanda is your UVA/UVB bulb a coil? if it is then i suggest going out and buying a uvb tube bulb i recommend a reptisun 5.0, also i wouldnt feed him too many mealworms at the moment, they can cause impaction (being constipated). I think a 100W heat bulb may be a little strong atm especially for the size of the cage you might want to get a 75 W but i dont think it matters as long as his basking spot is the right temp. I dont have a yemen chameleon so i dont know the recommended basking spot but id go for mid to high 80s to be safe. Hmm having him on the fridge might not be a good idea, i know mine kind of vibrates when its going and it might stress out your guy a bit. Ok here's a list of what you should buy anyone feel free to add in or take away any of my suggestions :)
Cage:
All screen cage prob reptibreeze brand( thats what i have), not sure the size but you might be able to put him into his adult cage now a good size cage would be 2'X2'X4'

Lighting:
Reptisun 5.0 linear tube if you already have a tube you are set.

supplements:
You need calcium with D3 and calcium without D3, also you will need a multivitamin. im using the stickytongue brand for my calcium supplements and zoomed brand for my multivitamin called reptivite, rep-cal calcium is also good to use for calcium supplements. You should use the calcium without d3 at every feeding and the one with d3 like twice a month same with the vitamins i just alternate weeks you can also have one day with no supplements.

Feeding:
The feeders you feed your chameleon should be no longer than the width between your chameleons eyes so try to get feeders that are around that size.

Watering:
You are doing great

Thermometer/Humidity meter
You should get a digital thermometer with a probe, and any humidty meter there, i think the ones i use are both zoomed brand.

plants:
ficus, hibiscus, and pothos are just some that you can have in your cage. There is a plant database on this forum where you can find some more plants that are used in enclosures.

Anyways im sure more people will add some stuff but thats what i can think of now. Do you have any pics of your chameleon it would be better to show everyone what he looks like so that if there is somthing wrong with him we can catch it :) keep us updated though Amanda :D
 
I hate to tell you but he may have or have had MBD judging from the looks of his arms, etc.

It can be brought back into control but the damage that's already been done will likely remain.

If you take it to a vet they can test to see how its calcium levels are and if they have been corrected you just need to keep it from getting out of balance again. If its not in balance, the vet can give it injections of calcium until the blood calcium levels are high enough and then give it a shot of calcitonin to draw the calcium rapidly back into the bones.
 
Last edited:
Sadly I agree with Kinyonga on the MBD issue. He is still a good looking cham. You can take him to a vet see if there is anything they can do for it.
 
I'm assuming MBD is metabolic bone disease...

Ugh - stupid old owners....

I originally took him on the condition that he was totally healthy after a vet check - I feel stupid now for not even noticing this....and the fact that I'm sat here at 6am researching MBD when I should be doing my assignments suggests that this little guy is here to stay....

Obviously this is a serious condition - how soon does it need to be rectified? Obviously he's going to have supplements added to his food ASAP (as soon as I've gone to the reptile shop today) but I was considering reptile insurance, and they normally have a 14-21 day period post-signing up before you can claim. Obviously I just want to get this sorted the best I can for pool old Colin and as quick as possible, but the situation is this: while I work in a vets and get loads for free/very cheap, I AM a student who works 8 hours a week, and can afford £10 a month pet insurance, but not anything in the hundreds if he ever needs intensive treatment etc.

If you lovely people could give me more of an idea of the following, I'd be very grateful!
1) How did you suspect MBD? While I'm a veterinary anatomist, I tend to deal with bigger animals, not reptiles :p
2) Limitations/long term effects potentially already caused by this to poor old Colin

Thanks,

Amanda & Colin
 
His legs are curved. I cannot see the back legs too much but the front are a dead give away. I have seen worse cases. Just look at any picture of most of the chameleons on here and you will see the difference. A normal leg is just kind of bent at the elbow. Sorry that you had to take this on. I am not sure if three weeks until you get pet insurance would make that big of a difference. Maybe someone else will elaborate on that. Obviously with any illness, the sooner you address the problem the better. I wish you luck and atleast if you are on top of it and get him some treatment, it will not get any worse. Can he shoot his tongue properly, or does he have trouble? Is his casque crooked at all? those are also other signs of MBD also.
 
carol5208 said:
His legs are curved. I cannot see the back legs too much but the front are a dead give away. I have seen worse cases. Just look at any picture of most of the chameleons on here and you will see the difference. A normal leg is just kind of bent at the elbow. Sorry that you had to take this on. I am not sure if three weeks until you get pet insurance would make that big of a difference. Maybe someone else will elaborate on that. Obviously with any illness, the sooner you address the problem the better. I wish you luck and atleast if you are on top of it and get him some treatment, it will not get any worse. Can he shoot his tongue properly, or does he have trouble? Is his casque crooked at all? those are also other signs of MBD also.
Click to expand...

His tongue seemed fine when he was eating, but he was perched on the edge of his food bowl so it didnt have far to go lol I'll get some better photos at a more acceptable time and upload them.

I also think, on reflection, I'll just pay my vet bills when I can - they know were I live and if i have a huge vets bill, they can't fire me as I'll need the wages to pay it off :p

Hopefully can get this sorted as best as possible - why do I always take on the ill-treated, not looked after, sickly animals?! Just a sucker for a sob-story I guess!

Amanda
 
Amanda1801 said:
His tongue seemed fine when he was eating, but he was perched on the edge of his food bowl so it didnt have far to go lol I'll get some better photos at a more acceptable time and upload them.

I also think, on reflection, I'll just pay my vet bills when I can - they know were I live and if i have a huge vets bill, they can't fire me as I'll need the wages to pay it off :p

Hopefully can get this sorted as best as possible - why do I always take on the ill-treated, not looked after, sickly animals?! Just a sucker for a sob-story I guess!

Amanda
Click to expand...

I don't know you but it must be because you are a good person, with a big heart. Really, he does not look horrible. Here is a link for you to check out https://www.chameleonforums.com/what-mbd-looks-like-38000/
 
ha ha - I'll use that excuse when my landlord next complains about the amount of pets that I have with a tenancy agreement that states no animals :p

Thanks for that link, I'll toddle off and read it - Going to try and get Colin an appointment with my vet during my break at uni today, if not, he's coming to work with me on Saturday, along with my 3 guinea pigs!

Amanda
 
I've seen chameleons in much worse condition than this one. If the nutrients are brought back into balance he should still live a long life.

At the moment you don't know for sure that there is still a problem...but I suspect there might be because he sits on your hand instead of exhibiting trunkal lifting. A test done by the vet could tell you for sure what the calcium levels are....and if they need correcting the fastest way to do that is for the vet to give it some calcium injections and when the blood calcium levels are high enough a shot of calcitonin to draw the calcium rapidly back into the ones. In the meantime you could give him some liquid calcium sandoz or gulconate orally until you find out for sure.

What makes me think that he has MBD is the shape of his lower arms...the way the bone sticks out. He also is sitting low to your hand (no trunkal lifting).

If it is MBD and its corrected ASAP hopefully there is no damage that will cause him major problems in the future....but calcium imbalances can affect not only the bones but the muscles (including the heart) and other systems in the chameleon so there is no way to be sure.

I have seen ones that were much worse than this one though that lived for almost as long as one that never had it....so give him a chance and you might be glad you did!
 
Yeah, he is going to have every possible chance! I took a couple more photos, it does look like his casque is slightly wonky but not sure if its attributable (I can't spell that word!) to MBD, and his back legs have a very knobbly knee'd look to them. Photos below...brown today! :p

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos...52938264_100000150017800_634522_1076669_n.jpg

Can def. see it in this one now I know what I'm looking at....
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos...22938277_100000150017800_634515_6729707_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos...72938292_100000150017800_634507_3401693_n.jpg

And I found him like this when I got up - he is fascinating!!
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos...12938308_100000150017800_634501_1890398_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos...82938351_100000150017800_634497_2959455_n.jpg
 
Well - Colin went to the vets today - agreed with MBD, and to determine exactly how bad he is, poor old Colin is going in tomorrow morning to have x-rays....

Can see this being one expensive little man!
 
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