Outdoor Veiled with MBD?

[LBPP]

Hi, I have a 2 year old veiled who has been grabbing his front legs with his back claws the last week. I will find him at the bottom of his cage grabbing both front legs mostly towards the end of the day. He has a large outdoor cage that sits in the shade for most of the day and gets about 2 hours of late day sun each day from 4:30 to 6:30 ish. I mist him at least 5 times a day and just got an auto misting system that I will set up tomorrow. Temps dont go higher then 90 and I keep the humidity at 50 -60% or better.

I feed him crickets and superworms mainly but will switch off feeders every once in a while. I always dust my crickets with calcium powder without D3. He has a 75 w basking bulb and a UVB lamp which go off around the time the sun starts to hit his cage. After doing research on this forum the symptoms SEEM like the beginning stages of MBD but if he is getting a bit of natural sunlight each day shouldn't this be enough to get him his required amount of D3? I have not given him monthly D3 since he has been outside. Any insight? If he does not improve in the next few days I will take him to my vet.

 

[sandrachameleon]

many who keep chameleons outside provide a little d3 supplement "just in case" but others provide none.

bones and muscles need more than calcium and UVB. eg magnesium, other vitamins, etc.
what do you gutload with?

You might like to answer all the questions in the "how to ask for help" sticky

 

[Elizadolots]

Hi! Welcome. I'm sorry your having issues with your chameleon. I agree with filling out the form. Here's a link: https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

Click that, copy the questions, paste them into a reply and add your information.

I think it's important to remember that D3 only helps in metabolizing calcium, if the chameleon is not given enough calcium, no amount of sunlight is going to keep it healthy.

 

[kinyonga]

Are you giving it a vitamin powder? What are you gutloading with?

 

[LBPP]

OK here is the help form:

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - Veiled, Male, 2 years old, had him since 3 weeks old.

Handling - Only when cleaning the cage.

Feeding - Feeding 2-3 large crickets every other day, plus superworms a few times a week. Using green cubes for gut loading although I only get 20-30 crickets every week from the pet store so they are not with me very long.

Supplements - Dusting with Rep Cal Calcium powder WITHOUT D3. I dust all food with this. I have not been using vitamin supplements.

Watering - Was hand misting 5-6 times a day, now have an auto misting system that goes off 8 times a day for 1 minute. Have seen cham drinking, including today.

Fecal Description - Dark brown with white and a tiny drop of yellow sometimes. Never tested for parasites.

History - Had him since he was 3 weeks old.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - My cage is 3' x 18" x 6' and is plastic screen with plexi glass doors.

Lighting - Reptisun 10.0 florescent tube + 75w basking bulb. Lights on at 8am, lights off at 5pm.

Temperature - Temp is 90 in the basking spot and 70-80 in most parts of the cage. The cage floor is much cooler in the morning but heats up a lot in the the late afternoon when the sun finally hits. Using a digital thermometer to measure.

Humidity - Humidity stays around 50-60 percent.

Plants - Yes, I have 1 large pothos and 1 large ficus in his cage.

Placement - Located outside in the shade. The sun does not start hitting it until 4pm. No fans or vents, not in high traffic area. Top of cage is 6'6".

Location - Southern California, Long Beach, Ca


Current Problem - Currently I find him at the bottom of his cage grabbing his own front legs with his back legs. He seems week and confused and is not holding on very strong. Has not eaten in over a week, although he drinks every time I mist him.


Here are some photos of him and his cage.

 

[Elizadolots]

How old is your UVB bulb?

That's a beautiful cage! And, he's a lovely chameleon.

I'm going to suggest you add a multivitamin with D3 into your rotation just in case he needs that little bit of help.

 

[Swayne8998]

Is it just me, or is it a little bit hard to see the MBD there?? May just be the pic.

I will agree with Eliza, you should add a multivitamin and D3 supp's. You should switch to a 5.0 UVB bulb, and his cage should be at least 4'x2'x2' for an adult chameleon. He should be getting at least 12 hours of light a day. He could also be eating 10-15 large crickets every other day to every 2 days.