Pablo's strange pooping habit

[dannigrrl]

Pablo (a perfectly healthy Ambilobe boy about 7 or 8 months old) poops only when I take him out of his cage. I take him out about once per week and he poops within the first 30 seconds. It's like he holds it in until I take him out.

He avoids pooping in his cage at all costs and recently I take him out every 4 or 5 days so that he can poop more often, I hold his little bum over the toilet and he lets it drop. Then he happily rushes back to his cage.

I've had him since September and he pooped in his cage only a few times at the beginning but then decided to make a habit of pooping only when I hold him, now it seems as if this is his habit.

Does anyone else have a peculiar pooper?

 

[Texas Panther Man]

Not a chameleon. But my blue and gold macaw would hold it til u piked him up. Then hed drop a load and laugh.

 

[dannigrrl]

Not a chameleon. But my blue and gold macaw would hold it til u piked him up. Then hed drop a load and laugh.

That's so funny because I swear if Pablo could laugh - he would!

 

[trd1215]

Pablo (a perfectly healthy Ambilobe boy about 7 or 8 months old) poops only when I take him out of his cage. I take him out about once per week and he poops within the first 30 seconds. It's like he holds it in until I take him out.

He avoids pooping in his cage at all costs and recently I take him out every 4 or 5 days so that he can poop more often, I hold his little bum over the toilet and he lets it drop. Then he happily rushes back to his cage.

I've had him since September and he pooped in his cage only a few times at the beginning but then decided to make a habit of pooping only when I hold him, now it seems as if this is his habit.

Does anyone else have a peculiar pooper?

How funny!! He justs wants to poop in your hand....lol

 

[OOOst16]

This is odd....I've never herd of this. But id make sure your letting him poop enough. Kinda cute. My cham poops in his potted plants.... wich is nice because I just let the poo go into the soil. I have a less dense screen covering the soils. I have 5 potted plants in his cage....so he's got a lot of selection.

 

[panthercham]

When I first got my youngest he was very particular in pooping in a secluded corner in the bottom of the plant water dish and was very shy about it.

When he was about 6 months I started free ranging him and could never work out where he was pooping anymore....it was nowhere to be found. We knew he was shy about it but could never work out his 'secret' place until one day when we were spring cleaning and moved the lounge and found a nice little pile under the lounge on the floor boards...not a pleasant little surprise but at least the mystery was solved.

If your cham is only pooping when you bring him out maybe you should increase that so he has the opportunity to poop more often.

 

[OldSkoolxReasons]

Maybe he is an OCD/Germaphobic panther and doesn't want poop in his cage. He must be a really clean cham. I'd take him out every 3 days if he only poops when you take him out just to make sure he isn't holding it too long.

 

[kpritch17]

My chameleon has only pooped outside of his cage once, and it was the first time my boyfriend held him. As soon as he walked onto his hand from mine, he dropped a fatty right on his hand

 

[whitespyder]

what a mischievous cham! either he finds a sick pleasure in pooping on his owner or he wants his cage to be as clean as he can within his control

 

[Elizadolots]

My male poops in my hand almost automatically...I believe it's his way of saying "put me back in my home"...my female has only done it once and she'd been out of the cage for 15, maybe 20 minutes.

As a "put me back in my home" strategy, it does work fairly well...I usually wait until he's done so I can inspect the poop, but he's back in his home right afterwards so I can do the hazmat clean up. If the situation is perfect and I see that leg lift, I sometimes get him back in his cage before he poops, but that sort of depends on where I am in relation to the cage. I'm old and I'd rather have my hand pooped on than try to hurtle the coffee table to get the lizard back in his cage.

(before anyone jumps on me, I take them out maybe every 2 weeks...it's just very memorable with Spike because...you know...there's poop. )

 

[Miss Lily]

My two come out almost every day - by their own choice. They will both sit and scratch at the door to come out. I have never been pooped on though! Tommy always poops in the same place (right in the middle of all his branches making cleaning up as difficult as possible) then when I open his door to clean up he rushes straight out and up my arm! You can see him thinking 'I'm not going back in there until the poop is gone!'

 

[jannb]

My chams always poop in the same spot......a place away from where they are going to be. I don't think like like being around their poop.

 

[CleaTheChameleon]

Clea always poops in her cage and once i see it i take it out but she never outs outside her cage. I guess you can call that potty trained

 

[draetish]

I'm glad this thread came up. My 11 mo old panther will only poop in the shower. I just recently discovered this cause I would check his cage everyday and no poop. He went on 30 days, no poop, not eating much either so I put him in the shower and he went. So now, it's in the shower once a week for a poop. Makes you wonder why or better yet......Things that make you go ummmm!

 

[summoner12]

I'm glad this thread came up. My 11 mo old panther will only poop in the shower. I just recently discovered this cause I would check his cage everyday and no poop. He went on 30 days, no poop, not eating much either so I put him in the shower and he went. So now, it's in the shower once a week for a poop. Makes you wonder why or better yet......Things that make you go ummmm!

could be a basking temp or water intake issue...

Chams need to be warm to process the poop and they need water to keep it moving. Maybe the warm water gets the process going? Usually when a cham is constipated a good way to get him to pass the poop is to soak them in warm water.

 

[ponders]

I have two male panthers that will only poop when they go outside in the sun. They will hold it for days, then go within 5 minutes of being outside. I just put them on a tree (different trees) and put a few paper towels down and voila no stinky poop in the house. Luckily we live where I can get them outside often otherwise, I'm not sure what they would do! I guess they are OCD, but in a good way

 

[Elizadolots]

Maybe the warm water gets the process going? Usually when a cham is constipated a good way to get him to pass the poop is to soak them in warm water.

I think that's sort of a general rule of thumb for most animals including humans...if the baby isn't pooping, one of the things you try is a warm bath. I suspect it's a muscle relaxation thing.

 

[summoner12]

I think that's sort of a general rule of thumb for most animals including humans...if the baby isn't pooping, one of the things you try is a warm bath. I suspect it's a muscle relaxation thing.

Wonder if I can use that same technique when I feel backed up...

 

[dannigrrl]

it's really neat hearing about the pooping habits of everyone's critters, I really did think I was the only one, it's nice to know I'm not alone!

 

[Elizadolots]

Wonder if I can use that same technique when I feel backed up...

It's certainly worth a try... I guess I'd "remove to the throne" when I felt the urge...convenient having it in the same room.