Panther's back legs weak

cindysteck

New Member
I have a male panther cham who is about 2 years old. He is in an enclosure that is screened at the top and two sides, but the front and back are glass. The back has an aquarium type picture up showing plants, etc. There are 2 lightbulbs at the top, one is an Exo-Terra 120 Volt sun glo, and the other is a 20 watt zilla desert 50 bulb. At the bottom of his cage we use repti bark 100% pure fir bark. I mist his cage several times a day, and feed him crickets dusted with Repti calcium or Flukers calcium. His enclosure is lit from 6 am until 8 pm. Tempurature is 80 degrees with 25% humidity. The problem is today I noticed he was hanging from a branch, only holding on by his front legs. His back legs were just hanging. I took him out and held him, and usually he is very active and crawls right up my arm to my head, but today he is moving very slowly. I put him back in his home and I have been watching him closely, he doesn't have strength in his back legs. He won't hold on to anything with his back legs. What could be the problem? I found a bowel movement which is within a day, but he doesn't seem to want to drink at this time. He is just hanging around the bottom of his cage. Any ideas?
 
first off, were you from,

second, there is a way to ask for help, you gave some info, which is good, i could use some pictures....

third, consult a vet....


4, depending on your geographical location or skill level of chameleon ownership, your enclosure may be set up incorrectly.




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?


Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
 
How long have you had your chameleon?. Have you been supplementing him with calcium with and without d3? Do you have a UVB bulb?. To my knowledge the Sunglo does not provicde UVB and the the other bulb is incorrect for a chameleon. Desert series are more for like a beardie or something. Can you post some pictures? If you have not been supplementing your chameleon or giving it proper UVB then it could possible have MBD(metabolic bone disease) pictures of your set up and cham will speak a thousand words. Edit: Zilla does contain uvb but it is still the incorrect bulb to be using for a chameleon!
 
panther chameleon

I have had Ozzy for a year, and I was told he is a male and at the time I bought him about a year old. I live in Ohio. Thanks for the quick reply, I will post pictures soon. Cindy
 
ozzy

Hopefully after working on this an hour or more I have enclosed pictures of Ozzy and his home. Cindy
 

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When was Ozzy's last bowel movement?

Sometimes when impacted it can cause paralysis in the back legs. They eat substrate and it gets stuck and they can't pass it.

What is your supplement scheduale? Sorry if you already said it.
 
When was Ozzy's last bowel movement?

Sometimes when impacted it can cause paralysis in the back legs. They eat substrate and it gets stuck and they can't pass it.

What is your supplement scheduale? Sorry if you already said it.

she said in the first post that he had a bm within the last day or so
 
Hopefully after working on this an hour or more I have enclosed pictures of Ozzy and his home. Cindy

he looks pretty good in that pic. His legs do not look like has MBD to me. The only thing I was noticing is maybe he has a little edema under his chin? Maybe it is just the picture.
 
ozzy's house in a room in the back of the house

Is that a large aquarium? You need to get him way more walkways, in there, vines, branches, foilage, live plant etc. He has nowhere to hide. Also get rid of that substrate! He could swallow that(if he has not already) and the waterfall in the corner is a no no also. Also your UVB needs to be corrected as stated before.
 
ozzy

The lady I bought him from told me he is a he, but I am not sure.
 

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ozzy

That is actually not a waterfall, it is just a ceramic fish tank accesory I put back in today so he can be off the ground. l wanted to keep him from the crickets that are in the bottom. There are 2 in there. What kind of substrate should I use? THis came from pet store, the bag states it is non toxic to ingest.
 
maybe it is non toxic but it looks large enough to cause a blockage to me if injested. Do not use anything in the bottom. Is that an all glass tank, or is that screen. Honestly you need to get some more foilage in there and things for him to crawl around on. If you get a live plant it is good for helping maintain humidity, although you said you have never measured it?
 
That is actually not a waterfall, it is just a ceramic fish tank accesory I put back in today so he can be off the ground. l wanted to keep him from the crickets that are in the bottom. There are 2 in there. What kind of substrate should I use? THis came from pet store, the bag states it is non toxic to ingest.

he shoots at a cricket, then guess what? He accidentally sticks to some substrate with the cricket also. It happens...
 
I think Ozzy's home could use a touch up. I would lose the substrate, and is that a water bowl? He needs a dripper and misting. He could use a few more climbing stick for highways. Both up & down and sideways. Best of luck.
 
ozzy

I do have a humidity guage and it is 25% There is a screen on the top and both ends, (sides) Did you look at the picture of his feet? is he a boy?
 
That is actually not a waterfall, it is just a ceramic fish tank accesory I put back in today so he can be off the ground. l wanted to keep him from the crickets that are in the bottom. There are 2 in there. What kind of substrate should I use? THis came from pet store, the bag states it is non toxic to ingest.

No substrate at all. Most people here leave the bottom of their enclosures bare, some leave paper towels. But no substrate as the chameleons can ingest it and cause impaction. This can lead to the death of the chameleon. Also, as Carol said, you need vines, branches, plants. Take a look on Google of madagascar, where your chameleon is from, and see how their natural environment is. Try to imitate it. Chameleons are shy and don't like to be bothered (some argue that their chameleons like to be handled, but it depends a lot on the chameleon itself). Try to have a taller enclosure too, located somewhere where people dont walk by it too much so the chameleon isn't stressed.

Finally, fill in the How to ask for help form previously posted so others can help you with your husbandry. (A vet visit wouldn't be a bad idea either)
 
I do have a humidity guage and it is 25% There is a screen on the top and both ends, (sides) Did you look at the picture of his feet? is he a boy?

you cannot tell if a Panther is a male by his feet. Males and females have the same feet. But at two years old and with his pretty blue coloring, he is a boy. the females are more brown and peach colored
 
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