sick flaped-neck

[Will Hayward]

Eating will come when they regain their health. You said before that after a shower that the female perked up slightly for a short time. So, I suggest giving them each seperate long showers on a large sturdy plant, luke warm water, extended time, maybe an hour or so. You can get showering tips here: Splish Splash I was taking a bath...

The immediately after the shower, provide food. Healthy food, as at this time when meals are few and far between, they'll need the best eats they can get. A couple silkworms would be a good choice, and then also a couple dusted crickets with one of their rear legs torn off to slow them down.

Hopefully the shower will have perked them up enough to give them a chance to eat.


BOOKS! There are several books that provide specific info on this species. Though all the ones that I can suggest, contain the info that I summarized for you above. I didn't pull it out of my ass, this is straight from my library.

First and foremost, the two chameleons should be separated immediately. C.dilepis have been described as 'absolutely intolerant of any others of its own kind or other species'. Unlike many species, they do not form a group but rather live entirely alone and demand to have their own individual space. The two sexes will only unite during certain seasons to mate before separating once more. Separated them by covering one side of the cage between the two with an opaque plastic sheet or flattened garbage bag.

Daytime temperatures should be an ambient of mid 70s F, with a spot under the heat lamp that reaches to mid 90s F. Nighttime drop should be to the mid 60s F. The regions they come from are generally dryer than most and about 50% humidity during the day, and 80%+ at night and during the early morning. Misting should be done soon after the lights go on. I would suggest having the florescent lights turn on alone for about an hour while the misting is done. During this time the chameleon should be stimulated enough to drink. Then have the heat lamp turn on to lower the humidity.

Use digital thermometers and hygrometers and not analogue dials to measure these temperatures and the humidity.

A dripper should be provided from when the lights go on for most of the day. You might be able to use the nozzle from your dripper and use it on a larger reservoir. Alternatively, Zoomed has now released the "Xtra Large Dripper", much better than the small and large models.

The cage shroud be a little more densely planted, especially in the upper part of the cage where you have only open space and a long distance between the cage and highest perch. They will benefit from thick shrubs and small trees, which will also help with humidity and creating a variance in temperature from the top to bottom of the cage.

These sites discuss the species but not husbandry:
http://adcham.com/html/taxonomy/species/chdilepis.html
http://www.geocities.com/lovebug952001/Chamaeleo_dilepis.html
http://www.dewsburycrafts.co.za/flap-neck_chameleon.htm
http://www.chameleonjournals.com/icham/icham.php?The_Species=Chamaeleo Chamaeleo dilepis

 

[fabos]

thanks will you have been very helpful...

luckly i had a day off today and got to watch them alot more then normal and i noticed that the cage hit 90F being SoCal it gets HOt even with the AC on.. Ive only got two 50W basking bulbs and i dont normaly run them both!

coulod the heat also have something to do with it? i currently have a fan sucking hot air out and have it back in the low 80's

 

[Will Hayward]

Quite possible.
Very pale colours in some species are known to be sing of heatstress, and it is possible with how barren the cage is. Normally the chameleon would just climb into thicker foliage. However, this species can be a shade of pale green yellow when not stressed. So its hard to tell. Also can't see much detail in the cage photo posted.

Only the first maybe 8-10" under the lamp should be in the 95 degree range. But you'll need vines and branches at that height aswell.

 

[Will Hayward]

Any luck with the shower/eating combo?

 

[fabos]

no luck yet with them eating but i was able to get the male to drink water. the female wont open her mouth or i would force feed/hydrate her..

 

[Will Hayward]

In the shower, or misting in the cage?

 

[fabos]

showering them in a room tempature water for about 40-50 minutes... the male i could get to hiss at me and it looks like i could force feed him if i want but the female never hisses at me.. way to trusting

 

[fabos]

im having a Huge Breakthrough rite now... both the male and female are in the shower rite now and there both just pounding water... the male is drinking so much that he is drooling !! ill post pics in a minute

 

[Will Hayward]

Good! another thought, what is the top of the cage made out of?

 

[fabos]

here are those pics

 

[fabos]

top of the cage is screen as well!

 

[Will Hayward]

Good! Let them drink for as long as they will. Keep watch on the temperature of the water. I would keep repeating this daily until the problem is resolved.

All chameleons should have good long showers every once and a while, sick or not.

 

[fabos]

how should i go about getting them to eat if they wont want to?

 

[fabos]

showered them again today and the Female is alot more active then the male... she has her eyes open alot more and she chased a cricket around the cage for a minute or two. the male still shows signs of inproving ... ill continue posting updates

 

[Will Hayward]

Offer some worms like silkworms, they don't put up the chase and she should eat them. Theyll also be a healthier feeder for a dehydrated chameleon.

Keep showering them. Keep the male in for a bit longer. Feed them seperately at the very least if you are not going to use the advice and cage them seperately.

Additionally, You can offer an assisted feeding of a bug mix from the www.adcham.com site. When she is drinking in the shower, use a syringe without a tip to put a tiny put on her front teeth when she opens her mouth to sip.