sick veiled chameleon

It's quite likely your chameleon has MBD or at the very least is on his way to it based on your husbandry and the description of him being wobbly. Does he's rest on the branch most of the time rather than hold his body up...especially when walking? A good chameleon vet can tell you if he has MBD for sure. The swelling on his leg could be gout or it might be a break in his leg if he has MBD. I can't say for sure cause I'm not a vet. How long is each of your two watering sessions? Does he drink well?

For good bone health it's important that the D3, calcium, phosphorous, vitamin A are in balance.

In order for a chameleon to be able to use the calcium in its diet it needs enough D3. The best way for it to get D3 is by the chameleon producing it from exposure to direct sunlight (that does not pass through glass or plastic) or from exposure to a proper UVB light. Most of us recommend the long linear UVB lights. D3 produced from exposure to those two sources will/should not build up in the chameleon's system so it should not lead to an overdose. The D3 can also come from supplements but they will build up in the system and lead to health issues....which is why we just recommend dusting the insects with a phosphorus free calcium/D3 powder lightly twice a month. To provide the calcium for the chameleon we dust at every feeding lightly with a phosphorus free calcium powder. We also dust twice a month with a vitamin powder containing a beta carotene source of vitamin A. Vitamin A from beta carotene will not build up in the system like preformed vitamin A sources will and this leaves us free to provide a preformed source when necessary without worrying about overdosing the rest of the time.

Appropriate temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part in absorption of the nutrients.

I gut load crickets, superworms etc with a wide assortment of greens and veggies and a little bit of fruit to help the insects be healthy.
Regarding insects...I use crickets as a staple and then add in super worms, silkworms, etc. etc as well.

I'm sure I've missed some things but hopefully others have provided the info I've missed.

Good luck at the vets.
 
Read as much as you can here. The Care Sheets, all the basics.. especially the Poop thread. (sounds funny, but it's a bulls-eye easy way to detect issues.) Ask questions for sure, but also do your research... you know all the details.. pop them into the search box and get to school. I've been here a short time and the help has been amazing..

Realize you have a sick little cham there and it's health is most important. This community of extremely knowledgeable folks want the best for YOUR pet and are willing spend time trying to help.. You're in a great place to get the advice you seek. George and I wish you and yours all the best!

I look forward to watching the improvement!
 
He’s been climbing his branches, haven’t seen him wipe out once since I got home. He’s just snoozing away. Someone mentioned it could have been an overdose of D3 causing him to be like this? Perhaps that was that. I’m still going to bring him in on Friday and take all of the precautions to make sure he doesn’t get MBD/slow his potential MBD. Thank you all so much for the help
 

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He’s been climbing his branches, haven’t seen him wipe out once since I got home. He’s just snoozing away. Someone mentioned it could have been an overdose of D3 causing him to be like this? Perhaps that was that. I’m still going to bring him in on Friday and take all of the precautions to make sure he doesn’t get MBD/slow his potential MBD. Thank you all so much for the help
Nothing has changed with his health since last night, not how this works. I spent an hour with you last night explaining exactly what you need to do. That was a hour I didn't have but gave it anyway. Please understand that you are just as much in danger of loosing him as you were in last night and must follow through with everything discussed. Failing to follow through with even one of those changes will be a death sentence for him.

I know you said you will still follow through but I just don’t want you to feel a false sense of security. We see that a lot, we give people answers and they say they will follow through but fall short....
 
One thing I did forget to suggest for you is a timer for your new lighting. It’s very important to keep him on a consistent day/night schedule. They have a third “eye” on top of their head, it’s very sensitive to changes in light. So whatever room your keeping him in needs to be as dark as possible at night. If that’s not possible cover his viv an hour after lights out.
 
So, I took him to the vet and they gave him calcium glubonate for his MBD. The vet told me he only had a 25% chance of living and that I should just have him euthanized (umm ok?) I proceeded with the treatment he needed, hoping he would make a recovery.
I started out making him a medical bin ( soft flooring, low branches ) and set him up in that for about a week. He wasn't too fond of this but that is okay, because I knew he would not be harmed if he fell.
Next up, I got some critical care fine grind, and carnivore care fine grind and started syringe feeding him that, as the use of his tongue completely diminished.
I took him outside in nice weather (75-85 degrees) for around 2 hours a day so he could soak up some real life UV rays. I believe this is what really allowed him to thrive in his healing process.
I got him to drink a ton of water, and this is when he started taking good poops again.
Yesterday he regained the use of his tongue, his grip has tightened, and he is climbing like crazy. I haven't seen him wipe out and fall in a few weeks, and he is eating solid food again.
We still have a long road to complete recovery to go, but I hope this will encourage someone to keep up the constant intense care of an MBD ridden chameleon, because it is worth it.

**I WILL include current pictures and videos of him in comparison to his sick pictures in a while
 
I suspect that because he is getting so much D3 he has a D3 toxicity that can mimic all the symptoms of MBD and cause gout. I haven't read all the posts but if I'm backtracking. Sorry.
 
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