Update on chameleon with black markings (Roxy)

Roxy3000

Member
Update on Roxy
The black markings are now on both sides of her body but are not spreading any more as far as I can see. She started shedding her head and back on Sunday and it looks like her legs will shed soon too. She is still active and eating (however, she went off her food for two days before she shed but I read they will sometimes go off food before they shed) but I am concerned about a couple things not connected to the black markings (although I am still very concerned about those).
Concern #1 for the past few nights I have noticed she will climb into her sleeping spot about an hour before bed, which is normal, but she will also close her eyes for about half a minute and open them again. The past two nights she did this once or twice, but then tonight she did it repeatedly several times until her lights went off. I have never caught her sleeping/closing her eyes during the day but I am not in there much during the day. I still think I would've caught it at least once if she was closing her eyes during the day. Is it normal for them to be closing their eyes when it's close to bed even if the lights are still on?
Concern #2 is she has been passing urates every day for the past ten days with no poop. Perhaps I have been keeping her too hydrated and that is causing her to pass urates every day? I really appreciate any advice you guys could give me!
@Beman @jannb @MissSkittles
 
Update on Roxy
The black markings are now on both sides of her body but are not spreading any more as far as I can see. She started shedding her head and back on Sunday and it looks like her legs will shed soon too. She is still active and eating (however, she went off her food for two days before she shed but I read they will sometimes go off food before they shed) but I am concerned about a couple things not connected to the black markings (although I am still very concerned about those).
Concern #1 for the past few nights I have noticed she will climb into her sleeping spot about an hour before bed, which is normal, but she will also close her eyes for about half a minute and open them again. The past two nights she did this once or twice, but then tonight she did it repeatedly several times until her lights went off. I have never caught her sleeping/closing her eyes during the day but I am not in there much during the day. I still think I would've caught it at least once if she was closing her eyes during the day. Is it normal for them to be closing their eyes when it's close to bed even if the lights are still on?
Concern #2 is she has been passing urates every day for the past ten days with no poop. Perhaps I have been keeping her too hydrated and that is causing her to pass urates every day? I really appreciate any advice you guys could give me!
@Beman @jannb @MissSkittles
I don’t think I’d worry too much about closing her eyes so close to bedtime. If it’s mid day and she’s closing them, yes, be concerned!
If she’s eating, I’d be concerned about lack of pooping. Don’t cut back on her hydration.
Have you checked with any of the vets yet? I think the best course of action Is a vet visit. Make the soonest appointment you can and if too distant, ask to be put on a cancellation list.
 
I have not brought her to any vets yet because I’m trying to keep things as stress-free as possible so she will lay her eggs. Thank you for your reply!
 
Hi, I feel like my female panther chameleon might be experiencing the same thing yours has. She started with some black markings on one side of her stomach, which has spread, took her to the vet yesterday and they swore she looked super healthy and it must have just been bruising and said the spreading of the color was just bc she was irritated in those areas. I checked on her today and now her entire tail is dark in color. What ended up happening with roxy?
 
Hi, I feel like my female panther chameleon might be experiencing the same thing yours has. She started with some black markings on one side of her stomach, which has spread, took her to the vet yesterday and they swore she looked super healthy and it must have just been bruising and said the spreading of the color was just bc she was irritated in those areas. I checked on her today and now her entire tail is dark in color. What ended up happening with roxy?
Starting your own thread will get better responses. When you do, filling out the ask form help form in as much detail as possible (including pics of you cham, her entire enclosure, and her lights), will be super helpful! Do you have an experienced cham vet near you?
 
Starting your own thread will get better responses. When you do, filling out the ask form help form in as much detail as possible (including pics of you cham, her entire enclosure, and her lights), will be super helpful!
I already did, I have my own thread with my information and I even went to the vet yesterday but still not completely sure what’s going on so i was just curious about this specific females update to see if the black ever went away.
 
I already did, I have my own thread with my information and I even went to the vet yesterday but still not completely sure what’s going on so i was just curious about this specific females update to see if the black ever went away.
Sorry, I always forget to check those things! Could you post pics of what she looks like today on your thread, please?
 
The black markings on Roxy’s abdomen and shoulders have almost faded away completely. However, her tail and leg are still black so we are continuing to monitor her. Good luck with your cham!
 
@ERKleRose it's worth mentioning that Roxy was constipated for quite some time and, per our vet’s recommendation, I upped her humidity and misted her longer with warm water. It did help her poop, but even before she pooped I noticed the black markings were starting to fade. I don't know if it was just a coincidence, but I thought it was interesting the markings started to fade when I upped the humidity and misted more often
 
@ERKleRose it's worth mentioning that Roxy was constipated for quite some time and, per our vet’s recommendation, I upped her humidity and misted her longer with warm water. It did help her poop, but even before she pooped I noticed the black markings were starting to fade. I don't know if it was just a coincidence, but I thought it was interesting the markings started to fade when I upped the humidity and misted more often
I noticed my Cham might be constipated as well that’s why the vet went ahead and gave her a cloacal flush and some fluid therapy and I went ahead and bought an automatic mister for her to make sure she was getting consistent water and more humidity, which helped her poop. But now the black has spread to one of her legs and her entire tail 🤔
 
Oops sorry I meant to tag you, not Erkle! Does your cham have eggs? If so, my theory with Roxy is the eggs are possibly pressing on some nerves or her spine and causing the discoloration. I also know when vets stick chams with a needle it can cause discoloration
 
Oops sorry I meant to tag you, not Erkle! Does your cham have eggs? If so, my theory with Roxy is the eggs are possibly pressing on some nerves or her spine and causing the discoloration. I also know when vets stick chams with a needle it can cause discoloration
That’s a good theory, I’m not sure if she does she is 10 months old so she is old enough that she could be. Her sister from the same clutch I have a feeling will become gravid soon or already is because of her coloring and how much she is climbing around towards the bottom of the cage but I haven’t noticed that in the one with the black coloration but it’s definitely a possibility. I did think she also looked rounder in her belly but the vet said he believed it was just air 🤷🏼‍♀️
 
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