Veiled chameleon maybe sick?

[GentlyWeepingGuitar]

I have a four month old veiled chameleon. I've had him since Novemeber and he's been doing great until a few days ago. I noticed a few days ago (Saturday or Sunday) that he was looking a little skinny. I fed him a few extra crickets, which he ate fine. This was the last I saw him eat. Sunday I gave him crickets, he didn't eat them, and I removed them. Yesterday morning, he was sleeping on the floor of his cage. He has never done this. He was also displaying all of his colours, which is something he rarely does. I checked the thermometer in his cage and it read 70 degrees F. I normally keep him at around 75 degrees F. I gave him a basking light (I don't normally need to use one on his cage as my room stays around 75). After a while, he went up to be next to the basking light, and the temperature in the cage went up to 80, and then finally to 90. When it got in the upper 80s, he went to the other side of his cage. He quit displaying all of his colours and seemed to be acting normal, minus his not eating.

This morning he was sleeping in his branches, and looked normal. I turned on his lights and left the room for a few minutes. When I returned, he was still in the same place he slept in, his eyes still closed. This is also unusual behaviour for him. I put my finger in front of him and he came willingly, but he kept his eyes closed and displayed all his colours. I held him for a few minutes and he seemed to relax a bit, but he still kept his eyes closed, walking around blindly on my hands and up my shirt.

Here's a bit of info about his setup and care:
Cage--I took this idea I found here: https://www.chameleonforums.com/baby-panther-cage-17561/ It's worked really great.
Lighting--5.0 UVB Repti-Glo (the tube, not the compact one)
Heating--As I mentioned above, my bedroom stays at about 75 degrees during the day, dropping to about 72 or so at night. I gave him a basking bulb yesterday, the current temp is 85
Humidity--varies throughout the day with misting. The lowest it gets is 30% before I mist him again.
He get crickets only right now, as they are the only thing I can get locally that's small enough for him. The are dusted with Rep-cal and Herptivite 3-4 times a week.
I've not noticed a change in his droppings. He last shed about two weeks ago.
If there's anything else you need to know, just ask.

Is the temperature okay? I've read conflicting things, but most of what I've read is that babies get overheated easily and should be kept in a room at about 75. Is this correct? If not, what should it be? Am I dusting his crickets enough? Is there something else I should offer him to eat?

Also, how big should a four-month old veiled chameleon be? He still seems so small, but this is my first chameleon, so I don't know how fast he should be growing.

I do plan on taking him to the vet, if his condition doesn't improve by tomorrow, but my vet is closed on Tuesday.

 

[BocaJan]

For starters he needs a bigger cage. That is way too small for a 4 month old veiled. I'm sure others will chime in with thoughts.

 

[GentlyWeepingGuitar]

I am planning on getting a bigger cage soon. He seems to have plenty of room still, but I know it's getting too small. I have a 100 gallon reptarium, but I think he's still too little for that. So, I'm figuring out an in-between cage.

 

[kinyonga]

You said..."I checked the thermometer in his cage and it read 70 degrees F. I normally keep him at around 75 degrees F. I gave him a basking light (I don't normally need to use one on his cage as my room stays around 75)."...75F is too cool for a chameleon of that age. The temperature in the warmest area of the cage (basking area) should be in the low 80's. This could be affecting his appetite since he needs to be warm enough to digest his food. He sounds like he is going down hill (sitting on the bottom of the cage and shutting his eyes, etc.)...so you need to correct things ASAP.

You said...the crickets "are dusted with Rep-cal and Herptivite 3-4 times a week"...I dust with Rep-cal WITHOUT D3 at most feedings to make up for the poor ratio of calcium to phos. found in crickets. I only dust twice a month with Herptivite and phos.-free calcium WITH D3.

You said.."I've not noticed a change in his droppings. He last shed about two weeks ago."...what changes?? There should be a sausage-like brown part (feces) and a white part (urates).

You said..." most of what I've read is that babies get overheated easily and should be kept in a room at about 75. Is this correct?"...they do overheat and cool and dehydrate more quickly than adults do...but the basking area should be in the low 80'sF.

You said..."Is there something else I should offer him to eat?"..you can offer him small silkworms, small superworms, and once in a while waxworms for now. You can add other (larger) insects when he is bigger.

You said..."He still seems so small, but this is my first chameleon, so I don't know how fast he should be growing"...it might be due to the temperatures that you are keeping him at.

Here are some good sights to read...in addition to Brad's blog on Kittty on this forum...
http://adcham.com/
http://chameleonnews.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/20060502...rnals.com/vet/index.php?show=5.Vitamin.A.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/

 

[jojackson]

Understand that when speaking of temperatures for chameleons or any other reptile, the following terms:

Gradient (thermal):

This refers to a gradual increase in temperature from one side of the cage to the other (or from the bottom to the top or both)
The side or top/side where the basking bulb/source is located is the + side (warmer) here you aiming for ideal Ambient (air) temerature). The further you go in the opposite direction, to the coolor - side, the lower the Ambient (air) Temperature.
This is a Thermal (heat) gradient that allows the reptile to choose various sites between + and - to get comfortable (thermoregulate). The greater the variance of temp between - and + the better, atleast 10c/50f, 15c/59f is better if acheivable. This can be impossible with a small cage, hence large screened cages are best.

Ambient (air) temperature:

This refers to the air temerature within the cage, your want to measure this, not the temperature under the basking light/source which will be greater, hence your thermometer/and/or thermostate/probe should not be placed under the basking spot (except to check its reading ofcourse) but around 2/3 the distance towards the + ambient Temperature zone.

Basking Temerature:

This refers to the maximum temerature acheivable directly under a basking bulb/heat source. This will always be + greater than the maximun Ambient (air) temp . This allows your reptile to bask (thermoregulate) to acheive its ideal IBT (internal body temperature) .

IBT (ideal) :

The ideal IBT for most reptiles is around 30c/86f [This varies for different species/ages]
the ideal IBT allows the reptiles metabolism to function at peak performance, to digest food etc.
NOTE: No reptile maintains ideal IBT consistantly, This is the meaning of 'cold blooded' or Ectothermic. So the need to bask, often in the mornings in order to acheive ideal IBT before hunting etc and in the afternoons.

For this reason the Gradient is of the greatest Importance, as is a basking temperature Greater than its ideal IBT.

I hope this clears up some confusion.