Veiled not eating. Please help

[Meals]

Hello,
My male veiled chameleon is now about 6 months old, I have owned him since he was about 6 weeks old. He had been growing very heatlhily until about a week and a half ago, when he went off his food. In this time he has only eaten one or two locusts, about an inch long. He used to have a huge appitite, eating five or six locusts a day, and could eat about 30 house flies in a sitting, as well as crickets and meal worms.

He has been kept in the same environment for about four months, this is:
A mesh flexarium, measuring 6 foot high, by 4 foot wide and 4 foot deep. The basking spot is about 80 to 84 degrees. He also has a UVB strip light. He has a constant drip system, which he NEVER uses, and so i water him from the tap (sit him under it and let him drink). He has a large palm plant, and a fiscus plant in his cage, as well as branches and fake leaves for him to crawl on. He also has ropes and jungle vine to climb on.
I spray him, and his enclosure two or three times a day to make sure that he doesnt become dehydrated. I put meal worms in a pot, and let him hunt for the crickets, and feed him the locusts by hand, dusted with his calcium supplement.

I am getting really worried about him because he is loosing weight, and I cant seem to find a reptile vet in the area. Can anyone help?

Thanks, Sarah

 

[Rocky]

hey sarah and welcome to the forums you have come to the right place to look for help.

everything you are doing sounds correct. He may have parasites which would require a fecal exam and if so probably a dose of panacure. You may be able to check with the regular vets and try to find the vet with a decent knowledge of them. Some know a lot and just dont advertise it because thats not their specialty.

 

[Meals]

Just what he looks like. When he was relaxed (not in the basking/ argry flat stance!), he used to look quite rounded, now i can see some of his ribs. Hes not come into contact with any other reptiles, could parasites be brought in with his food?

 

[jmyeager]

Almost any problem in chams can cause them to loose their appetite and consequently loose weight. Hopefully it is one of the more simple problems like parasites, as was suggested by the previous poster.

I was wondering, though, the last insects that he ate, did he keep these down? Has he had any regurgitation? It sounds like you are doing a great job of offering a variety of insects, however there have been a few reports lately of locust heads becoming lodged in the GI tract and creating an obstruction in chams. I am not entirely sure why this has been primarily seen with locusts, but maybe it has to do with the shape of their head and because they are not quite as soft as some of the other insects. Anyway, this is less likely to be a problem if you are feeding appropriately-sized locusts. Many chams who have an obstruction will begin to regurgitate as well.

The other thing I was wondering about was your palm tree. Do you know what kind of palm tree it is? Has your cham ever ingested any of it? Sago palms, which come in a small variety that would be a great size for cham cages are extreemly toxic to the liver. If yours is a Sago, then I would get your cham to a vet for some bloodwork ASAP.


Good luck and I hope your are able to determine the cause for your cham's decreased appetite

 

[Meals]

Thanks
Just looked on the internet at Sago palms, its not this type. Not sure what type it is though. Do you know of any other plants that i could replace it with? Hes not been sick at all. I gave him a warm bath today and felt his stomach for blockages, couldn't feel anything. Will have to get him to the vet.

 

[Lancecham]

A trip to the vet would be the best thing. Try this link to locate a herp vet in your area.
http://www.chameleonsonline.com/find-a-vet.php

 

[jannb]

I would get him to a vet ASAP one that knows chameleons. Jann

 

[kinyonga]

You said..."i water him from the tap (sit him under it and let him drink)"...I would worry about him aspirating water doing it this way unless you have it set so it only drips.

I think a trip to the vets is the best idea.