panthercross
New Member
I think my chameloen might need a small dose of vitamin a does anyone know what kind to use? Is it just regular vitamin a that we would take? if so what kind should i get and how much?
vitamin A help
- Thread starter panthercross
- Start date
Hoj
Friendly Grasshopper
agreed VERY tiny drop, the reg, capsol is enough for like 1000 doses from what i know i just use a pin i sorta paint a small spot on the back of a single feeder.
panthercross
New Member
Well i think he needs it because hes had some bad eating habits lately. Ive noticed him eating dirt at the bottom of the cage. His aim has been really bad and he has been missing his targets. Im gonna start cup feeding but i have had him for almost a year and he never had that much trouble before. I had reptiglo 5.0 bulbs and was told to never use them and stick with the reptisun. so i dont know if that caused any vision problems. I do feed him a variety of insects. I also heard that their amount of vitamin a in their body depletes after awhile and im not sure if he is getting enough vitamin a. I feed the crickets lettuce, carrots, some fruits, crushed oats and i dust with cal almost everyday and 2-3 times a month with the cal with d3
Julirs
New Member
I certainly don't think it will hurt anything. You may want to beef up your gutload-add some seet potatoes, dark leafy greens like Kale and Collards, etc. Why is there dirt in the bottom of the cage? I serioulsy doubt the Reptiglo has anything to do with it-I use both kinds with no issues. Are you using a multivite?
panthercross
New Member
im dusting if thats what you mean but i dont think you do what do you mean by the multivite
panthercross
New Member
yes im sorry i just looked at the stuff i use. yes i am using the multivamins its a yellow powder, i use it 2- 3 times a months and the calcium with vit d3 almost every other day but maybe 5 times a week
panthercross
New Member
i just feel like his aim is not like it should be his tongue always hits before the target( almost shoots straight up) and when he goes for something long distance it flies left or right of the target, usually an inch away from target
panthercross
New Member
View attachment 34070 not sure i tried to attach a pic of what i use
panthercross
New Member
Do you think I caused any permanent damage?
Hoj
Friendly Grasshopper
those repcal suppliments are very strong you only want to use each twice a month and then a plain calcium at most other feedings.
there is some debate as to weather chams can process beta carotine sources of vit A with is what repcal uses. i have found that my veiled seems to have a prob with beta carotine, so i use zoomeds reptivite for him it has a proformed vit a instead of beta carotine, as well i give him a feeder with vit a once a month and seems to be much better.used more frequently.
jmo hoj
the zoomed is much weaker and as a result
panthercross
New Member
i forgot to mention there is dirt because of the live plant
Hoj...I've never use prEformed vitamin A with a veiled and I've never had a problem with it. Why do you think your chameleon has had a problem with it?
Cod liver oil has D3 and prEformed vitamin A in it...both are fat soluble and both are somewhat antagonistic to each other. They need to be in a balance...and you are already giving it a lot of D3 with the Rep-cal product you are using.
IMHO its important that the D3 and vitamin A be in balance along with the phos. and calcium...and if they aren't there can be health issues.
Panther cross...here's some information that you might find helpful....
Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption. Temperatures needed can vary with the species and age. For hatchling panthers I keep the temperature in the warmest area in the low 80's. For older panthers I keep it in the mid to high 80's for the most part.
Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.
Since many of the feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects just before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium).
If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).
Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite which has beta carotene.)
Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)
Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.
Here are some good sites for you to read...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/
If you can't access the sites above that have the word "archive" in you can do it through the WayBackMachine.
Cod liver oil has D3 and prEformed vitamin A in it...both are fat soluble and both are somewhat antagonistic to each other. They need to be in a balance...and you are already giving it a lot of D3 with the Rep-cal product you are using.
IMHO its important that the D3 and vitamin A be in balance along with the phos. and calcium...and if they aren't there can be health issues.
Panther cross...here's some information that you might find helpful....
Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption. Temperatures needed can vary with the species and age. For hatchling panthers I keep the temperature in the warmest area in the low 80's. For older panthers I keep it in the mid to high 80's for the most part.
Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.
Since many of the feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects just before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium).
If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).
Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite which has beta carotene.)
Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)
Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.
Here are some good sites for you to read...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/
If you can't access the sites above that have the word "archive" in you can do it through the WayBackMachine.
panthercross
New Member
im in the process of collecting a few good stones now im not sure what repcal your talking about. Where do you buy it?
