9month old Panther chameleon

[Hayesmeister]

My 9 month old male panther keeps doing this strange thing where he grabs his front leg with his back foot and then he looses his balance and usual falls off the branch. It's quite scary because he looks like he can't get it apart and he puffs up, I do try and help him when I see it happen. What could be causing this? I dust crickets everyday with calcium dust and once a week with Eco terra multivitamin, I'm feeding it crickets that are fed insect grub. Please help

 

[Blink]

Unfortunately, is seems like what you are describing is a common sign of MBD. Please fill out this form so that we can get a better idea of the situation: https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/ I also highly recommend a vet visit. Do you have any experienced reptile vets near you?

 

[Hayesmeister]

Oh no is from something I've been doing wrong? And I don't know never needed them before I'll have to ask around

 

[Hayesmeister]

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Nosey be, 7months
Handling - Couple times a week
Feeding - 8 crickets a day and they eat normal insect grub
Supplements - Natures grub calcium everyday (don't think it has d3 in) and Exo terra multi vit once a week
Watering - mist twice a day for 10 seconds

Cage Info:
Cage info - Exo terra small and tall 18x18x24 glass
Lighting - Komodo 26w 10.0 uvb, Exo terra day time heat lamp 25w, zoo med infrared basking spot 75w
Current Problem - occasionally he grabs his front leg with his back foot and gets worried and looses his balance and puffs up and sometimes bites his leg, he has a mark on his rear leg which I'm assuming is from this please help

 

[jcarlsen]

View attachment 111433Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Nosey be, 7months
Handling - Couple times a week
Feeding - 8 crickets a day and they eat normal insect grub
Supplements - Natures grub calcium everyday (don't think it has d3 in) and Exo terra multi vit once a week
Watering - mist twice a day for 10 seconds

Cage Info:
Cage info - Exo terra small and tall 18x18x24 glass
Lighting - Komodo 26w 10.0 uvb, Exo terra day time heat lamp 25w, zoo med infrared basking spot 75w
Current Problem - occasionally he grabs his front leg with his back foot and gets worried and looses his balance and puffs up and sometimes bites his leg, he has a mark on his rear leg which I'm assuming is from this please help

He needs to be misted for longer and more frequently. Dunno if you do it by hand or not, but if you've got an auto mister, you should be doing it for a minute at a time at least to trigger a drinking response.

10.0 UVB seems a bit high for a panther, usually a 5.0 is good.

Also, you're gonna want a bigger enclosure for your guy, and if you aren't having humidity problems, I'd go with a screen cage instead.

Make sure you're gut loading your crickets with good stuff as well (i.e. not that Fluker's garbage).

 

[Blink]

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Nosey be, 7months
Handling - Couple times a week
Feeding - 8 crickets a day and they eat normal insect grub
A larger variety of insects is beneficial for better nutrition and diversity. Also, many prepackaged, store-bought gut loads are insufficient. I recommend Repashy of Cricket Crack as well as a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Supplements - Natures grub calcium everyday (don't think it has d3 in) and Exo terra multi vit once a week
The best supplement schedule for chameleons is: plain calcium WITHOUT D3 every feeding, Calcium WITH D3 2 times a month, and multivitamin 2 times a month.
Watering - mist twice a day for 10 seconds
This is most likely not enough. Do you ever see him drinking? What color is his urate? What is the humidity level in his cage?

Cage Info:
Cage info - Exo terra small and tall 18x18x24 glass
I suggest that you consider switching to a screen cage in the future, as they provide better ventilation.
Lighting - Komodo 26w 10.0 uvb, Exo terra day time heat lamp 25w, zoo med infrared basking spot 75w
I am not familiar with that brand of UVB, so I do not know how well it works. Is your UVB a tube or compact? How long have you had it? Most UVB bulb stop emitting proper UVB levels after less than 6 months and should be replaced twice a year. Seems like a lot of heat bulbs... What temperatures are in the cage? Basking? Ambient?


Current Problem - occasionally he grabs his front leg with his back foot and gets worried and looses his balance and puffs up and sometimes bites his leg, he has a mark on his rear leg which I'm assuming is from this please help

Do his limbs seem bowed at all?

 

[Blink]

This might be helpful: https://www.chameleonforums.com/area-area-country-vet-list-32880/

Where do you live?

 

[Hayesmeister]

There's a picture of him and I don't think they, and ok I'll get a 5.0 uvb and I'll start loading with veggies, I live in UK

 

[carol5208]

Many people use the 10.0's and that is fine, especially seeing he is 9 months old. How old is the bulb? When is the last time you changed it out? His limbs do not look like MBD from the pics. Post a few more to be on the safe side. However, The behavior you are describing does sound like MBD. I have seen like maybe two cases on here where a chameleon got MBD and still had the proper calcium and lighting. Some rare thing where they could not process d3 was suspected, but I don't think ever proven. It could also be something neurological too if it is not the early stages of MBD. It is hard to say at this point when he is not showing the tell tale signs that most chameleons exhibit with MBD. Curvy limbs being the most common.

 

[Hayesmeister]

don't know how to add more pictures from my phone, and the bulb is only a couple months old now I then should you change it?

 

[Hayesmeister]

there's another