Are these worms?

[rileyp17]

Hi all, I have a year and a half old chameleon who hadn't been pooping for a while. I took him to the vet last week and we determined it was because he hadn't been eating enough (he was also underweight, only 188 grams). I started giving him Oxbow Critical Care (carnivore formula) and more crickets, feeding them a better gut load. I've also offered him a greater variety of foods to try. I've gotten him up to 208 grams and he's started pooping again, but when I was cleaning out his cage I found what might be some type of worm or parasite? I didn't see them move nor did I see a head (not that that means much) but I also don't know what a worm would look like. I'll attach some pictures of Norbert and what the "worms". Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Fireborn]

They look more like larvae of some sort. It's very difficult to tell with it bunched up in the towel.

 

[Kristen99]

You can put it in a clear plastic bag and put in the fridge and take it to the vet for an Id could be pin worm or even tapeworm if not larva.. I would get it Id tho just to be on the safe side.

 

[VerucaSalt]

Have you had a fecal done? They're really easy and fast, there's even a thread on here that shows how to do yourself if you have the right equipment & microscope...

If you recently had him into the vet, they should just do the fecal without any additional visit charge, they'd just need you to bring in a fresh poop to test for all paparasites, plus you'd have it done for the year with peace of mind going forward.

 

[JacksJill]

Were they in his poop or just in the cage? If they weren't in his poop then I would think it was something else like fungus gnat larva.

 

[rileyp17]

I'm waiting for him to poop so I can take it to the vet to get tested. I'm not sure if they were in the poop or the cage, I had already cleaned out the poop by the time I noticed whatever they are. I do have a live plant in his cage so it may be a bug or larvae from the soil.

 

[JacksJill]

It's a good idea to do yearly fecals anyway.

 

[chameleonneeds]

I may be wrong but they do look like cricket eggs to me. The shape and colour. Difficult to see the size of them in the picture but cricket eggs look like miniature, yellow rice grains.

Do a fecal test to eliminate the possibility of parasites. The no pooping issue - could it not be an impaction issue? You said it's resolved now but that could have been what it is. Hopefully he hasn't eaten something that is still impacted. Xrays might be a good idea. Unless you're sure he's having regular bowel movements again.