Bad News :(

[Mr Wilson]

Our Veiled Rosie has passed away this morning. ..... I woke up and put her lights on just like every other day and she actually had her eyes open looking at me! but like usual she only had them open for a few min then closed them. I took her out around 10ish to feed her and give her water, She was being a little more stubborn then usual so i didnt force her to take all the food and i would just try again later. I put her back in her cage and a few min later she was acting very lethargic and breathing very heavy. In fear that she might be getting to much heat i turned the basking lamp off (even though the temps were only 80)... She started turning all brown and falling on her side still breathing really heavy. I knew she was dying . I knew by the time id get her to the vet shed be gone so the only thing i felt i could do was try and maybe comfort her so i took her out laid down with her on my chest with my hands keeping her warm and within a few min she was gone.

It was a tough fight from the time we rescued her until today but a least shes no longer suffering. I guess this can be a lesson learned for me and anyone trying to rescue a sick cham from a large pet supply chain that doesnt know how to care for them. It really is a shame that this stores are allowed to take in animals they can not care for. i really want to go there a raise hell but i know it would be for nothing so i wont

On that note Thank you for every one that gave there input, advise and support. it def means a lot to know that there are people who actually care about these animals and love to see them happy and healthy..

Who would you all recommend as a good breeder that we can get a new (healthy) cham from as i will no longer be rescuing chams form large pet supply stores?

 

[sallyb]

Oh no !! I am so sorry. You did everything you could for her and i`m sure your comfort in her final moments made a huge difference to her. It is so hard to lose them when they become a member of your family. She was a beatiful little girl.

 

[beeze]

I am sorry for your loss.

 

[Elizadolots]

Oh, I'm so very sorry.

 

[laurie]

I am very sorry you lost the battle. This time you will start with a healthy chameleon and keep it that way. Which type are you after a veiled or a panther? We have forum member and also forum sponsors who could sell you either one.

 

[Miss Lily]

I'm so sorry you lost her - I know how gutwrenching it is to watch a chameleon die in your hands. It's amazing how quickly you become attached to these wonderful creatures.

 

[Mr Wilson]

I know! We only had her for about a month or so, I (Jeannie) came home from work hysterical. Sean buried her in the backyard.

Edit: We are considering getting a Panther because the nicer weather is going to start coming around here. Only thing we are not sure of is that our setup is 18X18X24. Would that be acceptable for a young panther? Do they need larger terrariums than that? We also looked at the Nosy ones as well.

 

[CAMerchant]

I'm so sorry! I know you did all you could. Good luck in the future. Once you get another one post pictures

 

[skyedog]

Sorry to hear about Rosie. I know you did the absolute best you could. If you do decide to go with another chameleon I would definately check out the sponsors.

 

[Mr Wilson]

Thanks so much everyone. Sean and I are definitely sad about this. We really really loved Rosie, she was such a good girl. And I honestly believe that the past few days she realized we were trying to help her, she stopped minding us picking her up to feed her and give her water. But she's a little angel now up in Chameleon Heaven, probably being her feisty old self and happy in a huge ficus tree.

We have been looking around at the sponsors list and are thinking of getting a panther. We just ordered a brand new, screen terrarium (we were using glass/screen top) that will be ready for when we are ready to welcome a new cham into our little family If anyone wants, or knows someone who may want to buy our terrarium let us know.

 

[nhoj6465]

Sooo sorry 4 your loss! Pet stores should have some kind of inspections! I have seen some disturbing things n pet stores!! It is not right!

 

[Carlton]

Sooo sorry 4 your loss! Pet stores should have some kind of inspections! I have seen some disturbing things n pet stores!! It is not right!

The only way we can get bad pet stores the "attention" they deserve is to report their neglect and poor care to local licensing and animal control agencies. They probably do inspect the stores occasionally, but can't be there often enough to catch all the problems. And, the inspectors probably don't know much if anything about the proper care of exotics like chams. There may not be husbandry standards written precisely enough for them to cite a store over either.

The best defense we can take? Check up on them, document the poor care, attempt to educate them with respected caresheets, and if they don't make any changes, tell them you will boycott the store and will hand the information over to inspectors with explanations of the issues you see.

 

[jannb]

I am so sorry to hear that Rosie didn't make it.

 

[shanksfaml]

my fav

I was at Petco last weekend and one of the employees said to me" she was sorry I didn't come in earlier. Their was a customer that had found (most likely stolen) a chameleon at the home show" the employee told me how she tried to guide the customer but she was very clueless and then said " they are so challenging to take care of and thats why we won't sale them at our store".

I recently bought 2 Panthers from Chameleon Northwest, they are beautiful and it was a great transaction. Bought my first Panther elsewhere and I was less than happy. Good luck and super sorry about your loss, I don't even want to try to imagine what you are going through. greetings from south jersey.

 

[max71]

Deeply sorry.

 

[Lindsey]

Mr Wilson, very sorry to hear about Rosie
Its always sad to lose a pet, no matter how long you have had them.

The only way we can get bad pet stores the "attention" they deserve is to report their neglect and poor care to local licensing and animal control agencies. They probably do inspect the stores occasionally, but can't be there often enough to catch all the problems. And, the inspectors probably don't know much if anything about the proper care of exotics like chams. There may not be husbandry standards written precisely enough for them to cite a store over either.

I agree. I used to work in a pet store, and it did have inspections every 3-6 months by the humane society (or SPCA or something) and they were pretty strict on all animal housing except for the reptiles. I think that stores got pretty much perfect scores if the reptile had a water dish and there wasn't piles of poo. So the people inspecting basically had no idea what the care should have been any way.

 

[Mr Wilson]

Thanks everyone for all the kind words.

Sean and I have decided that we would really love to have another chameleon. We contacted Chameleon Company and I spoke with the breeder, asked a lot of questions (in which I received a LOT of wonderful answers) and we have decided to buy a male panther ambilobe from him. We've ordered a larger screen terrarium and are planning to have the whole thing completely set up just how we want it. We are also planning on buying our feeders much earlier in advance (NOT from Petco, Petsmart, or anywhere like that) and gutloading them way in advance so they are perfect for our new little man.

Believe me though, we will never forget Rosie (aka: monkey, as we also liked to call her!). She had quite the personality - some what fresh, but then totally sweet when she realized we were good people. She's just sitting up on a big branch in Chameleon heaven!

 

[CHAMKINGZ]

you did the best you could sorry.