Burns??? Help

[BocaJan]

Unfortunately, it is quite common for pet stores to not have the proper information on chameleons. Chameleons have very specific habitat needs and many pet stores just lump all lizards together and sell you all kinds of stuff that just isn't right for your chameleon. I am sure that many folks can attest to that since this is quite widespread. I have found that there are VERY knowledgeable people here, some that are vets and some that have degrees in the field and do research.

The information passed to you in this thread is beneficial. We have experienced some of the same problems that you are. It is up to you to decide what advice to follow.

We aren't here to try to sell you anything or keep your business, only to help you keep a happy and healthy chameleon.

Good luck!

 

[emydee1]

I can't offer any help for your burn problem, but would like to make a couple of observations. Your cham would benefit from a couple of live plants in there to climb in and drink droplets from. Try B&Q for Umbrella (Schefflera) and Ficus (Weeping Fig) plants. It looks like you've got a waterfall in her cage. You don't need that - she won't drink from it and it will just harbour bacteria and be a pain to keep clean. Chams don't recognise standing water as a water source. They like to drink droplets from the plants when you mist them.

With regard to the bulb housing - Exo Terra make two different 'tops' - a 'Compact Top' which houses the spiral shaped bulb and a 'Dual Top' which houses the tube UV lights and heat lamp. I didn't realise that there were two different types - I learnt that from another forum member. If you were 'mis-sold' the compact one, maybe you could exchange it for a dual top.

I would just like to comment that I have a waterfall in my chameleons cage and she does drink from it-- as long as you have some water movement and some sort of water ledge where they can get to it.

 

[Eric Adrignola]

The problem is not that they won't drink from it. Nearly 100% of all veiled chameleons (and many other species) will drink perfectly normally from a standing, non-moving, stagnant bowl of water.

The problem is that it gets dirty, and must be cleaned very well every day, as bacteria builds up. Besides, some amount of misting is necessary for their eyes. A water bowl is usually more trouble than it's worth due to the cleaning issue.

A waterfall is far worse, as it's so much harder to clean all the parts - and those little parts harbor bacteria.

The thing that does kinda irk me is when people misinterpret information - or are given information - that leads them to think a (veiled) chameleon will die of thirst before recognizing standing water. All it takes is the doubting individual to try it, see the chameleon walk over, and lap it up like a puppy - then they continue to use it without havign a good understanding of the reasons why it might not be a good idea.

They will drink form them - but the problems they present to YOU will far outweight the benifits! Still, I often will use a bowl (filled wiht clean plastic plants) to catch drip water for my smaller chameleons. They learn to drink out of it even after it stops dripping. I dump it every day, so it's not a problem.

This comes in handy when you're trying to contain water, but do not have a good drainage system.

 

[emydee1]

The problem is not that they won't drink from it. Nearly 100% of all veiled chameleons (and many other species) will drink perfectly normally from a standing, non-moving, stagnant bowl of water.

The problem is that it gets dirty, and must be cleaned very well every day, as bacteria builds up. Besides, some amount of misting is necessary for their eyes. A water bowl is usually more trouble than it's worth due to the cleaning issue.

A waterfall is far worse, as it's so much harder to clean all the parts - and those little parts harbor bacteria.

The thing that does kinda irk me is when people misinterpret information - or are given information - that leads them to think a (veiled) chameleon will die of thirst before recognizing standing water. All it takes is the doubting individual to try it, see the chameleon walk over, and lap it up like a puppy - then they continue to use it without havign a good understanding of the reasons why it might not be a good idea.

They will drink form them - but the problems they present to YOU will far outweight the benifits! Still, I often will use a bowl (filled wiht clean plastic plants) to catch drip water for my smaller chameleons. They learn to drink out of it even after it stops dripping. I dump it every day, so it's not a problem.

This comes in handy when you're trying to contain water, but do not have a good drainage system.

Actually what I have is a fountain - like a table-top fountain with 4 tiers on it... it is very easy to clean, comes apart in 2 pieces. So, all I do is unplug it, pull off the top and clean it once a week and then put fresh water, and add my safe water drops and vitamins - sorry if I didn't specify what I had earlier - a drip system is perfectly fine too - mine was just easier to put into my tank then running the tubes, water, etc.. but there are many options out there...

sorry if I ruffled your feathers

 

[Eric Adrignola]

no - not ruffleing my feathers. That doesn't happen anymore very much.

Once a week is really not enough. I've used them, I've done it - aftr a couple days, you will feel slime. It's a bacterial biofilm. Not always a bad bacteria, but you realyl don't want the animals drinking from it. It could lead to problems down the road, especially respiratory infections (everyone says URI - upper resp. infections, when in fact it's a lower respiratory infection. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_respiratory_infection it's one of those little annoyances that even I find myself doing when in a hurry...).

It does not take long for bacteria to flourish in water. Unless you keep a bit of chlorine in it, and add some daily, you'll be making a bacterial broth.

A waterfall would be perfectly allright if you were to clean it out completely every day. It's just such a pain to do so, and not worth it.

It's not like people are just BSing abou this - use of these in chameleons leads to a much higher risk of lung infections. Chameleons' body cavities are filled with lungs - some species have complicated lungs with all sorts of lobes and structures - they can be very suceptible to infection if contitions are "right".

for a small cage, using a large, shallow bowl with fake plants is a good option - just get a plastic cup, poke a pin hole in it, and fill it up in the morning. Water drips onto the fake plants, fills up the bowl, and he'll drink. end of the day, dump it and rinse.

Much easier than cleaning a fountain/waterfall. Really, for veileds, I would do the drip thing every other day or so - daily mistings is usualyl enough to keep them hydrated the rest of the time.

 

[Docility]

FYI you background it in upside down lol