Choking

Gloriawood

Gloriawood

Chameleon Enthusiast
I was feeding Spaghetti this morning and he seemed to choke. He is ok now. I’m really careful to not give him bugs that are too big, but apparently he had trouble getting down one of his hornworms 😭 he turned almost black and was showing his stressed colors and he stuck his nose straight up in the air. I was so scared. After a couple seconds he was ok. But I’m wondering if there is anything I can do to help in this situation should it ever happen again. I felt so helpless and panicked 😭
 
JacksJill said:
Glad he's ok. You can slow your hornworm's growth by putting them in the fridge for a few hours. Just don't forget them or you could lose them.
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Omg thank you! This is so helpful. I only have one chameleon and Dubia roaches ALWAYS sends me more hornworms than I order. I get the small 18 pack and feed them off as they grow. But they always seem to put at least 25 in there. I don’t want to feed him to many, but then they get too big 😂
 
Glad he’s ok!!! 🥰 my panther had hornworms once and either didn’t like them or got bit because he didn’t touch them again. Lol now superworms are a whole nother story…. He’s addicted
 
I was so terrified. My heart was beating out of my chest. He has been basking ever since. He’s alert and looking around like he always does. He ‘yawned’ a few times since it happened but other than that he seems totally normal.
 
Yeah those hornworms man... Slow their growth like Jacksjill said. And watch the size you feed with these. While they may seem like they are not too large the bigger they get the thicker their skin is and harder for them to get down. I had this happen once when I was newer. Same thing he turned almost black and started pointing his nose straight up. Since then I only feed them if they are no larger than an inch and a half in length. I would rather give 2 smaller ones than a larger one after that experience.
 
Glad he's okay! I got hornworms once from dubia.com as a bonus for my order and gave one to my cham (he was much smaller at the time so the smallest horn worm was plenty for him). It stuck pretty hard to the container it was in so there was a struggle. Then I gave one to my pet tarantula and that ended up being a fight that I had to intervene in (it was NOT my smartest moment. I learned lessons that day). It was a horror show and I have decided I HATE those things lol. Kudos to anyone who uses them as feeders, but I would rather save myself from future heartache.
 
Beman said:
Yeah those hornworms man... Slow their growth like Jacksjill said. And watch the size you feed with these. While they may seem like they are not too large the bigger they get the thicker their skin is and harder for them to get down. I had this happen once when I was newer. Same thing he turned almost black and started pointing his nose straight up. Since then I only feed them if they are no larger than an inch and a half in length. I would rather give 2 smaller ones than a larger one after that experience.
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Yea I think the issue was I that it folded in half on its way down so it was twice as fat as it should have been 😬 I’m trying to find someone close to me with reptiles that can eat the bigger ones. He just can’t eat them all in time and I don’t want to waste them
 
Gloriawood said:
Yea I think the issue was I that it folded in half on its way down so it was twice as fat as it should have been 😬 I’m trying to find someone close to me with reptiles that can eat the bigger ones. He just can’t eat them all in time and I don’t want to waste them
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You could let them pupate and turn into moths.
 
Omgsh I'm so glad I read this thread I would have never known this could happen. I thought these were easy for them to eat because they were so squishy. I mean I wouldn't feed huge ones to my baby but I may have fed them after he was a large adult not realizing.
 
Gloriawood said:
I was feeding Spaghetti this morning and he seemed to choke. He is ok now. I’m really careful to not give him bugs that are too big, but apparently he had trouble getting down one of his hornworms 😭 he turned almost black and was showing his stressed colors and he stuck his nose straight up in the air. I was so scared. After a couple seconds he was ok. But I’m wondering if there is anything I can do to help in this situation should it ever happen again. I felt so helpless and panicked 😭
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Thank you so much for sharing and I'm so glad your baby is ok. I have definitely learned a lesson from your post and I greatly appreciate that but I'm sorry it was at your boys sad experience.
 
Shauna_T said:
Thank you so much for sharing and I'm so glad your baby is ok. I have definitely learned a lesson from your post and I greatly appreciate that but I'm sorry it was at your boys sad experience.
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I’m glad someone could get something from this. I was so sure that it was small enough for him. He even had one the same size right before it happened. I didn’t realize their skin got thicker and I didn’t even think about them folding in half in his mouth. It was scary for sure, but I learned something from it too!
 
Gloriawood said:
I’m glad someone could get something from this. I was so sure that it was small enough for him. He even had one the same size right before it happened. I didn’t realize their skin got thicker and I didn’t even think about them folding in half in his mouth. It was scary for sure, but I learned something from it too!
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I didnt know their skin got thicker either, I mean it makes sense but I just never thought about it. I am so glad he is ok! And thank you again for sharing. 😇
 
Hornworms can be fierce. I use tongs to squeeze the mouth and end area. I don't worry about the length. For my adult Cham, no wider than my pinky seems to work. The hydration factor is high. Keeps the urates nice and white.
 
My guy choked from a grasshopper's wings. I was ready to pull the grasshopper out but he managed to chomp it down. Scared me to death!

Now, superworms scare me. They are more fierce than hornworms. Thrashing around, they live forever. I'm not a fan!
 
ChamelaChameleon said:
My guy choked from a grasshopper's wings. I was ready to pull the grasshopper out but he managed to chomp it down. Scared me to death!

Now, superworms scare me. They are more fierce than hornworms. Thrashing around, they live forever. I'm not a fan!
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That would be really scary too! Was it a large hopper? Asking so I know if I should stay away from them or just make sure I get small ones.
 
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