Discolored Spot

[YeeT0wn]

I recently got a female Veiled Cham (Willow) from Petco about 3 weeks ago and she appears to have a strange spot on her side with a smaller spot near the top of her back. They said she’s about 4 months old and I didn’t notice the large spot until about 2 days later. It was a big white spot so I assumed she was going to shed (she hasn’t yet and doesn’t appear to have any signs of going to soon) the spot is able to change colors ranging from white to a bluish color and can even completely go away. The spot has not grown in size and seems to keep the same basic shape with slight differences and is the same texture as the rest of her. Some other similar posts are saying it could be a UVB burn (currently using the Reptisun T5 H0 5.0 UVB lamp) or even a cool birthmark. Everything else seems to be normal and her pee coloration is also normal. Her normal Basking spot is the correct temperature and I even held my wrist under the lamp to insure the thermostat wasn’t wrong. I had a female Cham before her for 5 years and never ran into this issue and I don’t have any reptile vets near me but I just wanted to see if this is something I need to drive hours to a vet to check out (NOT A PROBLEM IF SO I JUST WANT MY BABY TO BE OKAY!!) here are some pictures of the spot and how it ranges in color the first 3 pictures are taken within an hour apart! (She was slightly dark in two pictures I think she doesn’t like it when I wear a bun and it freaks her out so I have stopped doing that )

 

[ERKleRose]

Welcome on here! Willow is such a cute name, and she’s adorable! Those spots do look like they could be thermal burns, especially with her basking light that close. How close are both her uvb and basking bulbs to her basking area? Also, what are her basking temps, and how do you measure them, if you don’t mind me asking? With thermal burns (and with her being from Petco- they’re known for selling sick animals, especially with parasites and metabolic bone disease), a vet visit with an experienced chameleon vet is needed. Let us know if you’d like our vet list and/or recommendations for near where you live! Also, I do notice a couple of issues in her cage, so if you want us to go over your husbandry to make sure you have the most accurate and up to date care info available, please let us know, and I’ll link the questionnaire!

 

[YeeT0wn]

Welcome on here! Willow is such a cute name, and she’s adorable! Those spots do look like they could be thermal burns, especially with her basking light that close. How close are both her uvb and basking bulbs to her basking area? Also, what are her basking temps, and how do you measure them, if you don’t mind me asking? With thermal burns (and with her being from Petco- they’re known for selling sick animals, especially with parasites and metabolic bone disease), a vet visit with an experienced chameleon vet is needed. Let us know if you’d like our vet list and/or recommendations for near where you live! Also, I do notice a couple of issues in her cage, so if you want us to go over your husbandry to make sure you have the most accurate and up to date care info available, please let us know, and I’ll link the questionnaire!

Thank you so much for replying so fast! I measure her set up with a thermometer from the Biodude but the battery died last week (probably from being a few years old) but it said it was around 90° F when I last read it that’s why I used the wrist trick in the meantime. Batteries are on the way from amazon and should arrive on Sunday!! I’ve been debating getting one of the thermal guns to more accurately read her temp or if you have any other suggestions PLEASE LET ME KNOW!!! Her usual basking spot is about 7 inches from the heat lamp, the highest point in her enclosure is really close to it so I moved it more to the left after your reply! I would love any suggestions yall have or links! I’m reusing a lot of the stuff from my first Chams set up from when I was 16 and I did a lot of research but I’m sure things can use tweaking. I’ll attach a full picture of her set up below and thank you so much!!!

 

[ERKleRose]

No problem, we’re here to help! Is the Biodude thermometer probed? If not, you’ll need to get a probed digital thermometer to measure her basking temp (placed where the top of her back is when she’s on her basking branch), and you want it to be 78-80*F there, as higher temps, along with overfeeding- I’ve attached a link to the recommended feeding schedules for female veileds below-, increase clutch sizes, which is riskier and more taxing for her. Temp guns aren’t good for us chameleon keepers, as they measure surface temps while we need to measure air temps. You want her basking bulb to be 9”+ away from her basking branch, too, to help prevent burns. You want her uvb bulb (replace every 6 months with Zoo Med- if you switch to an Arcadia 6% next time you need to replace her uvb bulb, they last for a year) to be 8-9” away from her basking branch for proper UVI levels (UVI level of 3 at the top of her back when on her basking branch). You can also invest in a Solarmeter 6.5 to check exact levels; it’ll also let you know when exactly to replace the uvb bulb and is the only way to know if a bulb is defective; it’s literally a lifesaver, I couldn’t recommend it enough! Another thing is that since veileds will try to eat anything, they need only live and veiled tested plants in their enclosure, no fake ones or fake vines with fake leaves (no moss or Exo Terra vines either, they’re dangerous, as well). You’ll want to wash the entire plant (underside of leaves, root ball, everything) with either regular Dawn dish soap or diluted Physan, then rinse really, really, really well, and repot into organic potting soil after. Then you’ll cover the soil with rocks too big for her to eat. You’ll also need a lay bin (12”x12” long and wide minimum, with 5-6” deep of substrate in it), too, I’ve attached both a great egg laying link and lay bin graphic below! The rope hammock and wooden dowel ladder both need to go, as they’re both dangerous, as well. Her cage could use more branches (safe woods include maple, oak, birch, manzanita , crepe myrtle, most hardwoods, any non toxic and non sap producing tree, etc.), vines, and plant cover. Last question is if her cage bottom is bare except for plant pots? I’ve also added a couple more graphics and some more helpful links below, too! Let us know if you have any questions, need clarification, whatever!

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/veiled-chameleon-laying-101.2488/ (egg laying blog)
http://www.muchadoaboutchameleons.com/2012/04/how-to-set-up-proper-chameleon.html (cage set up link)
https://chameleonacademy.com/setting-up-a-chameleon-cage/ (cage set up link)
https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/ (safe plants link- pick veiled tested ones only)
https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/ (this is the most accurate and up to date care available, so be sure to read through every module!)
https://chameleonacademy.com/veiled-chameleon-care/ (most up to date veiled care sheet, though basking temps are for an adult male only, humidity can go a little lower during the day, down to 30%, and the feeder amounts are more nuanced than that)
Post in thread 'A few questions from a new veiled chameleon owner'
https://www.chameleonforums.com/thr...ew-veiled-chameleon-owner.193901/post-1815648 (feeding schedule to stick to)

And here’s the husbandry form to fill out if you want us to go over everything (just copy and paste the form then fill it in):

Here is some recommended information to include when asking for help in the health clinic forum. By providing this information you will receive more accurate and beneficial responses. It might not be necessary to answer all these questions, but the more you provide the better. Please remember that even the most knowledgeable person can only guess at what your problem may be. Only an experienced reptile veterinarian who can directly examine your animal can give a true diagnosis of your chameleon's health.


Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

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Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

 

[YeeT0wn]

I will definitely be removing the fake vines tomorrow and seeing if I can find some better options for her! She has 2 drift wood branches I got from the biodude. I wiped the pathos plants with vinegar when I first got them but did not repot them. The bottom of her set up has loose soil and dried leaves that I also got from the Biodude. Do you know if it’s okay to keep the bendy vines without the leaves in? They have a soft coating and are bendy and she seems to really like them. I appreciate the videos and suggestions very much I just want her to be as happy and healthy as possible
Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Veiled, female, about 4 months old from Petco (ugh) and I’ve had her for exactly 2 weeks today
• Handling - I’ve only handled her twice. The day I got her to put her inside her enclosure (for about 5 minutes) and today for about 15 to get a better look at her spot.
• Feeding - I’ve been feeding her crickets and super worms. Only the small ones and about 10 a day. Occasionally throwing in 2 meal worms as a good treat i want to try roaches soon just can’t find any that aren’t huge. I feed her around 5-6pm when I get home from work and for gut loading any veggie scraps around the house. Mostly red onions scraps, lettuce, carrots asparagus ends etc
• Supplements - currently using the Zoo med Repti Calcium Without D3 every other day but I have the same brand one with D3 that I plan to use about twice a month
• Watering - she has a little dripper brand dripper going through the day at a slow drip. I also mist the whole enclosure at least 3 times a day. I’ve only seen her drink a few times off the leaves I’ve misted.
• Fecal Description - most recent droppings looked good and solid with a white tip. It was slightly orange when I first got her. No to parasite testings
• History - when I first got her she was very pale and crawling on the ground in the Petco set up. Her movements seemed shaky and strange. Since I’ve had her the shakiness has hugely improved but she tends to not explore much (at least what I’ve noticed I work quite a bit)

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - screen cage
• Lighting - I believe the heat lamp itself is the Flukers brand and the bulb I believe is the ZooMed 75W UVB is the Reptisun T5 H0 5.0 for 12 hours. They turned on around 8am and off at 8pm (I have the smart plugs for my bearded dragon and will be installing them for her this weekend as well)
• Temperature - again my thermometer has been broken but last I checked the basking spot was around 90° and I believe the lowest to be in the mid 70s? The I believe the lowest it gets is 70 at night (I usually keep my apartment at that temp and I put a blanket over her at night to insure we don’t bother her with us still being up and to keep some of that heat in)
• Humidity - I honestly have never thought much about humidity I live in a very humid place (close to the coast in Texas) but if you have any suggestions please give them to me!
• Plants - after this post I will be removing all fake plants in her set up but she does have 2 live pathos plants inside
• Placement - she’s in a small nook in my room next to my dresser and a window ( I keep the blind open so she can look at the woods during the day) it’s in my bedroom and she’s facing my bed. During the day nobody is home expect my dogs whom she sees often but does not appear threatened they leave her alone. (I have a camera and I check on them often) only “high traffic” she’s exposed to is when I’m sleeping or watching TV in bed. There’s an over head fan in my room that stays on and an air vent in here across the room. The set up is on a small table and with that it comes to about my chin (I’m 5’3)
• Location - located in Texas

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

Discolored spot that changed colors with her

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