Eating poop, and going a lot?

[MangoTango]

Hi guys, so my girl just pooped so large, and then ate it. and then a small piece was coming off her butt, and she ate that right off her butt. and then she walked around and let out one more giant one, it fell to the floor so she didn’t eat it. no urates yet. she’s letting go another small one and seems like she’s looking to eat that too. I haven’t changed anything abt her diet and she seems to be going regularly, and what she just let out also seemed okay. is this like parasitic behavior? should I get it tested ?

edit: I see a large urate from the first time she went, it’s perfectly white but it fell in a pot so it’s just liquid

 

[MissSkittles]

Uh…yeah..not sure if it’s a behavior related to parasites but I’d definitely be making a vet appointment and collecting a fresh poo sample to test. That is bizarre. The only thing I can think is she thought her poos were bugs, but I dunno. @kinyonga have you ever heard of this?

 

[kinyonga]

It doesn’t surprise me…
“There are a couple of reasons why your chameleon may be eating its own poop. It could be that its feces still contains some undigested food and there are still some chunks of insect parts. Furthermore, there is a possibility of bugs being attracted to the feces and your chameleons try to feed on them. It may be attracted to the movement of these bugs and while striking at them pick up its own poop. Also, it may have a parasitic infestation which causes it to behave this way.”…
https://www.chameleonforums.com/thr...e are a couple of,some chunks of insect parts.

 

[MangoTango]

hey guys, she’s acting fine so, I took the stool she didn’t eat in for testing, and i’ll know on wednesday. if it’s positive obvi I’ll bring her to the vet. I think she’s maybe just deficient in a few vitamins bc unfortunately during finals season I didn’t gutload as much as I should. my fault 100%. just waiting on the results, ty for your help and i’ll update once I get it back!

 

[Sonny13]

Did she lay eggs recently? Because if my girl as laid eggs the first one or two stools are also really big. Doesn’t explain the eating btw, never heard of it before, thanks for the information @kinyonga

 

[MangoTango]

Did she lay eggs recently? Because if my girl as laid eggs the first one or two stools are also really big. Doesn’t explain the eating btw, never heard of it before, thanks for the information @kinyonga

about a month ago, 20 eggs!

 

[MangoTango]

Hey guys, sorry forgot to update. The vet said she does have parasites, but nothing abnormal for a chams digestive tract, so there’s nothing to do unless she has negative symptoms which she hasn’t ! glad its all good! thank you guys sm for the help

 

[Raymond1412]

Hey guys, sorry forgot to update. The vet said she does have parasites, but nothing abnormal for a chams digestive tract, so there’s nothing to do unless she has negative symptoms which she hasn’t ! glad its all good! thank you guys sm for the help

That's good news!! Hopefully, she'll stop eating her feces soon!

 

[CalamityCrow]

Hey guys, sorry forgot to update. The vet said she does have parasites, but nothing abnormal for a chams digestive tract, so there’s nothing to do unless she has negative symptoms which she hasn’t ! glad its all good! thank you guys sm for the help

Did they say which parasite it was?

 

[MangoTango]

Did they say which parasite it was?

no unfortunately they did not I can ask next time I go but idk when that’ll be

 

[MangoTango]

That's good news!! Hopefully, she'll stop eating her feces soon!

I hope so! I think she’s stopped

 

[kinyonga]

I would ask what the parasite is. Does she eat leaves at all?

 

[MangoTango]

I would ask what the parasite is. Does she eat leaves at all?

okay I can probably call and ask. yes she does eat leaves. I have pothos in her enclosure. are the two behaviors related ?

 

[kinyonga]

The relationship between the leaves and parasites is just something I’m curious about.