Female Panther

[KillBillSNYY]

My female panther hasn’t had an appetite for about two weeks now. I haven’t seen her eat in just over a week. I gave her an appetite stimulant and still haven’t seen her. She’s been drinking but has been very lethargic and closing her eyes randomly when she’s basking. Her eyes look a bit sunken. She has a substrate to lay her eggs but this will be her first clutch. She’s lost 20 grams in the last 3 months but weight loss has been rapid since she slowed down eating. She has soil to lay eggs in prepped for her in her enclosure. She’s 8-9 months old so this would be her first clutch. Her poop looks a little liquidy, almost like a jelly like substance around the poop. Just curious if anyone has any idea what’s going on or has any suggestions of what I can do going forward. She gets sprayed 2-3 times a day and has access to a dripper.

 

[Lindasjackson]

Hi and welcome! Have you ever had her stool checked for parasites?

 

[Lindasjackson]

https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/how-to-ask-for-help.66/ Can you please fill this how to ask for help form out and we’ll go over it with you and see what we can figure out. I’ll also tag some people with panther experience in to help. You should also go ahead and book an appointment with an experienced chameleon vet

 

[Lindasjackson]

@kinyonga @MissSkittles

 

[KillBillSNYY]

Hi and welcome! Have you ever had her stool checked for parasites?

I didn’t but we gave her a dewormer the other day

 

[Lindasjackson]

Ok, can you fill out the form I gave the link to and then paste it here? This will give us an insight as to how to help you and your cham

 

[Lindasjackson]

Do you think she’s carrying eggs or are you referring to the lay bin and things just because she’s female?

 

[KillBillSNYY]

Do you think she’s carrying eggs or are you referring to the lay bin and things just because she’s female?

I believe she’s carrying eggs and provided a bin with soil for her to lay inside her enclosure

 

[Lindasjackson]

What kind of soil? Does it have perlite in it or any fertilizers?

 

[Lindasjackson]

Washed play sand that’s just moist enough to hold a tunnel is what we recommend here. That way it doesn’t have anything in it that could cause damage or toxins or impaction to her.

 

[MissSkittles]

I didn’t but we gave her a dewormer the other day

Hi. Had you taken her to a vet? What was she given?

 

[Lindasjackson]

Thank you miss skittles!!! I’m out of my depth here!

 

[Beman]

Along with what @MissSkittles is asking about the dewormer above. Please post pictures of the entire enclosure lighting down. Also of her lay bin.

Please fill out the form below in detail by copy and pasting it into your response. The more detailed the better. They should never lose weight in the first year like that. That indicates that something is really wrong. This is their growing period so a weight loss is very telling that there is an issue. Typically I would first look to getting a fecal done to ensure it is not a parasite issue. Giving a dewormer without doing a fecal is pointless. Not all meds work for all parasites. With a female the only time you should see a large weight loss is after laying eggs. So being as how this has been going on for awhile we need to cover all aspects of husbandry to ensure we do not miss something.


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.

 

[KillBillSNYY]

Female Ambilobe Panther Chameleon roughly 11 months old and she’s been in my care for 7 months now.

I try to take her out about once a week but if I notice her getting stressed in any way I put her back immediately. But she never displayed stress before I noticed her symptoms. Now when I try to handle her she hisses and tries to bite so I stopped altogether.

Feeding she gets between 10-15 crickets dusted with calcium every week (depending how many she ate that week) She will get 3-4 hornworms undusted about every two weeks.

She gets sprayed with distilled water once in the morning and once before bed. Spray for about a minute each time. Also has access to a water dripper.

She has not been tested for parasites and her poop has a jelly like consistency. She came from a very reputable breeder so no health concerns prior to me getting her.

Cage type:
Medium Repibreeze with plenty of vines and plants to feel safe and climb. She has a vine that leads up to her basking spot.

Lighting:
T-5 18” terrarium hood with 5.0 UVB bulb
60 watt bulb about 5-6 inches away from her bask spot for heating. Kept between 75-85 degrees F at all times except at night drops to 75 F or so.

There are no live plants currently in their. In her lay bin she has 7-8” of EcoEarth (coconut fiber). Cage is located in my room on a table a few feet from the floor. There is a heating duct a few feet away and I’m from New York so now the heat in my house is always on.

 

[Flick boy]

Hi and welcome @KillBillSNYY I also have a female panther. What are your humidity levels. Imo I would mist longer like 2to 3 minutes and I have my dripper running all day ,going of food is one thing but dehydration is another, filling out a husbandry form ASAP and pictures will help a lot , also see if you can send a fecal to your vet for a parasite test

 

[Lindasjackson]

That poo does not look right at all. Should have a firm brown part and then a cream or white unrated with or without a orange tinged tip. I still think she needs to see a vet.

 

[MissSkittles]

I still don’t understand what you gave her for a dewormer or why. I’ll go thru your husbandry, but will take me a few.

 

[MissSkittles]

Putting my feedback in red.
Female Ambilobe Panther Chameleon roughly 11 months old and she’s been in my care for 7 months now.

I try to take her out about once a week but if I notice her getting stressed in any way I put her back immediately. But she never displayed stress before I noticed her symptoms. Now when I try to handle her she hisses and tries to bite so I stopped altogether.

Feeding she gets between 10-15 crickets This is a bit much. For her age she should be getting about 4 feeders, every other day or even 3 days a week. However, not knowing where she is in her laying cycle/egg production, I hesitate to tell you to decrease her feeding so drastically right now. More on this later. dusted with calcium every week You should be dusting with a phosphorus free calcium without D3 at every feeding. Then for one feeding every week you’ll alternate between a calcium with D3 and a multivitamin. You can get a combo multivitamin/D3 like Reptivite with D3 instead and use that one feeding every other week. (depending how many she ate that week) She will get 3-4 hornworms undusted about every two weeks.

She gets sprayed with distilled water once in the morning and once before bed. Spray for about a minute each time. Also has access to a water dripper.

She has not been tested for parasites and her poop has a jelly like consistency. If she wasn’t tested, why was she given a dewormer? Those can be very hard on the kidneys and may not be needed or useful. There are many different types of parasites and only a fecal will show what is there and the vet to determine how best to treat it. She came from a very reputable breeder so no health concerns prior to me getting her.

Cage type:
Medium Repibreeze Bigger is better. I keep my females in a 2x2x4’ enclosure and they use the space. with plenty of vines and plants to feel safe and climb. She has a vine that leads up to her basking spot. Adding lots of live plants will definitely be a huge bonus.

Lighting:
T-5 18” terrarium hood with 5.0 UVB bulb
60 watt bulb about 5-6 inches away from her bask spot for heating. Kept between 75-85 degrees F at all times except at night drops to 75 F or so. If you can bring her basking temp down a few degrees closer to 80, that would be better.

There are no live plants currently in their. In her lay bin she has 7-8” of EcoEarth (coconut fiber). Coco coir isn’t good for a lay bin as it can’t hold a firm tunnel without collapse. Washed play sand is a much better choice, moistened to form a solid tunnel. The bin should be at least 12”wide and long and depth isn’t as important as long as it’ll hold 6” depth of the sand. The deeper you make it, the harder she has to work to dig as they do dig all the way to the bottom. Cage is located in my room on a table a few feet from the floor. There is a heating duct a few feet away and I’m from New York so now the heat in my house is always on.
What is your humidity? Ideal daytime range is between 50-70%. As you don’t have a big enough temp drop at night, you want humidity to stay in that range. Adding live plants will help keep humidity stable.
I would really advocate for a vet visit with a fecal check just to rule out parasites.
You could add more variety to her diet and make sure to keep your feeders well fed and healthy to provide better nutrition to your pretty girl. Attaching feeder and gutloading sheets for you. My favorite feeders are silkworms and roaches and I’ve been told by a vet that they are the most nutritious. I’ll add about egg laying/female care in a separate reply.

 

[bbyoda]

You got great advice from @MissSkittles. I agree something is going on with the poo and parasites are a possibility. But you need to do a proper fecal test to know the actual parasite to get the right medicine. The medicine for pinworms is different than for coccidia. You also have to be diligent about reinfection with a parasite like coccidia.

 

[MissSkittles]

The whole process of producing and laying eggs takes a great deal out of our ladies and shortens their lives considerably. Because of this, we try to reduce their egg production thru lower basking temps and reduced feedings. I have 2 veiled girls that this has worked extremely well on. I keep their basking temps no higher than 80f and feed them 3-4 feeders (plus occasional treats) 3 days a week. I first started this after they had laid a clutch of eggs. Since Feb/Mar of 2020, one has laid once and the other not at all. I believe this technique should work for a lady panther as well. @kinyonga, can you confirm please?
Always keep the lay bin in her enclosure and ready as it saves the stress of trying to figure out when she needs it. Once she enters it and starts digging, she must have total privacy. If she sees anyone watching, she may stop digging and could become egg bound. She might dig a few spots until she likes one. Stick with your usual lights on/off schedule. She may sleep in her tunnel. It takes 1-2 days usually and when she’s done, she’ll have completely covered her tunnels and be sitting on a branch, dirty, thin and hungry. Feed and hydrate her well for a few days and then start the reduced feedings.