mgjohnson2552
New Member
Two weeks ago I brought home a 4 month old, female Panther chameleon from a local breeder. This was my first Chameleon, but I have kept other small animals (amphibians and reptiles) for 10+ years. For the first two weeks, she was very active and healthy. I fed her crickets daily, and she would consume 5-10. I dusted the crickets with vitamin and calcium +D3 supplements as directed. Each day I would see her drink water off the leaves beneath the drip system. I would do daily mistings, and one heavy misting just before nighttime. The environmental conditions of the terrarium seemed to be within their appropriate ranges. Temperatures in the mid 70s during the day, 60's at night. Daytime humidity levels around 40 to 50%, with around 80% at night. Two separate basking areas (one ceramic heating element and one halogen basking light), some shaded areas, and a UVB 5.0 bulb above the screen. The terrarium was a 55 gallon glass aquarium, but with a screen lid and a second level to allow additional climbing space (see picture below). I went with a glass enclosure for humidity and heat retention, since it gets cold where I live (Illinois). A small fan ran during the day (located outside the screen) to increase ventilation, but turned off during the night to allow for humidity increase. The fan and lights are all on a timer.
On Wednesday, I observed the usual routine. She hunted down and consumed about 5 crickets early afternoon, and I watched her drank some water from the drip system. Her coloration seemed good (see picture attached), and she seemed active. When I checked on her that evening, however, things were different. I found her sleeping on a large, mid-level branch, which was the first time I had observed this. It was unusually early for her to be sleeping (I had never observed her sleep during the day). Every night since I had brought her home, she had slept in the same location: a small branch in the upper corner of the tank. But now she was somewhere much lower. I figured I would let her sleep, and I checked on her later that evening when I do a routine misting just before the lights go out. She had not moved, and was still asleep. Her eyes also appeared slightly sunken in. At this point, I was obviously concerned, but it had only been a few hours (4) since these behaviors began, so I thought I'd see how she was doing in the morning.
This picture was taken Wednesday early afternoon. This picture was taken the following morning, after I relocated her only a branch.
The next morning, Thursday, I found her on the bottom of the terrarium. Her arms were gripping a branch, but her bottom half was touching the ground. She was clearly in very bad shape. I picked her up carefully. This was the first time I had handled her since putting her in the enclosure two weeks prior. I don't like handling the animals I keep because it induces stress. She hissed when I picked her up, and appeared only able to grip things with her front arms. Her back legs and tail seemed totally limp. I relocated her to a large branch, a little closer to her basking area. Her coloration was dark, brown, and unhealthy looking. Every now and then I would observe her take large breathes. I called the breeder that morning to get his advice. Per his instruction I gently felt her belly to see if there were any eggs (even though we both thought it was way to early for her to be gravid). There were clearly no eggs. His only guess was that she might have sustained an injury during a fall. Within about 2 hours, she was dead.
I'm trying to figure out what went wrong. If the issue was environmental, I would have expected a more gradual decline in health. This was sudden and catastrophic. Within a span of less than 18 hours, she went from active and eating to half immobile, and then dead. Could a fall really have caused such a mortal injury? It was almost as if she had broken her back, since her back legs and tail were totally limp. I am looking for an explanation. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks, Matt
On Wednesday, I observed the usual routine. She hunted down and consumed about 5 crickets early afternoon, and I watched her drank some water from the drip system. Her coloration seemed good (see picture attached), and she seemed active. When I checked on her that evening, however, things were different. I found her sleeping on a large, mid-level branch, which was the first time I had observed this. It was unusually early for her to be sleeping (I had never observed her sleep during the day). Every night since I had brought her home, she had slept in the same location: a small branch in the upper corner of the tank. But now she was somewhere much lower. I figured I would let her sleep, and I checked on her later that evening when I do a routine misting just before the lights go out. She had not moved, and was still asleep. Her eyes also appeared slightly sunken in. At this point, I was obviously concerned, but it had only been a few hours (4) since these behaviors began, so I thought I'd see how she was doing in the morning.
This picture was taken Wednesday early afternoon. This picture was taken the following morning, after I relocated her only a branch.
The next morning, Thursday, I found her on the bottom of the terrarium. Her arms were gripping a branch, but her bottom half was touching the ground. She was clearly in very bad shape. I picked her up carefully. This was the first time I had handled her since putting her in the enclosure two weeks prior. I don't like handling the animals I keep because it induces stress. She hissed when I picked her up, and appeared only able to grip things with her front arms. Her back legs and tail seemed totally limp. I relocated her to a large branch, a little closer to her basking area. Her coloration was dark, brown, and unhealthy looking. Every now and then I would observe her take large breathes. I called the breeder that morning to get his advice. Per his instruction I gently felt her belly to see if there were any eggs (even though we both thought it was way to early for her to be gravid). There were clearly no eggs. His only guess was that she might have sustained an injury during a fall. Within about 2 hours, she was dead.
I'm trying to figure out what went wrong. If the issue was environmental, I would have expected a more gradual decline in health. This was sudden and catastrophic. Within a span of less than 18 hours, she went from active and eating to half immobile, and then dead. Could a fall really have caused such a mortal injury? It was almost as if she had broken her back, since her back legs and tail were totally limp. I am looking for an explanation. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks, Matt
