Pearl Fields
Avid Member
currently I have a fungus gnat problem that probably originated from my chameleon's live plants, since that was where the majority were flying around at first. Basically, I think the problem happened because we recently (like a few months ago) rearranged my chameleons enclosure and right now there are less plants then there used to be (though soon enough I plan to put more in), which perhaps means that there is less of a canopy, so when the mistking goes off, it is REALLY soaking the plant pots. It normally goes off twice a day for like a minute and 10-15 ish seconds, and it has been that way for a long time with no issues.
Anyways though, we needed to do something to control the gnat population a bit cuz it was crazy. Ive read that fungus gnats are pretty much harmless, but they were stressing me out since my chameleon lives in my room lol. So for the past 3ish days weve been using soapy water on the plant pot soil, and a little bit of hydrogen peroxide mainly in the bottom saucer to be absorbed and kill off some of the gnat larvae. I also put in 2 shallow dishes with some vinegar/soapy water mixture to catch a few flies (which is sort of working) at night, because then my chameleon wont step in them.
In the meantime, while doing this, Ive had the mistking off to avoid drenching the plant soil even further. Ive been spraying just the leaves a couple times per day, but a lot less than what he is used to. I checked on him tonight, and his eyes look a litttle more sunken then most nights. I am wondering if the reduced water means he isnt drinking as much and is dehydrated? ALSO, he has fallen (short distances) a couple times in the past few days-last week. Im not sure if thats cuz I havent been feeding him as much, cuz I sort of ran out of food and didnt buy some more in time because im super busy with school stuff, or because he could be sick or something, though he doesnt act it. (His behavior has been normal.)
Do you think he is sick though? And could the fungus gnats make him sick? Also, if he is dehydrated, does anyone have any suggestions on what I could do to give him more water without drenching the plant pots further? Sorry this is a mess Im really tired and just kind of worried.
I attached pictures of his current setup, his eyes, and the floor with a vinegar trap thing.
Anyways though, we needed to do something to control the gnat population a bit cuz it was crazy. Ive read that fungus gnats are pretty much harmless, but they were stressing me out since my chameleon lives in my room lol. So for the past 3ish days weve been using soapy water on the plant pot soil, and a little bit of hydrogen peroxide mainly in the bottom saucer to be absorbed and kill off some of the gnat larvae. I also put in 2 shallow dishes with some vinegar/soapy water mixture to catch a few flies (which is sort of working) at night, because then my chameleon wont step in them.
In the meantime, while doing this, Ive had the mistking off to avoid drenching the plant soil even further. Ive been spraying just the leaves a couple times per day, but a lot less than what he is used to. I checked on him tonight, and his eyes look a litttle more sunken then most nights. I am wondering if the reduced water means he isnt drinking as much and is dehydrated? ALSO, he has fallen (short distances) a couple times in the past few days-last week. Im not sure if thats cuz I havent been feeding him as much, cuz I sort of ran out of food and didnt buy some more in time because im super busy with school stuff, or because he could be sick or something, though he doesnt act it. (His behavior has been normal.)
Do you think he is sick though? And could the fungus gnats make him sick? Also, if he is dehydrated, does anyone have any suggestions on what I could do to give him more water without drenching the plant pots further? Sorry this is a mess Im really tired and just kind of worried.
I attached pictures of his current setup, his eyes, and the floor with a vinegar trap thing.
