Grey poop?

[saucydragon]

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon
  • Species: YBBB Ambilobe panther chameleon
  • Age: 3mo, have owned him for 1 month
  • Sex: Male
• Handling
  • < once a week, and only for cage maintenance reasons
• Feeding
  • Daily: 8-10 ½ inch crickets, placed in the terrarium in the morning
  • On occasion: wax worms (as a treat after/during handling)
  • Gutload: bee pollen, carrots, collard greens, zucchini, yellow squash, kale
• Supplements
  • 5-6 days a week: Rep-cal calcium with no D3
  • 2x a week: Miner-all outdoor version
  • Per 10 days: Zoo med reptivite
  • Per 15 days: Rep-cal calcium with D3
• Watering
  • Mistking
  • 5min sessions
  • 3-5x per day (changes based on trying to control humidity/temp tradeoffs in Northern cali)
• Fecal Description
  • Nice white urates
  • Started with brown (normal looking) poop, then recently has become pale greyish green
  • Has not been checked for parasites yet
• History - Got him from http://www.chameleonparadise.net/

Cage Info:

• Cage Type
  • Screen
  • 18” x 18” x 32” (reduced to 18” x 18” x 20” until he gets bigger)
• Lighting
  • UVA - 12-inch Zoo med HO T5 tube lamp
  • Heat - dual GE incandescent bulbs
• Temperature
  • Basking spot: 90F
  • Range: 90F at basking spot - mid-high 70s on the floor
  • Lowest overnight temp: 69F
  • Combination of heat probe between the basking level and the floor, and a heat gun
• Humidity
  • Ranges from 50% to 85% throughout the day based on how recently the terrarium has been misted
  • Measured with humidity probe
• Plants
  • Currently: Golden pothos (just recently switched these in this weekend to help humidity)
  • Recently: Peperomia and fake vines
• Placement
  • Currently under our loft stairwell
  • Relatively high traffic during mornings and after work
  • Not near any vents
• Location - San Francisco, CA

Current Problem:

First time chameleon owner here, second time reptile owner (first one being a lovely beardie). This is my juvenile panther, Ridley.
He has been eating, drinking, and pooping on a normal schedule, but I’ve noticed that his poops have turned a greyish-green color since last week. Note that in the pictures some of the poops had gotten "misted" prior to the photo being taken. They don't necessarily smell that much, and we got him from a breeder so we didn’t/don’t suspect parasites, but the color is definitely concerning me. Is this color normal or should I get a fecal done?
A few of the recent changes have been that we graduated him from his “baby bin” to the Exo Terra screen terrarium a couple weeks ago (which stressed him), and the crickets have gone from mostly collards/squash/bee pollen to carrots/kale/bee pollen because we temporarily ran out of the former.

 

[Matt Vanilla Gorilla]

The bottom of your cage sure looks like a incubator for bacteria to grow! The poop should be fine.

 

[salty dog]

You have a good start! Remember..chams only drink dripping water, and gutload your feeders..HUSBANDRY RESEARCH THIS WEBSITE!!!

 

[saucydragon]

Thanks for the info on the poop.
Right now there are paper towels that I switch out semi weekly with hydroballs underneath. I didn't go the granular substrate route because I was worried about impaction related risks, and I guess ironically enough bacteria growth?
Would it be better to get a mesh on top of the hydroballs instead? Or just take everything out and leave the plastic with drainage holes?

I just propogated the pothos and they're looking pretty wilty, but we were having issues keeping humidity up around here with the fake vines that offered better cover but dried out like paper. I'll look at getting better cover in there.

 

[jamest0o0]

Why are you waiting to put him into a larger cage? Even what you mention for when he's bigger is far too small. A panther should be in an absolute minimal of 2x2x4. That's still too small IMO unless you get them out frequently. They are active chameleons and like the space.

I agree on removing the paper towels. Either go with a good bio substrate or nothing at all.

 

[Thehippie]

Why are you waiting to put him into a larger cage? Even what you mention for when he's bigger is far too small. A panther should be in an absolute minimal of 2x2x4. That's still too small IMO unless you get them out frequently. They are active chameleons and like the space.

I agree on removing the paper towels. Either go with a good bio substrate or nothing at all.

I agree!!! move him sooner than later, these guys grow like weeds!!!

 

[Beman]

Hi there and welcome!
I agree on removing the paper towels and going with bare floor. You can drill holes in the bottom of the cage and have it drip out into a bucket.

I would also upgrade his cage to the 2x2x4 sooner then later. You do not need to wait on this. He will do wonderfully in a big cage.

You want to make sure that your cage is drying out completely in between misting. 5 minutes each time is a little long 3-5 times a day to get it to actually totally dry in between.

Also basking is much too hot for the little man. You want it no more then 82 degrees at this age.

Here is a link to the care sheet for https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/panther/

 

[Goose502]

I recommend a fecal. Even the greatest breeders in the world can’t totally prevent parasites. It’s not the end of the world, a healthy chameleon can co-exist with them, the problem is when they become ill or injured, even a small amount of parasites can bloom into lethal numbers. The poop doesn’t alarm me, I just recommend everyone have a fecal exam done.