Head up after eating

spoogfps

Member
Chameleon Info:
  • Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?: 11 month old Male Ambanja Panther
  • Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?: Few times a month
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? : Silkworms, Dubias, Super worms, BSFL - 2-3 every other day
  • Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?: Calcium without D3 every feeding, multi-vitamin 2x a month
  • Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?: Auto-mister 30 min before lights on and 30 min after lights off
  • Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?: healthy - tested 2 times since I've had him
  • History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.: previous RI - treated

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?: Dragon strand hybrid
  • Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?: Arcadia 6% t5 HO, plant LED, 60w heat lamp - 12hrs on 12hrs off except heat lamp goes off in the afternoon
  • Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? Basking: 84-86F, ambient 75-79F during the day - mid 60sF at night
  • Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?: 35-45% during the day, 70-90% at night (hard to keep consistent where I live without over-misting)
  • Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?: Peace lily plant and zz plant
  • 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?: The highest point of the enclosure is about 7ft on a table in the living room (my gf and I don't go through there too often though)
  • Location - Where are you geographically located?: California

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.:

My panther, Thrawn, tilted his head up almost completely vertically after eating no matter how big or small the bugs are ever since I've had him. He had a nasty RI in the past that has been fully treated. He's had 3 bacterial culture tests in total so far. First, when we confirmed he was sick. Second, after the treatment. Third, after he continued tilting his head up every time he ate. The last two came back healthy so I am fairly positive he does not have any respiratory issues. Typically, after he swallows a bug, he tilts his head all the way up and just sits there for about 5 minutes. It is sometimes accompanied by swallowing motions and almost like biting (not sure how else to explain that last part lol). I originally thought this was due to the RI, but he continues doing it, to this day. I asked the vet about it and he's not really sure. Has anyone else dealt with this before? I saw a post on Reddit from someone who had a similar issue and someone commented that their throat could possibly be smaller than normal, causing trouble swallowing. Though, I don't trust the chameleon Reddit very much.
 
Yes, it was Hammy. There’s should be a thread here about it.
Wow, I just read through that thread! I didn't know that was a thing, I'll bring that up to the vet and see what he thinks. Those 3d scans are insane by the way!!!!
 
Wow, I just read through that thread! I didn't know that was a thing, I'll bring that up to the vet and see what he thinks. Those 3d scans are insane by the way!!!!

He went to the human hospital for those scans. We had hoped it would stay small and he could live a fairly normal life but it didn’t work out that way and we lost him about a year or so after the CT.
 
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He went to the human hospital for those scans. We had hoped it would stay small and he could live a fairly normal life but it didn’t work out that way and we lost him about a year or so after the CT.
I'm so sorry to hear that. Is there a way to get this diagnosed without a CT scan? Also, what symptoms was he showing specifically? If this was the case, how would I know it's getting worse for Thrawn? Sorry for all the questions I'm just worried.
 
@jannb didn’t one of yours (Hammy?) have a stricture in his esophagus?
Your husbandry looks spot on with the exception of daytime humidity being a bit low and I’m not sure about the safety of any lilies.
I've been so paranoid about him getting another RI so I try to keep it low during the day. He seems well hydrated and his poop looks super healthy. As for the peace lily, I read somewhere that the toxicity levels are the same as pothos plants so they should be fairly safe for panthers. However, the flowers that sprout from the plant can cause issues in mammals but nothing concrete for reptiles. As soon as I see a flower start to grow, I cut it off just to avoid any potential issues and it hasn't caused any issues for him as far as I can tell.
 
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