Help, My 4yo. Veiled Male Vomited???

[lilstroopy]

Hey so im sorry this is super rushed but i have no reptile vet available near me and im pretty much on my own so heres the info, i need help DESPERATELY.

Hes a 4 year old male (veiled), ive had him since he was 2 months old, he has a history of dehydration and i currently have to "hand feed" him water with a sprayer and a syringe. He does not like to be handled at all but i can touch him a little, never take him out of the cage. I feed him gut loaded crickets and mealworms about every 2 days, never too many (although i did guve him quite a few large mealies this morning when i fed him, all of which were bound together in a partially digested lump on a leaf). He gets 2 nice basking spots and the rest of the cage if he gets too warm, somewhat low humidity lately because of the weather but ive tried my best to keep up with that, he also had a uvb bulb that the vet cleared i forgot the specific type off the top of my head. I use a vitamin supplement too so vitamins arent an issue. I mist the cage every morning and afternoon by hand but i try my best to soak the plants (although like i mentioned he refuses to drink on his own anymore).
His POOP has been concerning me for weeks, its very small slivers instead of the bigger healthier poops he used to have, which i guess means hes not getting enough food or theres some sort of obstruction. Hes in a screen cage 2x2x4' and has lots of room, he doesnt appear shaky on the branches and his body seems muscular, although i worry about his hydration. ANY ADVICE IS VERY WELCOME, THANK YOU.

 

[CamrynTheCham22]

I think the mealworms are the problem, or at least contributing. They are known to cause impaction, which can lead to a bunch of digestive issues. I say to lay off the mealworms for a while and see how he deals with it. If he refuses to drink on his own, it might be because he is a shy drinker. My chameleon is like that. She will never drink in front of me for some reason, but sometimes I will walk into the room and catch her swallowing after a mist. I suggest you get an automatic mist system. Two times a day might not be enough for him, especially if he is a growing boy. If he doesn't allow you to handle him, he might not want to drink in front of you either.
Stop feeding him mealworms and buy an automatic mister. Those are my suggestions so far. Can you send a picture of him please? Also a picture of his enclosure.

 

[lilstroopy]

I think the mealworms are the problem, or at least contributing. They are known to cause impaction, which can lead to a bunch of digestive issues. I say to lay off the mealworms for a while and see how he deals with it. If he refuses to drink on his own, it might be because he is a shy drinker. My chameleon is like that. She will never drink in front of me for some reason, but sometimes I will walk into the room and catch her swallowing after a mist. I suggest you get an automatic mist system. Two times a day might not be enough for him, especially if he is a growing boy. If he doesn't allow you to handle him, he might not want to drink in front of you either.
Stop feeding him mealworms and buy an automatic mister. Those are my suggestions so far. Can you send a picture of him please? Also a picture of his enclosure.

Thank you so much, and yes heres pics of everything-

 

[lilstroopy]

oh and hes been shedding really slowly and it wont really seem to come off his spine without help.... so its evident hes dehydrated at this point

 

[Scottsquatch]

Mealworms are notorious for causing impactions and they are not nutritious at all. I would switch to Super worms as they are much softer and easier to digest. I agree with the misting system as well. You can get a basic mist king for 129, so that' not too terrible. Also, I would switch to a linear UVB bulb, they are a superior bulb over the compact fluorescents. The only other thing I would suggest is to get more cover near the top of the cage. This isn't a must, but I'd bet he would feel much more at ease with more available cover. Keep us posted and good luck!

 

[lilstroopy]

Mealworms are notorious for causing impactions and they are not nutritious at all. I would switch to Super worms as they are much softer and easier to digest. I agree with the misting system as well. You can get a basic mist king for 129, so that' not too terrible. Also, I would switch to a linear UVB bulb, they are a superior bulb over the compact fluorescents. The only other thing I would suggest is to get more cover near the top of the cage. This isn't a must, but I'd bet he would feel much more at ease with more available cover. Keep us posted and good luck!

I greatly appreciate your fast response, I will definitely keep you posted, thank you so much

 

[Chompingreens]

Definitely lay off of the mealworms giving him an upset stomach at least. Also issue with shedding could b an indication of vitamin a deficiency. I would second getting an automatic misting system that may help with shy watering might help your buddy get into a rythm of drinking without any external stresses

 

[JOSHWAH]

Hey so im sorry this is super rushed but i have no reptile vet available near me and im pretty much on my own so heres the info, i need help DESPERATELY.

Hes a 4 year old male (veiled), ive had him since he was 2 months old, he has a history of dehydration and i currently have to "hand feed" him water with a sprayer and a syringe. He does not like to be handled at all but i can touch him a little, never take him out of the cage. I feed him gut loaded crickets and mealworms about every 2 days, never too many (although i did guve him quite a few large mealies this morning when i fed him, all of which were bound together in a partially digested lump on a leaf). He gets 2 nice basking spots and the rest of the cage if he gets too warm, somewhat low humidity lately because of the weather but ive tried my best to keep up with that, he also had a uvb bulb that the vet cleared i forgot the specific type off the top of my head. I use a vitamin supplement too so vitamins arent an issue. I mist the cage every morning and afternoon by hand but i try my best to soak the plants (although like i mentioned he refuses to drink on his own anymore).
His POOP has been concerning me for weeks, its very small slivers instead of the bigger healthier poops he used to have, which i guess means hes not getting enough food or theres some sort of obstruction. Hes in a screen cage 2x2x4' and has lots of room, he doesnt appear shaky on the branches and his body seems muscular, although i worry about his hydration. ANY ADVICE IS VERY WELCOME, THANK YOU.

I think u should focus on feeding him crickets, and make sure he is hydrated, if he still is vomiting i think he has parasites.

 

[JapSolum]

not an expert on the mealworms, dont really use em. but in regards to the shedding higher humidity helps them shed so that may be a second reason for the mister.

 

[CamrynTheCham22]

Do you know why his face and casque are so puffy? That's odd. Also, you need much more foliage in the cage. You can also hang up the vines of the pothos on the walls and stuff to fill it out a little more. What are your temperatures? Especially the temperature of the basking spot/s. Are his eyes closed like that for the majority of the day? That is a red flag, if I've ever seen one. I think you should take him to and exotics vet and get everything sorted out. I think he needs a checkup.

 

[lilstroopy]

Do you know why his face and casque are so puffy? That's odd. Also, you need much more foliage in the cage. You can also hang up the vines of the pothos on the walls and stuff to fill it out a little more. What are your temperatures? Especially the temperature of the basking spot/s. Are his eyes closed like that for the majority of the day? That is a red flag, if I've ever seen one. I think you should take him to and exotics vet and get everything sorted out. I think he needs a checkup.

The last time the vet was available they gave him emergency fluids bc he refused to even drink from my hand sprayer of the syringe. They didnt say anything about the puffiness of his face or casque, so i really have no clue what could be causing that. Hes alert all day, that pic was taken right before his lights were going off so he was sleepy. My temperatures are around 80 degrees F for the basking spot and room temp (about 72 ) in the other areas. lower down its around 70

 

[lilstroopy]

hes had a burn in the past from the basking spot being too hot so i try to keep it around 80 degrees. the last time the tip of his veil came off during a shed which frightened me however the vet said its nothing to worry about so thats why his veil isnt as large as other 4yo. male chams

 

[Graves923]

Are you gutloading his feeders? gutloading adds to the nutritional value a bit along with a multivitamin twice a month. Lack of these can cause trouble with shedding in some cases.

 

[lilstroopy]

Are you gutloading his feeders? gutloading adds to the nutritional value a bit along with a multivitamin twice a month. Lack of these can cause trouble with shedding in some cases.

Yes, i gutload his crickets and as of late i have been using a syringe-fed powder mix food (from the vet a while back) that i make with water and fluker's vitamin drops for reptiles so i am definitely trying to get his vitamin and mineral intake back up!!

 

[lilstroopy]

UPDATE: He has had very deliberate mistings the past few days at least 8 times a day to ensure hes getting the humidity he needs, and i have also been syringe-feeding him all the water that he can take safely so his last urate was perfectly white! His feces are still very weak from lack of food intake so I brought out the food replacement that the vet gave us back in late 2017 for his last dehydration issue. I essentially just mix the powder in with a little water and some Fluker's Liquid Vitamin (A, C, D, etc) for Reptiles so hopefully he will improve shedding-wise as well. (I gave him around 2.7 mL both today and yesterday of the food replacement). Thank you all for the responses, I am taking everything into consideration and we are also looking into a water mister Again, i cant express how grateful i am for this amazing community!! Until the next update, wish us luck!!

 

[CamrynTheCham22]

Keep us updated with pics! I hope everything goes well with your cham. Good luck!