holding tongue out. anyone know what this means. PIC

[RePtAr11]

not to sure whats going on with this guy.. just noticed him doing it about a few hours ago. i have seen him sit around maybe regulating his temps before, but never sitting around with his tongue out. just wondering if anyone knows what this means or if its ok.
thanks.
kc

 

[RAFASTAR23]

Would you please give us more info. Set up- lights-temps-furniture- etc.. Fill the "how to ask for help" questions. Maybe there is a problem we can help you identify. Chams may open their mouth and keep it open when they are over-heating. But it maybe something else,...but need more info.

 

[Elizadolots]

That doesn't look like "gaping to regulate heat" ....

Definitely fill out the form and maybe see if you can get pictures that cover more of the habitat.

 

[RePtAr11]

setup and a lil info and pic of setup..

basking light temps are between 84 & 86 and middle temps towards the bottom are lower by 10 degrees. eating about 12 to 15 crickets a day well gut loaded with romaine, oranges. potatoes. flukers calcium cricket food gel water. just pretty much ur normal basic setup for a veiled chameleon. humidity from 40 to 60 %. Eats at a few plants.But are all safe. Really do not know what u would like to know. But there is a lil info. o yeah and he gets his vit A through gut load from oranges and kewi. And i give him calcium with d3 twice a month on a few feeders.

 

[Elizadolots]

Is that a basking bulb to the side? I've never seen that before.

You'll be amazed at the level of detailed information people here will want to know.

 

[Samcham1]

you should put the basking area near the top by the uvb. If he wants to bas he has to be way down and he is not getting uvb as he should be with in 12" of the uvb i believe. And if he needs uvb, he cant regulate his temps properly while in range of the uvb because the basking area is so low. Unless you have another basking bulb on top, but if you do i think you should get rid of the lower one.

 

[RePtAr11]

lol sorry not very informative.. that is a cfl grow light or just the 6500 k light not much heat at all. o and sorry guys also he does have a basking halogen 50 watt up there also by his uvb linear fluorescent then a repti glo 5.0 uvb cfl way up top maybe not even enough to matter. then the cfl in the middle is like i said the 6500k grow light for the plants.

 

[Samcham1]

Cool. I think this is the info they are looking for. Hopefully your cham is alright, but answering these questions will help the more experience keepers get a better idea of what might be wrong. Good Luck.

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
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?
Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

 

[RePtAr11]

chameleon info

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - 4 month old vieled chameleon. he has been in his enclosure since feb 6th 11

Handling - i handle my chameleon maybe twice a week for 10 min at a time.

Feeding - i am feeding crickets and supers, and tiny dubias once a week. gutloaded with carrots potatoes,oranges. romaine and high calcium flukers cricket food. about 12 feeders a day maybe less.and 1 super worm a day along with cricket. morning, and late afternoon when i give him food

Supplements - well i have been thinking he gets his vit C from oranges from gut load. and he gets a few well dusted feeders twice a month with calcium with d3 Flukers phosphorus free.w d3 and i feed the crickets high calcium cricket food, Flukers is the brand.

Watering - For water i use a drip i made with a 1/2 gallon an hour tip runs for 3 hours a day, doesnt really drop 1/2 gallon an hour. ic him drink every so often. i mist at least 4 times a day humidity around 40 at top and steady 50% middle bottom.

Fecal Description - he has never been tested.. and his poop is every day if not every other day. its dark brown to black and sometimes i see his pee. white, sometimes yellow tan but hard to find that part.

History - he has some shedding left on his back that has been there for almost 2 weeks.
Cage Info:zoo med screen cage

Cage Type - 18/18/36 tall vines, plants, perches, cage is wire mesh nice ventalation.

Lighting - lights are on at 9:30am and off at 9:30pm. lighting brand for linear tube is a t5 24 inch R zilla uvb with r zilla fixture with reflectors. along with halogen 50 watt basking light r zilla as well. then have a 5.0 zoo med repti glo cfl uvb light about 12 inches from any perches. then my grow light 6500k cfl for plants in middle


Temperature - i use 2 digi meters for humidity and heat. top temps are 80s with basking area at high 80s. bottom temps are always 10 degrees lower. then he uses the grow light for a lower basking temp of high 70s. and then his nighttime temps are a good 10 degrees lower at night. at about 69 to 72 no higher.

Humidity -my humidity drops fast towards the top but mainly at 40 if lucky, shouts to 50 when i spray. then mid to bottom % is at 50 then when sprayed..75% i use a mister spray bottle and drip. also live plants.

Plants - i use hoya carnosa, sheff dwarf. pothos, and had a glacier hedera in there but think those are bad..

Placement - My cage is in the living room. a few people here and there. The top is 6 foot from the floor.


Location - Im in the usa Dallas t.x

Current Problem - Chameleon leaving tongue out while sitting around.

 

[kinyonga]

It might be the beginning of a calcium issue...but its only a guess. To be sure you will need to have a vet run some tests.

Exposure to proper UVB, appropriate temperatures, supplements, a supply of well-fed/gutloaded insects, water and an appropriate cage set-up are all important for the well-being of your chameleon.

Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.

Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.

Since many of the feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects just before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium).

If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).

Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite.)

Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)

Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.

Here are some good sites for you to read...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/

 

[Psi]

If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it

Dusting twice monthly with Flukers Calcium with D3 is perfectly fine.
It's HALF the amount of D3 that many people dust with monthly.

Nothing wrong with that.

 

[Hoj]

what about vit a, from what i know a lack of vit a can cause tounge issues, as well i have seen my cham get crickets stuck in his mouth maybe there is one blocking him from fully retracting his tounge.

just a shot

hoj

 

[RePtAr11]

thanks

he everyone that helped.. just want to thanks for the input.
i think im going to move his uvb and basking branch a lil higher so he can get both uvb and heat without having to go back and fourth to regulate heat and uvb. its not that it is down farther its just i have the branch a lil angled. so that he goes higher up it to get closer to the uvb and then a lil back down it to get the heat.. not sure if i should make it a lil even or just keep it like it is.