I just fed my chameleon yesterday and today he looks extremely skinny.

[ThomasFord]

Can someone explain to my why he's so skinny rn. Should i be worried? He ate about the most hes ever eaten, about 8 juvenile crickets. Is a parasite eating his food inside of him? I don.t want to feed him every day because i dont want his bowl movements to be too big and cause a prolapse. Please help.

 

[Roger.bowen]

He might not be expanding his ribs and appear small, just keep an eye on him. See if he will puff up.

If you are worried about a parasite, the best thing you could do is, take a piece of its feces to a vet for an examination

 

[Roger.bowen]

Mine has done the same thing

 

[Roger.bowen]

Mine has done the same thing
View attachment 158753

But then he puffed up

 

[ThomasFord]

Mine has done the same thing
View attachment 158753

hm do they do that because they see us? Btw your cham is beautiful!

 

[Roger.bowen]

hm do they do that because they see us?

I'm not too sure, maybe just when they are moving around, they will puff up when you get close to them

 

[ThomasFord]

I'm not too sure, maybe just when they are moving around, they will puff up when you get close to them

oh okay, maybe so they are lighter so the branch doesn't collapse, idk.

 

[Roger.bowen]

oh okay, maybe so they are lighter so the branch doesn't collapse, idk.

I'm not sure but his arms look nice and plump still so he could just be not expanding himself

 

[ThomasFord]

I'm not sure but his arms look nice and plump still so he could just be not expanding himself

true, true, thanks for the reply!

 

[Carlton]

View attachment 158752



Can someone explain to my why he's so skinny rn. Should i be worried? He ate about the most hes ever eaten, about 8 juvenile crickets. Is a parasite eating his food inside of him? I don.t want to feed him every day because i dont want his bowl movements to be too big and cause a prolapse. Please help.

No, he's just being a cham. They can really flex their ribcage a lot, so depending on their posture at that moment they can look skinny, especially fast growing juveniles (think gangly teenager). The better way to judge their body condition is to look at the base of the tail. It should be oval from top to bottom in cross section. If you see every tendon and muscle at the base of the tail he's a bit skinny. If the tail is round, not oval, he's too fat. And, BTW, feeding soft bodied insects and keeping well hydrated will do as much to prevent constipation and straining leading to a prolapse.

 

[Carlton]

I'm not too sure, maybe just when they are moving around, they will puff up when you get close to them

They tend to puff up to make themselves look bigger or more impressive to an intruder. They also inflate themselves if they fall.

 

[ThomasFord]

No, he's just being a cham. They can really flex their ribcage a lot, so depending on their posture at that moment they can look skinny, especially fast growing juveniles (think gangly teenager). The better way to judge their body condition is to look at the base of the tail. It should be oval from top to bottom in cross section. If you see every tendon and muscle at the base of the tail he's a bit skinny. If the tail is round, not oval, he's too fat. And, BTW, feeding soft bodied insects and keeping well hydrated will do as much to prevent constipation and straining leading to a prolapse.

oh alright, i mist extremely fequently and he doesnt look fat so im good

 

[LindsayG]

View attachment 158752



Can someone explain to my why he's so skinny rn. Should i be worried? He ate about the most hes ever eaten, about 8 juvenile crickets. Is a parasite eating his food inside of him? I don.t want to feed him every day because i dont want his bowl movements to be too big and cause a prolapse. Please help.

He looks pretty young to be feeding only every other day some crickets. Have you tried other feeders? I would be feeding him every day especially if you're worried about his weight. If you feed him juicy worms along with hard bodied feeders and keep him hydrated you shouldn't really have to worry about a prolapse. Unless he's had an issue with that before? I feed my guy daily and he makes some massive poos sometimes and I've never had a problem.

 

[ThomasFord]

He looks pretty young to be feeding only every other day some crickets. Have you tried other feeders? I would be feeding him every day especially if you're worried about his weight. If you feed him juicy worms along with hard bodied feeders and keep him hydrated you shouldn't really have to worry about a prolapse. Unless he's had an issue with that before? I feed my guy daily and he makes some massive poos sometimes and I've never had a problem.

I've fed him dubias, and ive tried mealworms, but the mealworms didnt last long before all 100 died so now im onto crickets, i gutload them with fruits and vegetables and Kai likes to chase em down im looking into silk worms because those are good for putting weight on him, hes an active guy.

 

[LindsayG]

I've fed him dubias, and ive tried mealworms, but the mealworms didnt last long before all 100 died so now im onto crickets, i gutload them with fruits and vegetables and Kai likes to chase em down im looking into silk worms because those are good for putting weight on him, hes an active guy.

Dubias and superworms are good hard bodied feeders. I feed those both to my cham. I also feed him hornworms, which he loves!, and butterworms, waxworms (occasionally). I've wanted to try silkworms but no one ever seems to have any. So long as you have a good variety he should be good.

 

[alphakenc]

I've fed him dubias, and ive tried mealworms, but the mealworms didnt last long before all 100 died so now im onto crickets, i gutload them with fruits and vegetables and Kai likes to chase em down im looking into silk worms because those are good for putting weight on him, hes an active guy.

U can also get a food and weight measurement scale,this way u can keep his weight measure in progress,its easy to tell if he is gaining weight or not,keep on feeding him the gutloaded feeder n watch him grow in time,a fecal test for the vet will make sure if he is in a great condition also.

 

[LindsayG]

U can also get a food and weight measurement scale,this way u can keep his weight measure in progress,its easy to tell if he is gaining weight or not,keep on feeding him the gutloaded feeder n watch him grow in time,a fecal test for the vet will make sure if he is in a great condition also.

This is something everyone should do I think. Instead of trying to figure out their weight just by eyeballing it, you can get an exact measurement and keep records. Just know, don't try sticking them into a bowl on the scale lol, because it doesn't work. Trust me. They'll just cling to your hand.

 

[alphakenc]

This is something everyone should do I think. Instead of trying to figure out their weight just by eyeballing it, you can get an exact measurement and keep records. Just know, don't try sticking them into a bowl on the scale lol, because it doesn't work. Trust me. They'll just cling to your hand.

Lol,I usually use a basket with some perching stick for the larger cham ,put the cham in and minus the basket weight,so I know if they growing or not.

 

[LindsayG]

Lol,I usually use a basket with some perching stick for the larger cham ,put the cham in and minus the basket weight,so I know if they growing or not.

I just stick him on a small plant now and that seems to work much better

 

[Blang]

Lol,I usually use a basket with some perching stick for the larger cham ,put the cham in and minus the basket weight,so I know if they growing or not.

I use a plastic pan you put under a plant to catch water on my scale & hit the tare button to zero it out & put the cham in & weigh them!