cdavisrunner
New Member
Hi my name is Chris. This is my first post on here so I hope this is the right place for it. I think my veiled chameleon Matumbo may have MBD. I have some info about him, his symptoms and my setup below.
Chameleon Info:
Matumbo - Matumbo is a male veiled chameleon who is about 11 months old. I have had him for 8 months.
Handling - I take him out of his cage 1-2 times a week.
Feeding - His main food source is medium to large crickets. I also feed him super worms, and just introduced him to Dubai roaches. I make sure that there is a constant supply of feeders in his cage so that he can eat when ever he wants. I replenish this supply of feeders about once a week. I put Zoo Med's natural cricket care at the bottom of the cage for the crickets to eat. I also think the shop that I buy crickets from gut loads them (I plan to double check this when I go in next.
Supplements - The only supplement that Matumbo gets is Zoo Med Repti Calcium with D3 and I dust every set of crickets he gets. Of course some of it comes off after a few days of them wondering the cage.
Watering - I spray him and his cage with a misting bottle multiple times a day. I often see him drinking from the leaves and he will sometimes drink straight the spray bottle (he hasn't been drinking from the spray bottle directly lately). I also have a dripper in his cage.
Fecal Description - His droppings are white and brown. They are often moist but that could be from the spray bottle. My cham has not been tested for parasites.
History - I don't think there is any history worth reporting. He hasn't had any prior issues.
Cage Info:
Cage Type - He is currently in a screen cage that measures 2 feet long by 2 feet wide by 4 feet tall. He was in a screen cage that was 18 inches long by 18 inches wide by 36 inches tall.
Lighting - I am using an Exo Terra Reptile UVB 100 26W bulb (it's a CFL) and an Exo Terra infared basking spot 50W bulb. I use a 12 hour day and 12 hour night.
Temperature - The temp range is about 90 in the basking spot and 70 on the ground level. Overnight everything is about 10 degrees cooler. I use a Zoo Med digital thermometer.
Humidity - The humidity level holds at 70 to 80 percent during the day and I use an Exo Terra hydormeter to measure the humidity. To maintain the humidity I mist frequently, have a Zoo Med eco Earth substrate, and a humidifier in the cage.
Plants - No live plants but I wanted to introduce some.
Placement - My cage is located in the living room of my appartment, It's not near any fans or vents but it is a high traffic area. The cage top is about 6ft and 5in away from the floor.
Location - I live in Denver, Colorado.
Current Problem:
The main issue I have noticed is that during the day my cham is much more brown than usually, I saw him fall from a branch the other day, he is noticeably more irritable, and he just seems weaker than normal.
I'm not sure when this all started though. I was recently in a pretty bad car accident and was not able to be in the apartment with my cham for about 2 and 1/2 weeks due to my injuries. I had to rely on my roommates to take care of him while I was gone (they usually do a good but this was the longest they have had to watch him). Then when I got home, I transferred Matumbo into his new cage. For the first few days he exhibited the issues listed above which I thought could have been due to the cage change but it has been about a week now and that seems like it has been too long for it to be the cage change.
He likes to hang really close to the UVB bulb. He is eating and drinking just fine. He even turns a nice green color when he goes back to sleep. This is what is confusing me as to why he isn't acting like himself.
Thank you for your help!
Chris
P. S. I will be taking him to see a vet on Thursday at 5.
Chameleon Info:
Matumbo - Matumbo is a male veiled chameleon who is about 11 months old. I have had him for 8 months.
Handling - I take him out of his cage 1-2 times a week.
Feeding - His main food source is medium to large crickets. I also feed him super worms, and just introduced him to Dubai roaches. I make sure that there is a constant supply of feeders in his cage so that he can eat when ever he wants. I replenish this supply of feeders about once a week. I put Zoo Med's natural cricket care at the bottom of the cage for the crickets to eat. I also think the shop that I buy crickets from gut loads them (I plan to double check this when I go in next.
Supplements - The only supplement that Matumbo gets is Zoo Med Repti Calcium with D3 and I dust every set of crickets he gets. Of course some of it comes off after a few days of them wondering the cage.
Watering - I spray him and his cage with a misting bottle multiple times a day. I often see him drinking from the leaves and he will sometimes drink straight the spray bottle (he hasn't been drinking from the spray bottle directly lately). I also have a dripper in his cage.
Fecal Description - His droppings are white and brown. They are often moist but that could be from the spray bottle. My cham has not been tested for parasites.
History - I don't think there is any history worth reporting. He hasn't had any prior issues.
Cage Info:
Cage Type - He is currently in a screen cage that measures 2 feet long by 2 feet wide by 4 feet tall. He was in a screen cage that was 18 inches long by 18 inches wide by 36 inches tall.
Lighting - I am using an Exo Terra Reptile UVB 100 26W bulb (it's a CFL) and an Exo Terra infared basking spot 50W bulb. I use a 12 hour day and 12 hour night.
Temperature - The temp range is about 90 in the basking spot and 70 on the ground level. Overnight everything is about 10 degrees cooler. I use a Zoo Med digital thermometer.
Humidity - The humidity level holds at 70 to 80 percent during the day and I use an Exo Terra hydormeter to measure the humidity. To maintain the humidity I mist frequently, have a Zoo Med eco Earth substrate, and a humidifier in the cage.
Plants - No live plants but I wanted to introduce some.
Placement - My cage is located in the living room of my appartment, It's not near any fans or vents but it is a high traffic area. The cage top is about 6ft and 5in away from the floor.
Location - I live in Denver, Colorado.
Current Problem:
The main issue I have noticed is that during the day my cham is much more brown than usually, I saw him fall from a branch the other day, he is noticeably more irritable, and he just seems weaker than normal.
I'm not sure when this all started though. I was recently in a pretty bad car accident and was not able to be in the apartment with my cham for about 2 and 1/2 weeks due to my injuries. I had to rely on my roommates to take care of him while I was gone (they usually do a good but this was the longest they have had to watch him). Then when I got home, I transferred Matumbo into his new cage. For the first few days he exhibited the issues listed above which I thought could have been due to the cage change but it has been about a week now and that seems like it has been too long for it to be the cage change.
He likes to hang really close to the UVB bulb. He is eating and drinking just fine. He even turns a nice green color when he goes back to sleep. This is what is confusing me as to why he isn't acting like himself.
Thank you for your help!
Chris
P. S. I will be taking him to see a vet on Thursday at 5.
I agree there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding d3 content per product and how much d3 is too much which is why the all in one might work well for most people. I've actually been considering switching myself to give it a try.
