I think my chameleon got hurt eating a hornworm! Please help

[Little_green_eugene]

Hi guys!

I was feeding my little guy some hornworms this morning and one gave him a struggle. It latched onto the vine pretty well and he kept trying to pull it back with his tongue. He had to run forward to bite it before it let go and it seemed like the worm may have also bitten him on his tongue or inside his throat . He started shaking as he was trying to finish eating it and hasn't eaten very much since. The hornworm was about 2 inches long and could easily be eaten by my chameleon so I don't think he had trouble getting it down, he just looked like he was in pain. I'm extremely worried now because he doesn't seem like he wants to eat. He's always excited when I hand feed him meal worms but when I tried he wouldn't even look at them. He turned his back to me so I put them in a bowl in the bottom of his cage. I left the room to fill up his dripper and he had eaten them along with 2 crickets I threw in earlier. I'm not sure if maybe the way I reacted when he was struggling to eat the hornworm scared him so he's acting differently or if he's hurt from it . Has anyone had a similar experience with horn worms?? Please help and thank you in advance.

 

[Carlton]

He will probably be fine, as you said he ate the mealworms you gave after the hornworm. He may have overextended the tongue muscle, the hornworm's "horn" may have scratched the inside of his throat, or something. Just keep an eye on him over the next few days and maybe don't overfeed him prey with heavier chitin or hard parts.