I think my chameleon is dying....

[lmassacci]

I have a panther chameleon that I purchased at a pet store about a month ago. The woman at the pet store has absolutely no idea how old he is or pretty much anything I wanted to know. Two weeks ago I cleaned out his cage as I do every 3-4 days and found 20 worms and 5 crickets that he hadn't eaten, which means not at all or likely drinking either. After that I noticed his eyes had been shut for about 3 days.I disregarded these symptoms because he was shedding. After deciding I had waited long enough I took him to the vet. They flushed his eyes with saline and suggested I do the same seeing that there were no health problems with him. They gave me syringes and told me to give him water using those. I have been giving him water that way for a week now and flushing his eyes when they're closed, but I don't understand why he won't eat, I've been closely counting the numbers of bugs I put in his cage and he hasn't touched any of them. I tried hand feeding the insects as well but he won't take them. I know this cant be healthy and I don't want anything bad to happen to him. Ive never owned a chameleon and Im not sure what to do. Any suggestions?

 

[DanSB]

I'm not entirely convinced your vet is competent. Can you follow the instructions here to ask for help?:

https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/how-to-ask-for-help.66/

I suspect the community here may notice issues and a picture or two would be very helpful...

 

[lmassacci]

• 
  
  Your Chameleon - Male, Panther, no age
• Handling - Everyday or 2
• Feeding - I feed him crickets and super worms although I think he prefers worms when I wake up around 2pm, I buy them gut loaded and I dust them with calcium powder. But he isn't eating.
• Supplements - repti-calcium
• Watering - I have a misting system, but again I have to water him with syringes because I don't see him drinking.
• Fecal Description - Brownish and white kind of runny. The vet didn't attempt to test for parasites.
• History - none

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - I have a screen cage 18X18X36
• Lighting - I don't know anything about it besides 120 watt red light and 50 watt uvb.
• Temperature - The temperature is never below 70 it measures that and humidity
• Plants - There was a live pothos plan but I removed it a few days ago because all of the worms were hiding on it.
• Placement - The cage is on a chest of drawers, away from all vents but I do have a ceiling fan almost always kept on the lowest setting. The top of the cage is about a foot from the ceiling, I'd guess about 7 feet.

 

[Davecameos]

Hi,

I think your supplements and light need to be readjusted.

You may have a look at the caresheet to guide you on care https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/panther/

Chameleons can hide illness pretty well. If he is not eating there must be a reason. I would start by altering/improving his enclosure and supplements.

He needs completely darkness at night to sleep. Red lights are not good for them. He also needs a linear uv bulb on 12 hours/day preferably T5 and a basking spot about 87F on a top branch.

You need to use multivitamins at least once per month. Then Calcium without D3 every other feed and also Calcium with D3 depending on brand. D3 could be done every fortnight if a new linear light is provided. For example repti calcium with D3 has higher levels than Sticky Tongue Farm Miner-All which has a different schedule.

You can try adding more branches and more foliage to the cage. You can also try to cup feed him so you can see how much he has eating.

Hope this helps. Please, have a look at the caresheet.

 

[leedragon]

take away the red light that is probably what is harming him you need ordinary white light/ day light besides the uvb light. you need a basking light an ordinary incandescent light that gets the temperatur to 87-90 degrees. it´s probably too cold and thats is why he isn´t eating. you need more vegetation in your cage too.

read this https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/panther/

 

[jcarlsen]

I don't know how big your cage is, but it looks to me to be too small for a panther of that size. I agree with what the others are saying: ditch the red bulb, get a linear UVB light, and get some more plants and vines in the cage. The guy needs more room and options to climb around.

Take a look at some of these cages for reference: http://www.muchadoaboutchameleons.com/2012/04/how-to-set-up-proper-chameleon.html

 

[lmassacci]

So correct me if I am wrong I read all of the articles.. I need a linear reptisun 5.0 bulb and a linear enclosure for the light. And a 60watt basking light. And at nighttime turn them both off, and on again on a 12 hour schedule?

 

[Antihero383]

So correct me if I am wrong I read all of the articles.. I need a linear reptisun 5.0 bulb and a linear enclosure for the light. And a 60watt basking light. And at nighttime turn them both off, and on again on a 12 hour schedule?

Correct. Although the wattage of the bulb is dependent on different factors, ambient temp, distance from basking spots, etc. You want a basking spot with temps around 85-90.

 

[jcarlsen]

So correct me if I am wrong I read all of the articles.. I need a linear reptisun 5.0 bulb and a linear enclosure for the light. And a 60watt basking light. And at nighttime turn them both off, and on again on a 12 hour schedule?

I honestly would go for a 10.0 reprisun or 12% Arcadia, especially if you get a bigger enclosure

 

[Sadiesmom]

I have a question about something that is happening with my chameleon and I have no clue how to make a new forum! Is it ok for me to post a picture on here and see if someone could help me figure out what is happening to him

 

[Pitcard]

When you're on the health clinic page, there should be a button near the top that says 'post new thread'.