Losing interest in eating/bad aim.

My Chameleon: Male; 11 Month Old; Ambilobe Panther Chameleon named Ranger.

Handling- Once a week (roughly, some times less)

Feeding- I regularly feed him Crickets, wax worms as well as super worms. We goat load the crickets and supers with sweet potatoes, apples, carrots, lettuce, oranges. But lately it has only been super worms.

Supplements- I used a regular vitamin calcium powder, and twice a month I give him his D3, and herptivite, and Calcium with Vit.D

Watering: I mist him regularly every three hours, he doesn’t drink from the dripping leaves, and commonly drinks straight from the misting bottle.

Fecal Description: Ranger has no parasites, and he is pooping normally.

History: He has always been a terrible eater; we’ve tried many types of food for him. Silk Worms, Horn Worms, Phoenix worms, all to no avail. His favorite is superworms.

Cage Info:
Cage Type: Screen cage, 2 feet by four feet. Cage is also on a table two feet off the ground.

Lighting- His routine is 6am-8pm for when his light are on, we are using a heat lamp and a regular basking lamp.

Temperature- His temp the lowest is 70 and highest had been 90.

Humidity- His humidity is in the 75- 80 range, and I am maintaining them when I regularly mist him.

Plants- we are using a live pothos plant, and sticks that have been baked in the oven.

Placement- His cage is two feet off the ground and in the back of the laundry room, the laundry room has the highest humidity as well as temperature, so I agreed that it was the best place for him to get to. There are no fans and about two vents on in the back of the room and one in the front.

Problem: I’m wondering if these conditions are ok for him, as well as an idea on any better beat/ basking bulbs. Though his main problem is that he has a lack of interest in eating, after he has missed his food for the first time. We have a cup in the same area always filled with worms, but he has never gone for them or seemed interested in it. Right now super worms is what I mainly feed him, because they are easier for him to get to than crickets. I’m wondering if that is ok or should I try crickets and slow them down in the fridge before I give them to him? Ranger looses interest very quickly. Sometimes he would miss a worm that I put on a leaf and then just walk away. Though when he does eat; four super worms is his limit, and maybe five but he never ate the regular 8-10 crickets recommended for him. I’m wondering if there is anything that I can do to get him regularly eating again. He is average weight, for his size, but I wish that he would eat a little bit more.



I apprecaite any help you can give me.

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I recommend a larger variety of feeders. Wax worms are not the best. Have you tried silkworms and hornworms? I would also recommend better gtloading. Get a good dry gutload such as Cricket Crack to add along with your fresh fruits and veggies. You said he does not have parasites. Has he had a fecal? For lighting I recommend the Reptisun 5.0 and a regular household bulb for basking. I would keep his basking spot around 86 or 87. How are you checking his temps?
 
I use a gage in his cage as well as a handheld temperature gun.
I have tried silkworms and hornworms but he was never interested in them and they got so messy to take care of in the end.
He has had a fecal about two months ago and the doctor said everything was fine, should I go in for another one?

I'm really just worried about how quickly he loses interest and his stubbornness to try any new food. I'm also wondering if I should ask the doctor about his bad feeding aim.
 
Just out of curiosity have you tried feeding him with tweezers? I have a 12inch pair at home that I use with my Jackson when ever he gets a little 'meh' with his feeding choices and he normally gobbles them up when they start squirming around when I dangle them in front of him.
 
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I have 12inch tweezers that I use, but I usually use them to place the food on a large synthetic plant. (It's like a large dinner plate for him) but even with the large space to freely gobble them up he continues to miss them.
Is it possible for the tongue to loose their stickiness when it comes to eating bugs? He either misses or he gets it but the tongue doesn't fully grab onto the bugs and back on the leaf they go. More commonly he gives up eating and I can't get him to eat anything for the rest of the day.
 
How old is the bulb? He shouldn't be having aim problems. Sometimes dehydration can cause an unsticky tongue. Some people have used a very small amount of vit A to try and fix tongue problems. A teeny tiny drop from a liquid gel vit A pill on the back of a feeder wouldn't hurt. Alternatively, you can try using a supplement brand with pre-formed vit A in it. I believe repashy calcium plus has this.
 
How old is the bulb? He shouldn't be having aim problems. Sometimes dehydration can cause an unsticky tongue. Some people have used a very small amount of vit A to try and fix tongue problems. A teeny tiny drop from a liquid gel vit A pill on the back of a feeder wouldn't hurt. Alternatively, you can try using a supplement brand with pre-formed vit A in it. I believe repashy calcium plus has this.

I totally agree. Reptivite also has A in it.
 
https://www.chameleonforums.com/jacksons-cham-tongue-issues-nutritional-imbalance-118665/

I recently had a similar issue with my Jackson's chameleons tongue. His tongue was very floppy and short, and he had bad aim. He would get very frustrated trying to snag food and would give up after a shot or two.

I strongly believe his tongue issues were diet related. I made several changes to my gutloading, and the problems have slowly resolved themselves. The post I started is above. You can read all the good advice I was given and the changes I ultimately made.

Hopefully, this will help you out. Good luck and keep us posted.
 
I use a gage in his cage as well as a handheld temperature gun.
I have tried silkworms and hornworms but he was never interested in them and they got so messy to take care of in the end.
He has had a fecal about two months ago and the doctor said everything was fine, should I go in for another one?

I'm really just worried about how quickly he loses interest and his stubbornness to try any new food. I'm also wondering if I should ask the doctor about his bad feeding aim.

The laser temp guns are nice for some things, like surface temps, but to get the basking temp right, you should have a digital thermometer with a probe attached.
Place the probe at the basking spot and monitor the temp, being sure to have the bulb a good 10'' from your cham.

Also, I don't know what kind of temp gauge you have, but most of the analog
ones you get at the pet store are worthless.
 
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