Masoala Panther not pooping.

Robyn.lux

Member
Chameleon Info:

◦ Your Chameleon - Masoala panther chameleon, 5 month old male, had him two weeks and 2 days.

◦ Handling - I do not handle him.

◦ Feeding - he's fed locusts with the occasional wax worm. (Got some calci worms and dubia on order) Gut loaded with a variety of fruit, vegetables, seeds, oats. I am soon going to be making my own homemade jelly gutload as advised by someone who I would call a veteran and whom I trust impeccably. I also have Repashy superload.
He's cup fed in the morning, he likes his privacy so I cover his viv and leave him to it, some also are left to free roam and all are removed before lights out.
Though I have to admit he's not been eating a great deal recently.

◦ Supplements - Exo terra calcium without d3, every day. Calcium with d3 will be twice a month and a mutivit twice a month.

◦ Watering - I mist by hand with a bottle, for five minutes 3x a day and have a dripper running pretty much constantly. I always see him have a good long drink in the morning. The breeder gave me aqua safe to use but I've swapped to Reptisafe.

◦ Fecal Description - Colour of droppings brown (solid in one piece but MASSIVE) and clear urate.

◦ History - Nothing to note other than him being stressed from the move.


Cage Info:

◦ Cage Type - The cage is glass, exo terra 90x45x90. Bioactive bottom, springtails, moss, bioactive substrate (he rarely goes right to the bottom of his viv). Exo terra moss vines and lots of natural wood for climbing.

◦ Lighting - All exo terra, UVB150 30w 90cm (t8 but I'd like to swap to t5 when I can afford it). Ceramic heat lamp 150w. I do plan to swap the ceramic for Mercury Vapour soon but keep ceramic for extra heat in winter. He has a 12 hour light cycle from 8.30-20.30.

◦ Temperature - I have three temperature probes. Basking at 29-31°c, ambient 23-25°c and floor 19-20.5°c. His night temp never drops below 18.5°c but usually sits around 22°c.

◦ Humidity - Always kept between 60 and 85% but it rarely drops below 75%. I maintain humidity by monitoring it all day. I use an exo terra hygrometer placed in the middle of his tank.

◦ Plants - currently I have three live pothos, planted into the bioactive substrate.

◦ Placement - My cage is placed away from vents, windows etc in a low traffic area, around 3ft off of the floor. Perhaps not high enough but I always crouch low or even kneel when approaching his viv so he feels higher up. It was a matter of placing him safely in regards of the cat, though they seem uninterested with each other. Possibility of moving his viv to a higher perch once he is more settled as I am loathe to cause him any more stress at present.

◦ Location - I am based in the UK.


Current Problem - since I have had him, he has only done one (albeit absolutely huge) poop. It looked healthy to me. He's been eating every day but not much at all. Like 3/4/5/6 locusts and that's it. I did make the mistake of giving him wax worms probably more than I should've as I have been worried about him not eating much. I haven't seen him drink in a few days but I don't have my face pressed to his viv 24/7.
I'm thinking of starving him for a day to see if it helps? Since warm showers have not. Honestly, I've never worried about a pet as much as I do my cham. I think I'll book him a vets appointment for a check up soon, just to make sure but they'd need a poop sample so I definitely could use some advice for that. I'll upload some photos of him from this morning. He looks dark but he always does in a morning. I assume to absorb more light because he's white in colour normally. To me, he doesn't look dehydrated, but maybe more experienced eyes could know otherwise .
 

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They don't pool daily and if they don't consume a lot of food they poop even less, this is normal.

So once in two weeks okay? I assumed the move and getting used to a new massive viv etc is what's causing his lack of appetite. His abdomen looks a bit rounded, could that be the lack of pooping? I'm new to husbandry so it's all very confusing to me because you see such mixed opinions and advice.
Should I go against starving him for a day or give it a go? What do you think? I'm thinking it might bolster his appetite as well.
 
Yea, once a week sounds fine especially if he's not eating his normal portions right now.
They will save up their turd quite a bit, usually you can notice the oldest part of the urate being orange/brown when this happens instead of completely white (if properly hydrated).

I don't think you will even dent his hunger in 1 day, these animals are made to be efficient so they can go without food for weeks/months if needed... Food is not a concern, hydration more so.

You want to bolster his appetite? Try hornworms, silkworms, superworms or waxworms, they make great treats. Also BSF (or anything that flies) often trigger their hunting instincts.
 
Yea, once a week sounds fine especially if he's not eating his normal portions right now.
They will save up their turd quite a bit, usually you can notice the oldest part of the urate being orange/brown when this happens instead of completely white (if properly hydrated).

I don't think you will even dent his hunger in 1 day, these animals are made to be efficient so they can go without food for weeks/months if needed... Food is not a concern, hydration more so.

You want to bolster his appetite? Try hornworms, silkworms, superworms or waxworms, they make great treats. Also BSF (or anything that flies) often trigger their hunting instincts.

Thanks so much man. I have some calci worms on order. I have been giving him wax worms but I hear they're not great for them? I mean, he had them quite a lot last week.
I think I'll pop some hoppers in to free roam his viv, see if that helps.
Does he look dehydrated on the photos I posted? I guess I'll just keep an eye on him for now and see what happens.
 
Wax worms are a great treat, not a great staple since they are high in fat and not that good in other nutrients.
Calci worms (phoenix worms) do make a decent staple but they have the downside that they can climb against everything when they have a little bit of moisture... The upside is that they pupate into Black Soldier Flies which is a nice treat for your chameleon.

Grasshoppers aren't the best staple either imo, their diet is mainly grass so they don't gut load to well, it's better to try dubia roaches or crickets, they have better nutritious value and do gut load well.
 
Wax worms are a great treat, not a great staple since they are high in fat and not that good in other nutrients.
Calci worms (phoenix worms) do make a decent staple but they have the downside that they can climb against everything when they have a little bit of moisture... The upside is that they pupate into Black Soldier Flies which is a nice treat for your chameleon.

Grasshoppers aren't the best staple either imo, their diet is mainly grass so they don't gut load to well, it's better to try dubia roaches or crickets, they have better nutritious value and do gut load well.

Hey, he absolutely refuses to eat crickets. I have tried but he just won't have them. Which is a shame because they're much easier to come by. Dubia are not so easy to come by but I am going to go look for some on Thursday. Last time I went they only had absolutely huge ones, no good for a 5 month old. Push comes to shove I will order online, I don't like that I can't see what I am getting though.
I understand that waxies are no good for a staple. I was just under the mind set of something is better than nothing but he actually refused them yesterday as well. Anyways, I'm going to phone the vets a bit later and see what they say.
 
Imo get the big dubia and breed em, it's so easy.
Get a container with a lid, drill in a few holes, put em in a warm area 28C/82F -ish, throw in some fruits and/or veggies every once in a while and just wait.
Roaches may have a bad name in households but they are actually great feeders, they are clean and don't smell, dubia have the big pro that they also don't climb the walls and if one does ever escape you'll likely find it under the heated container or dead somewhere since it can't feed and it's to cold in your house.

If your chameleon is healthy there's no reason to give in and only feed treats, you will worry long before he goes hungry and a healthy chameleon will eventually eat when hungry.
The risk of you only giving him treats is that he will refuse any other feeder, especially superworms tend become an addiction to some chameleons, making them refuse other food for longer periods....

Contacting the vet for their opinion is never a bad idea.
 
Hey, he absolutely refuses to eat crickets. I have tried but he just won't have them. Which is a shame because they're much easier to come by. Dubia are not so easy to come by but I am going to go look for some on Thursday. Last time I went they only had absolutely huge ones, no good for a 5 month old. Push comes to shove I will order online, I don't like that I can't see what I am getting though.
I understand that waxies are no good for a staple. I was just under the mind set of something is better than nothing but he actually refused them yesterday as well. Anyways, I'm going to phone the vets a bit later and see what they say.
No need to fear buying feeders online, EBay has every type of feeder you can legally buy in any size and any quantity. Never had a bad experience.

And Remcon is correct, Dubai’s practically breed themselves. All you need to do is provide the container, temps in the 90s, and food with a decent water content.
 
Imo get the big dubia and breed em, it's so easy.
Get a container with a lid, drill in a few holes, put em in a warm area 28C/82F -ish, throw in some fruits and/or veggies every once in a while and just wait.
Roaches may have a bad name in households but they are actually great feeders, they are clean and don't smell, dubia have the big pro that they also don't climb the walls and if one does ever escape you'll likely find it under the heated container or dead somewhere since it can't feed and it's to cold in your house.

If your chameleon is healthy there's no reason to give in and only feed treats, you will worry long before he goes hungry and a healthy chameleon will eventually eat when hungry.
The risk of you only giving him treats is that he will refuse any other feeder, especially superworms tend become an addiction to some chameleons, making them refuse other food for longer periods....

Contacting the vet for their opinion is never a bad idea.


Hahaha. I live in the UK so no where in my place that isnt the chams tank is never 28°c especially now it's coming to autumn. I suppose I could stick them under a lamp but to have one on 24/7 would be really expensive on electric.

I will not offer him anymore treats then. Sneaky boy, already playing me. I am a soft touch when it comes to my pets.

I'll go ahead and find a place online for small/medium dubia for now.

Thanks for your help, really really appreciate it.
 
No need to fear buying feeders online, EBay has every type of feeder you can legally buy in any size and any quantity. Never had a bad experience.

And Remcon is correct, Dubai’s practically breed themselves. All you need to do is provide the container, temps in the 90s, and food with a decent water content.

Thanks dude!!! I'll check out ebay then! Never really thought of eBay actually.
 
Hahaha. I live in the UK so no where in my place that isnt the chams tank is never 28°c especially now it's coming to autumn. I suppose I could stick them under a lamp but to have one on 24/7 would be really expensive on electric.

I will not offer him anymore treats then. Sneaky boy, already playing me. I am a soft touch when it comes to my pets.

I'll go ahead and find a place online for small/medium dubia for now.

Thanks for your help, really really appreciate it.
I got a 15watt heating cable under 2 bins of feeders, it heats sufficiently and costs like 5cents a day in electricity... You save it on not having to buy feeders.
 
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