my cham is showing many different symptoms and not sure how to treat him, please help

[kinyonga]

I've never used pedialyte...but there have been others who have used it and said it helped.

Has he been tested for parasites?

 

[Zeke20]

Is you UVB compact by any chance?

It does appear to be a compact fixture indeed. Killjoy, is the UVB source coming from a compact bulb or a linear "tube" bulb? If compact, this may be the cause of the eye issue, and should be replaced asap.

 

[Killjoy]

the uvb is a tube. 18" reptisun 5.0 brand new. I have a couple chameleons but it never seems to get cheaper. I guess i spend too much on the stands.
attached is a pic of the lighting set up i have used for years in all my cham enclosures. runs about 150.00 bulbs not included. super convenient and looks nice on top of the enclosure.

 

[Julirs]

I hope the vet doesnt get me for more than 100 but we will see on tuesday. yeah i know 1k might sound steep but i spent 300 on the cham. 200 on the stand, @175 on the decor and 100 on lighting fixture, 50 on bulbs. almost 1000. i love having chams and really want to see him make it. just not sure if its easier to start over with a healthier, older cham. Can you share your source foe cross breeds @175? Thats a good price.

We forum members usually sell mixed locales for $100-$175. Many breeders are selling pure Ambilobes for $150.

 

[Killjoy]

Thank Julirs,
i am new to the forum, since i was having this issue with my cham and through poking around i have come to find that the best place to buy is proboly right from here. I will proboly end up buying off here next time. Thanks for the help

 

[serenitystarlite]

When my senegal Kami was sick and refused to eat, she got very skinny. I thought I was going to lose her. I bought chicken, turkey, and other meat babyfood for her. I mixed a spoonful of babyfood, a little water, and a little unflavored pedialyte in a bowl (pop it in the microwave for about 10 sec to soften the baby food and mix it all up). I put it in a syringe with a small end and dripped this into her mouth every other day, sometimes everyday depending on how much time I had and how many crickets she ate that day. It seemed to really help her pull through (along with medicine from the vet). I was force feeding her crickets as well, but there were bad days where she just wouldn't eat them. I figure it's a lot nicer to force feed chicken or turkey soup than crickets when someone is sick. I also snuck her a few wax worms even though she hates them (it's weird, she doesn't like worms of any kind). She is now eating on her own and has recovered.

If you want to try this, make sure you get meat baby food with nothing else in it. This is definitely not a substitute for the vet, but it will help put some weight back on the cham. How much does he weigh now vs how much he weighed when you got him? Kami went from 65g down to 40g. Now she's at 58g. Good luck with your guy.

 

[Killjoy]

Ya know i havent been able to weigh him since ive only had him for a month, and half the time is spent now trying to get him well. but i can say that when i brought him home his limbs and crest were nice looking, not over plump but looked strong, now he is displaying vey skinny limbs, crest, and tail. i hate looking at him this way. I hope he makes a speedy recovery. I am a bit torn because in his current condition he needs alot of attention. I am working about 11 hour days and have to try to get him well in between. This is makimg it real hard to pick up on symptoms and eating/drinking habits........ uuggghhhh so frustrating!!
i think im gonna start the baby food and pedialyte tommorrow, cant have him seen at the vet till tuesday. Question for ya (serenitystarlite) if he is refusing to open his mouth, how do you suggest i feed. even when he gets pissed he rather jump or run than open his mouth. I also dont want to stress him too much through all of this. Let me know your trick please

 

[justjumpit621]

Thanks for the quick replies. I will post a couple of pictures that I took tonight. The enclosure is all screen. And I am using a 5.0 Reptisun UVB. I use two supplements. One is calcium and the other was suggested by the breeder(don't recall at the moment) I supplement every other feeding, dusting lighly. Look out for the pics in the next fee minutes, just need to figure out how to post them. Also I am in long island. There are Very few chameleon specialist in my area. I have never used a reptile vet in all my years keeping reptiles so around here there is an initial charge for the first visit. Price is @ 250-275. If anyone is close to me that knows or recomends someone, that would be really helpful.

If you are willing Dr. Mertz at The Odd Pet Vet at the New England Wildlife Center is very good with chameleons. It is in south Weymouth Mass. Also, I have a friend who lives in New York that says her vet is also very good. I will PM you her email, just tell her Kayla told you to ask her.

 

[serenitystarlite]

Question for ya (serenitystarlite) if he is refusing to open his mouth, how do you suggest i feed. even when he gets pissed he rather jump or run than open his mouth. I also dont want to stress him too much through all of this. Let me know your trick please

I used a syringe with a really skinny end so it was easy to get it into her mouth because it was so small. I usually just dripped a little on her mouth or dripped some water onto her mouth until she started drinking and then gave it to her that way because I didn't want to hurt her. She's really calm though and not scared of me. If he's drinking in front of you, then wait for him to open his mouth or give it to him after he eats a cricket. If you get a drop or 2 in his mouth, he might just start drinking it on his own if he's not real skittish. If you hold him, does he open his mouth?

 

[Chamified]

Thats an AMAZING SETUP!!

 

[Killjoy]

Thanks I worked hard to make it fit the living room. Looks good, just gotta get my little guy healthy!!