My Velied isn't doing well. :(

Skradmore

Member
So I recently noticed his accuracy with his tongue was starting to get pretty bad and decided to take him to the vet. My vet said now that he's four years old his vision is probably not very good and he is at the point where he needs glasses so to speak. He did a full examination and said to try dusting the horn worms I hand feed him as he isn't able to catch crickets. I've always hand fed horns and dumped dusted crickets in for him to hunt at his own leisure. It wasn't until recently when he really struggled taking a horn worm that I decided to cup feed crickets and noticed he can't even catch them an inch I front of his face. I've also noticed his back legs are really starting to lose mobility. So much so that they just hang loose most of the time. All that being said I'm worried he doesn't have much time left. He also hasn't popped in over 2 weeks. I've tried misting him with warm water to get him going but nothing's happening. Vet said he wasn't bloated and to keeo misting warm water. I've seen him bloated before and he definitely isn't. Anyways earlier today I found him hanging by his tail sleeping with the lights on. I helped him up and put him in his basking spot cuz he was cold. Came back about an hour later and he was on the ground of his enclosure. I'm now holding him and he's okay but I'm afraid if I put him back he will fall again. The vet said everything about him looked really good and that he was just in his twilight. It's very difficult watching him struggle. The vet said to move him into a smaller enclosure or make a safety net for him. I got some materials to make a net but even with that I feel bad leaving him alone. He has been the best reptile I've ever owned and my first Cham. Greatest temperament, very friendly and happy to be handled. I'm not sure how long he has left though :'(
 

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I'm basing it off of his deformed casque. I'm new to the Chameleon world so hopefully someone with more knowledge can step in.
 
I am having the same issues (except for the pooping part) as you are and my cham is almost 6. He also has been healthy up until the last few months. I have assembled a net and also going back to his smaller cage. I was also told it was old age setting in as their life span is usually 5-7 years. It has been hard to watch . I feel for you.:(
 
I am having the same issues (except for the pooping part) as you are and my cham is almost 6. He also has been healthy up until the last few months. I have assembled a net and also going back to his smaller cage. I was also told it was old age setting in as their life span is usually 5-7 years. It has been hard to watch . I feel for you.:(

Thanks for sharing, I'm in the middle of putting up the safety net. I can't afford another new cage right now. Just bought him one last summer. We can only hope for the best I suppose
 

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As you can see he doesn't use his back legs like he should. He can still move them but has a hard time bringing his right leg up to walk and his left leg doesn't seem to be moving much at all anymore. His left foot is still able to close on my finger when I put it in his grasp. I just fed him 3 horn worms dusted with calcium and he ate them all very well. My vet said boosting his calcium might bring back some of his leg strength so I'm trying
 

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Does your calcium have D3 in it? if not then get that ASAP since this sounds like MBD to me. If you don't have the calcium then it is probably MBD. If you havent used the calcium before dust his crickets witht he D3 one twice a month.
 
Did your vet consider gout at all? Unwillingness to use limbs and feet could be a sign that they hurt.
 
Is that edema in the casc and gullar area? I cant see well from the pic...
I will let the experts chime in
 
Yes I use D3 cal twice a month as well as herpivite. It is not gout. My vet checked him for that. And the casque was a burn scar from a heat. Lamp he got too close to while he was still growing. The vet said he looked good and was just getting old. He has been unable to easily hit bugs with his tongue though so I'm assuming for the last month he hasn't been getting many of the dusted crickets as I hand feed only the horn worms and then let him hunt for the crickets by dumping them in. Something i will not continue doing obviously. He wasn't even able to eat them out of a cup. I fed him 3 smaller sized horn worms today dusted with cal and he finally took a poop for the first time in a few weeks. It actually looked surprisingly healthy for how long it's been. Urate had a very slight orange tint to it but very minimal.
 
Yes I use D3 cal twice a month as well as herpivite. It is not gout. My vet checked him for that. And the casque was a burn scar from a heat. Lamp he got too close to while he was still growing. The vet said he looked good and was just getting old. He has been unable to easily hit bugs with his tongue though so I'm assuming for the last month he hasn't been getting many of the dusted crickets as I hand feed only the horn worms and then let him hunt for the crickets by dumping them in. Something i will not continue doing obviously. He wasn't even able to eat them out of a cup. I fed him 3 smaller sized horn worms today dusted with cal and he finally took a poop for the first time in a few weeks. It actually looked surprisingly healthy for how long it's been. Urate had a very slight orange tint to it but very minimal.

Do you also chance his UVB light bulb every 6 months?
 
Do you also chance his UVB light bulb every 6 months?
I've only changed the bulb once a year as I've heard mixed reviews on how long the bulb lasts. And I've got a live pothos plant in the cage that does really well and has always been healthy. I always assumed that he was doing well with that as I've done it for the last 4 years and only recently has he had issues. His mobility in his back legs is getting worse at a pretty fast rate. Watching him struggle to get around his vines is pretty heart wrenching. I'm not sure how long I should let him go on like this or if I should bring him in and have him put down. Such a hard decision but he's not using his back legs at all really. He ate really well today. I'm at work and my gf just texted me and said he fell to the bottom of the cage again. Even though I set up a safety net. It's weighing on me pretty hard. I will get him a new bulb tomorrow but I'm not sure if he will be able to get his legs working again. So sad
 
Well, as every creature ages their systems become less and less efficient. It could be that replacing his UV light would give him a boost. He could be developing plain old arthritis too.
 
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