I am a new owner of a female Panther chameleon. I have only had her for about ten days, and the only age they told me was that she is under a year old. She'd been at the pet store longer than the other chameleons there and had been stressed they said, and she had stitches not too long ago. She's very shy and lethargic. She doesn't seem to eat a whole lot (I've been feeding her crickets as well as meal worms.) but what worries me the most currently is that today she does not seem to be opening her eyes at all. I can see them moving but they aren't opening. I have also not seen her drink, but she has a water bowl, a dripper, and I mist a lot. Her cage is large, all mesh/net (no glass). Her humidity is around 70, and the temperature is 72 degrees F. Do I need to take her to the vet??
Need help with Panther chameleon
- Thread starter Britt22
- Start date
FlChamMom
Avid Member
I would also give her more horizontal branches and vines so that she can have a good temperature gradient. You will also need to have a lay bin in the cage. Take a bucket or small trash can and fill it 10-12" with washed play sand or organic potting soil. dampen it enough so that it can hold a tunnel. She will still lay infertile eggs without being with a male. Ditch the water bowl, they lick the water from the foliage. I would check out the care sheets on the forum as well as the enclosure threads- they will give you lots of great info as well as ideas. Good Luck!
carol5208
Chameleon Enthusiast
Where are your lights?!!! She is way too cold!!! 72 is ok for the cage temp but she needs a place to warm up under a basking light. Should be atleast 10 degrees or more warmer. Do you have a basking light? A uvb light? If you do, it needs to be on while there is daylight hours. Turn off at night. She should have a branch horizontally placed under the basking light about 8 inches down. Also, adding more horizonal walkways in the cage would be nice also.
Last edited:
macyb-vancouver
Member
Yes, a horizontal branch or vine underneath more light could help. It is pretty dark/cold in there. 72 degrees is fine for the middle and bottom of the cage, but towards the top there should be a heat lamp that brings the top of the cage up to at least 85. She always needs access to a basking spot during the day that provides heat and uvb. A branch from outside will work, as long as it is washed (I also stuck mine in the oven for a couple hours to disinfect just in case). To attach I used thumbtacks on either side of the branch through the mesh on the outside and it has worked great! Another tall plant on the bottom of the cage (a ficus would be perfect) would also give her more cover and help fill the gap in the middle of the cage. I would fix just a few of these things and wait a couple days before taking her to the vet. It sounds like she's had a lot of stress and just needs a place she can relax and recover. I can't tell from the pictures, but if her eyes stark to look sunken in, this is a sign of dehydration and I would take her to the vet at that point.
Oh, I also love that ladder! Where did you get it?
Oh, I also love that ladder! Where did you get it?
macyb-vancouver
Member
I also see that you are using substrate at the bottom of the cage. Sometimes the chams will try to eat this and it can be very hard on their digestive system. I would recommend taking the substrate and the water dish out completely and replacing it with a plant or laying bin.
I do have lights, they were just off when I took the picture. Thanks!
Okay I will try that.
Thank you! And I got the bridge at Petsmart. I also recently tied the bridge up so its more horizontal, but I think I'm going to raise it higher since she always stays near the top of her cage. I also ordered a bunch more of the vines she seems to favor, since I couldn't find any in person. I also keep uva and uvb lights on for her during the day. And I'll look for a ficus plant to give her. Thanks!Yes, a horizontal branch or vine underneath more light could help. It is pretty dark/cold in there. 72 degrees is fine for the middle and bottom of the cage, but towards the top there should be a heat lamp that brings the top of the cage up to at least 85. She always needs access to a basking spot during the day that provides heat and uvb. A branch from outside will work, as long as it is washed (I also stuck mine in the oven for a couple hours to disinfect just in case). To attach I used thumbtacks on either side of the branch through the mesh on the outside and it has worked great! Another tall plant on the bottom of the cage (a ficus would be perfect) would also give her more cover and help fill the gap in the middle of the cage. I would fix just a few of these things and wait a couple days before taking her to the vet. It sounds like she's had a lot of stress and just needs a place she can relax and recover. I can't tell from the pictures, but if her eyes stark to look sunken in, this is a sign of dehydration and I would take her to the vet at that point.
Oh, I also love that ladder! Where did you get it?
Thanks! I'll start lookin around for a ficus plant to give her instead.
Why did she have stitches?
As was said...there should be a basking area in the low to mid 80's for her. you can use a regular household incandescent light bulb in a domed hood suspended above one corner of the cage for a basking light. Appropriate temperatures allow for proper digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.
We're here eyes closed in the store?
The lethargy and lack of appetite and even the eye closing could be due to the temperature. she looks chubby enough to be gravid.
Of course, they could be due to other things too....but by providing the basking area it should give us some clues.
Do you know about supplements, UVB light and feeding/gutloading the insects properly? Do you know that panther chameleons can produce eggs without having been mated and need a proper egglaying container in the cage at all times so they have a place to dig in to show you when they are ready to lay eggs?
As was said...there should be a basking area in the low to mid 80's for her. you can use a regular household incandescent light bulb in a domed hood suspended above one corner of the cage for a basking light. Appropriate temperatures allow for proper digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.
We're here eyes closed in the store?
The lethargy and lack of appetite and even the eye closing could be due to the temperature. she looks chubby enough to be gravid.
Of course, they could be due to other things too....but by providing the basking area it should give us some clues.
Do you know about supplements, UVB light and feeding/gutloading the insects properly? Do you know that panther chameleons can produce eggs without having been mated and need a proper egglaying container in the cage at all times so they have a place to dig in to show you when they are ready to lay eggs?
She had stitches because a vet had removed an abnormal scale growth. I do have a basking light for her, but am still working on a proper set up for everything, and trying to figure out how to suspend it. I do have a uvb light and I believe a uva light suspended above her cage, and use a dark heat lamp at night, on low. We currently live in one tiny bedroom and don't have a lot of space for everything, but my boyfriend and I are moving very soon to a larger space, and will have a whole room just for our reptiles
we do have vitamin supplements we put on the crickets, and I will be rearranging her cage since I was told it's not the best to have the moss substrate in there. And when I do that I will have some sort of area where she can lay eggs. Her eyes weren't closed in the store, and now it seems mostly just her left eye that's not opening much, if at all.Similar threads
