New chameleon fell?

vaporwave

Member
My new veiled just fell off of a cup...I know they can jump, I'm not worried about that, I'm worried because he fell and didn't jump. I know they're not supposed to fall if they're healthy. It was a ceramic mug. Should I take him to the vet to get a blood panel? I just got him, so it's very possible he could have something wrong with him. I got him from LLLReptile.
 
You answered your own question! I concur with taking him to the vet just for a check up. As for the fall, if you are providing correct husbandry it shouldnt be anything serious. You just got him, if hes a juvenile i wouldnt think MBD or anything like that. But yes fecals for parasites is a great idea!! A cup is also a very small and weird surface for the chameleon to navigate, im not sure why he was on a cup but there is nothing for him to grasp on, so he may have just slipped off.

Hes a new cham, he is probably pretty stressed. How often are you handling your cham? And does he come to you when you out your hand out or are you grabbing him from the enclosure to handle? My best advice is to leave him alone in his enclosure for a couple weeks. My cham was very stressed after the move and it took months before i was even able to get near him without him hiding from me. Just takes a little patience. @Beman has a great blog on here about handling and building trust with your chameleons. Def worth a read! 😊
 
You answered your own question! I concur with taking him to the vet just for a check up. As for the fall, if you are providing correct husbandry it shouldnt be anything serious. You just got him, if hes a juvenile i wouldnt think MBD or anything like that. But yes fecals for parasites is a great idea!! A cup is also a very small and weird surface for the chameleon to navigate, im not sure why he was on a cup but there is nothing for him to grasp on, so he may have just slipped off.

Hes a new cham, he is probably pretty stressed. How often are you handling your cham? And does he come to you when you out your hand out or are you grabbing him from the enclosure to handle? My best advice is to leave him alone in his enclosure for a couple weeks. My cham was very stressed after the move and it took months before i was even able to get near him without him hiding from me. Just takes a little patience. @Beman has a great blog on here about handling and building trust with your chameleons. Def worth a read! 😊
He fell again...started climbing and fell...two falls in ten minutes has me worried. I'm going to get them to check him just in case. And thank you for your advice!
 
He fell again...started climbing and fell...two falls in ten minutes has me worried. I'm going to get them to check him just in case. And thank you for your advice!
Would you mind posting a pic of him?? How old is he? And what did he fall on the second time?
 
You need to leave him in his cage... Let him fully acclimate. If the cage is not correct this can cause issues. We spoke about UVB in your other thread which is extremely important. fecals are always a good idea when it comes to bringing in a new reptile.

If you have not done a full husbandry review and posted pictures of your entire cage and chameleon to get feedback this would be a good idea.
 
You need to leave him in his cage... Let him fully acclimate. If the cage is not correct this can cause issues. We spoke about UVB in your other thread which is extremely important. fecals are always a good idea when it comes to bringing in a new reptile.

If you have not done a full husbandry review and posted pictures of your entire cage and chameleon to get feedback this would be a good idea.
Thank you! Cages are a little bare right now as the pothos doesn't come until later today, but as soon as I get the pothos in I will post pictures and fill out the form. And I returned the thrive bulb and ordered the reptisun 10.0, which should be arriving within the next few days :)
 
Thank you! Cages are a little bare right now as the pothos doesn't come until later today, but as soon as I get the pothos in I will post pictures and fill out the form. And I returned the thrive bulb and ordered the reptisun 10.0, which should be arriving within the next few days :)
So this is the veiled you got? did you get a panther as well?
 
I think the OP said they originally wanted a panther then decided not to bc they werent getting any feedback from breeders. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Not too sure tho.
So this is the veiled you got? did you get a panther as well?
I had ordered a panther from FLChams then cancelled, the cancellation never went through. So I got my panther chameleon! I'm happy with her, she seems very healthy as well. So yes, I have a panther and a veiled.
 
I had ordered a panther from FLChams then cancelled, the cancellation never went through. So I got my panther chameleon! I'm happy with her, she seems very healthy as well. So yes, I have a panther and a veiled.
Ok hopefully you have them in separate cages and so that they can not see one another. I highly suggest since you have two that you get fecals done on both. I have not heard the best about either place you bought your chams from. A lot of parasites are contagious and you do not want to risk cross contamination. :(
 
Coupla things...

Taking a cham to the vet is not necessary in order to get a fecal exam done. A sample can be dropped off for testing. Now if the test comes back positive, a visit will be required in order to get treatment/meds. Some practices will require a visit, but TMK, it's not a law.

A young chameleon "falling" isn't necessarily critical; it depends on circumstances. Mine fell/jumped/dropped yesterday. I'm not really sure which because I was on the other side of the room. He was on the ceiling, then there was a quick flurry of motion, then he was sitting on a branch 6-8" below where he was. Without really knowing all the facts, the best thing to do is keep an eye out.

Unless someone videos their cham. 24/7, we really have no idea whether something happens when we're not looking or not.

He fell again...started climbing and fell...two falls in ten minutes has me worried. I'm going to get them to check him just in case. And thank you for your advice!
There's very little information here. Was this the same as before—slipping off the ceramic cup/mug—or something different? Could/did anything have startled him either time? Was it recently after misting (wet surface)?

I've no objection to a vet checkup. Barring more information/pictures, and as difficult as it may be, I don't see any reason to panic either. ;)
 
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