New Veiled Chameleon

[DrRhymes]

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon -Veiled Chameleon, Male 3.5 months old, One Day
Handling - Once today
Feeding -No established schedule but I offered him 5 butter worms
Supplements - Repti Cal multi vitamins 2 a month and D3 2 a month
Watering -Hand misting for now and a cool mist humidifier
Fecal Description - None yet
History -None, came from Chameleons Northwest


Cage Info:

Cage Type Glass(exo terra 18X18X240 for the next week or so
Lighting -Zoo med 75 watt heat bulb and 5.0 exo terra uva/uvb light 8am-8pm
Temperature -88-76F with temp probe
Humidity -Cool mist humidifier to keep up humidity and hand misting for now even though I have a mist king
Plants - Ficus
Placement - room raised a bit little no traffic
Location -East Bay CA


Current Problem -Guss arrived today and has been generally energetic but when he gets into a warm basking place he closes his eyes. I offered Butter worms but he didn't seem to want them. I took him out to look at him to make sure there wasn't anything wrong and there does not appear to be anything. When I placed him back he very quickly returned to his place and is just chilling there. I know closing eyes is not good but I cant think why he is doing this.

Regards,
Nate

 

[DrRhymes]

Any advice would help

Thanks,
Nate

 

[carol5208]

If he is only doing it in the basking area then maybe the light is bothering his eyes. How far away do you have your basking branch from the light? Also be sure and get a plain calcium with NO d3 and use that daily on your feeders. You want to incorporate something besides butterworms like crickets or roaches which are low in fat. Butterworms as most worms(besides silks) are fatty feeders.

 

[DrRhymes]

The light is 7-12in away from the top and that is were he is hanging out also I offered him crickets as well. I plan on getting just calcium soon.

Regards,
Nate

 

[carol5208]

oh ok. Well that does not seem too close so I am not sure what is going on. Try lowering the basking temp about 5 degrees. 88 is a little higher than the norm for a baby by about 6 or 7 degrees. See if that may help. You can try using a 60 watt and go from there. Usually if the basking area is too hot, it will cause the chameleon to gape and not close their eyes. If the light is too intense or bright, that could cause them to close their eyes I would think. Is it a regular white housebulb? If not, try using one of them.

 

[DrRhymes]

It is a zoomed basking lamp so I will trade it for a house light thanks. Should a be concerned he isn't eating?

 

[DrRhymes]

I tried replacing the bulbs and he seemed a bit better but now his up to his old habit again that is closing his eyes in a nice place.

 

[DrRhymes]

Here is a picture of his eye. He seems to close this one the most his other eye is open. Does anyone else see that little bit of black around his eye.

 

[ethan99]

Here is a picture of his eye. He seems to close this one the most his other eye is open. Does anyone else see that little bit of black around his eye.

Cool cham!!!

My cham has back around his eyes too. So I think thats normal.

 

[AngieL]

Hi there!

Your guy looks a little dehydrated, as well as lusting you may want to use a drip system. Is it particularly dry where you are? If not then then there's no need for the humidifier. You need to get a hygrometer to measure the humidity in the tank.

Also you will need a plain calcium to dust with every feeding. He needs a good calcium intake to help him grow big and strong.

Here's a great care sheet for veileds that might help you along
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/chameleonsinmyhouse/395-veiled-chameleon-care-sheet.html

Try lowering the temps as carol suggested but if he continues to close his eyes then that is a sign of illness and he'll need to see a vet pretty quick!

I meant to say as well that it's normal for him not to eat straight away when moving to a new house. He should calm down in a couple of days and start to eat normally

 

[DrRhymes]

Thank you for the advice, I have ordered the calcium and it is particularly low humidity where I live it is about 20% in my house. so the humidifier kicks it up to about sixty. I have owned a female before so the care sheet is a nice reminder thank you. Does anyone have any way to make him drink because I have tried tripping some water on his mouth but he just seems to get mad.

Regards,
Nate

 

[DrRhymes]

He just pooped and this is what it looked like. It smelled can this be a sign of parasites.

 

[DrRhymes]

Any advice appreciated.

 

[AngieL]

The orange part is his urates and it should be white. Orange urates can also be a sign of dehydration. He could be a shy drinker, some people never see their chams drink. I think if you install a drip system then he can drink when your not lpoking. If that doesn't work you can try this https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/ataraxia/594-shower-chamber-treatment.html

 

[Dez]

He just pooped and this is what it looked like. It smelled can this be a sign of parasites.

It is always a good idea to have all new arrivals tested for parasites if you suspect any or not.

Stress..like from being shipped.. can sometimes cause an abnormal looking poop but you should test to be sure.

 

[Dez]

Also new arrivals may take a few days to settle in and eat and drink normally.

Closing his eyes is not a good thing though. Sometimes is CAN be a result of being stressed , if that doesn't improve soon there could be a deeper problem.

 

[DrRhymes]

Update: I took Gus to the vet on Saturday and revived his fecal results today. He had a bacterial infection called Coccidia. It is not to serious but I will get his medicine on wednesday. Here are some pics he has calmed down a little bit and has eaten some crikets Here are some pics.