poop color
- Thread starter SweetPea
- Start date
Healthy poop (someone correct me if I'm wrong) has the white urates, and brownish and more firm "pellets" which should be moist but firm. If there are yellow or orangish urates that means that the chameleon is dehydrated.
If SweetPea is dehydrated SubQ fluids by a knowledgeable vet can be very helpful. They helped Hermie a lot.
If SweetPea is dehydrated SubQ fluids by a knowledgeable vet can be very helpful. They helped Hermie a lot.
Tara
New Member
Glad I found this thread
Ok..yes this is gross...
My chams light comes on every morning right before my daughter catches the bus. After she leaves I give them a good misting with the hot water and then clean the feeding dish and put some fresh food in it. (LOL - before I do some more snoozin - I am NOT a morning person)
My chams are usually up moving about and warming themselves up in the basking site.
I have also noticed that the really like to take a morning "poopy"
That is a really funny thing to see. I should have taken a picture this morning. The pose and the look of concentration is just priceless.
Anyway...If there is any orange/yellow in the poo, this means dehydration?
At first their poo was half white and half orange. This morning...boy did he poo a lot. It was a clump of half white and half orange...followed by a solid brown one of about the same size of the other clump.
So if I am understanding this right...My chams are dehydrated?
I have been worried becuase no matter how much I mist, I have not seen them drink. Do I just need to mist more often for a while?
I know they need the misting, but I also feel bad when I'm doing it because it really freaks them out. At least I think it does. Sometimes their color will start to darken..brownish. Other times, they stay green and just start getting brown spots and brown stripes. Although I think part of it is that they are currently sitting down to low. Later, Tara
Ok..yes this is gross...
My chams light comes on every morning right before my daughter catches the bus. After she leaves I give them a good misting with the hot water and then clean the feeding dish and put some fresh food in it. (LOL - before I do some more snoozin - I am NOT a morning person)
My chams are usually up moving about and warming themselves up in the basking site.
I have also noticed that the really like to take a morning "poopy"
That is a really funny thing to see. I should have taken a picture this morning. The pose and the look of concentration is just priceless.
Anyway...If there is any orange/yellow in the poo, this means dehydration?
At first their poo was half white and half orange. This morning...boy did he poo a lot. It was a clump of half white and half orange...followed by a solid brown one of about the same size of the other clump.
So if I am understanding this right...My chams are dehydrated?
I have been worried becuase no matter how much I mist, I have not seen them drink. Do I just need to mist more often for a while?
I know they need the misting, but I also feel bad when I'm doing it because it really freaks them out. At least I think it does. Sometimes their color will start to darken..brownish. Other times, they stay green and just start getting brown spots and brown stripes. Although I think part of it is that they are currently sitting down to low. Later, Tara
Yes, there is a good chance your chameleons are dehydrated. Food type can also affect the color of the urates. What kind of feeders are you offering your chams? I read that you are misting the cage frequently. Are you using a water dripper as well? You may want to try the shower method to help rehydrate your chams if they are big enough. Improvements to your watering methods might be needed.
Tara
New Member
I plan on improving so many things...
The chams are 5 and 1/2 " and 5 and 3/4"...I think Drake said he would guess them to be between 2-4 months. Is this old enough for a shower?
So far they have had crickets and a few mealworms. Mainly crickets right now. I am going to add other foods soon, probably silkies first.
Does a shower encourage them to drink? I do notice that when misting the water does bead up on their skin and mostly roll off. That is when they haven't run and hid under a leaf to get away from the mist. I hate scaring them, but I know they need the misting. Tara
The chams are 5 and 1/2 " and 5 and 3/4"...I think Drake said he would guess them to be between 2-4 months. Is this old enough for a shower?
So far they have had crickets and a few mealworms. Mainly crickets right now. I am going to add other foods soon, probably silkies first.
Does a shower encourage them to drink? I do notice that when misting the water does bead up on their skin and mostly roll off. That is when they haven't run and hid under a leaf to get away from the mist. I hate scaring them, but I know they need the misting. Tara
Prism Chameleons
Established Member
If I remember right you have a pretty young chameleon? How old is he again? If he isn't a baby, here is an old post about how to hydrate your chameleon through the shower method. This is not recommended for baby chameleons as they can drown. I've given instructions on showering and illustrated with photos as well: https://www.chameleonforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=471
I do this quite frequently with my panther chameleons. Once or twice a week if I can.
I do this quite frequently with my panther chameleons. Once or twice a week if I can.
Tara
New Member
Jenna..Can you tell how old they are by size?
I was told I was purchasing "baby veileds"
I have no frame of reference...I just know what their size is.
I just spoke with someone on the phone that is interested in them and he seemed to think they were juveniles.
What do you think?
One is 2 and 1/2" snout to vent...5 and 1/2" total length
The other is
2 and 3/4" snout to vent....and 5 and 3/4" total length
I was told I was purchasing "baby veileds"
I have no frame of reference...I just know what their size is.
I just spoke with someone on the phone that is interested in them and he seemed to think they were juveniles.
What do you think?
One is 2 and 1/2" snout to vent...5 and 1/2" total length
The other is
2 and 3/4" snout to vent....and 5 and 3/4" total length
Tara,
Thanks for the photo. How old was the poop when the photo was taken? From the looks of it I think your cham is dehydrated. I am not an expert, but the condition could easily be in mid stages by now. Increase your misting with warm water; your chameleon will be startled at first, but usually they calm down. After a few minutes of misting (yes, it does take that long) they will probably start drinking. Showers are great too for rehydrating chameleons.
Thanks for the photo. How old was the poop when the photo was taken? From the looks of it I think your cham is dehydrated. I am not an expert, but the condition could easily be in mid stages by now. Increase your misting with warm water; your chameleon will be startled at first, but usually they calm down. After a few minutes of misting (yes, it does take that long) they will probably start drinking. Showers are great too for rehydrating chameleons.
Tara
New Member
I think it was just from that morning
I think the poo was just from early that morning..it wasn't dried up yet.
I found my chams a new home today with someone that has many chams before. I fear they were dehydrated when they arrived. I thought that was normal poo, because it looked like that the first day they arrived. Until I saw this thread, I didn't know that the orange was a sign of dehydration, I thought it was normal.
Jason has promised to keep me updated on how they are doing and send me some pictures. I still get to see them grow up! Tara
I think the poo was just from early that morning..it wasn't dried up yet.
I found my chams a new home today with someone that has many chams before. I fear they were dehydrated when they arrived. I thought that was normal poo, because it looked like that the first day they arrived. Until I saw this thread, I didn't know that the orange was a sign of dehydration, I thought it was normal.
Jason has promised to keep me updated on how they are doing and send me some pictures. I still get to see them grow up! Tara
Tara
New Member
Both
I sold both of them to him. I'm glad I could keep them together, since they seem not to mind having each other around.
I told him everything I knew...down to how I wondered about how healthy they were and about the dehydration. I was selling them for exactly what I paid for them, but I sold them to him for less than that.
At first I was just going to find one of them a new home and get a male. A couple of things bothered me though. Obviously I was worried about how healthy they actually were, and what kind of care they had been recieving. It bothered me too, that when I asked for pictures of each chams parents, they could not provide me with them. He said that they had so many, that there was no way he could do that.
This way I can order my cages with my cham money and get everything set up, test the heat temps and the humidty ranges out and THEN order my new ones.
I thought that I had everything right the first time, based on the advice from the pet store....and keep in mind that they made a pretty penny on what I bought there based on their advice.
This time I will be sure it's all right.
I sold both of them to him. I'm glad I could keep them together, since they seem not to mind having each other around.
I told him everything I knew...down to how I wondered about how healthy they were and about the dehydration. I was selling them for exactly what I paid for them, but I sold them to him for less than that.
At first I was just going to find one of them a new home and get a male. A couple of things bothered me though. Obviously I was worried about how healthy they actually were, and what kind of care they had been recieving. It bothered me too, that when I asked for pictures of each chams parents, they could not provide me with them. He said that they had so many, that there was no way he could do that.
This way I can order my cages with my cham money and get everything set up, test the heat temps and the humidty ranges out and THEN order my new ones.
I thought that I had everything right the first time, based on the advice from the pet store....and keep in mind that they made a pretty penny on what I bought there based on their advice.
This time I will be sure it's all right.
