Potential rescue?

[beardiebaby19]

Hi! I am fairly new to the chameleon world. I have been around reptiles my entire life, however, and have put a lot of research into chameleons, as I have always really wanted one. Yesterday, I found an ad for a cham and the setup for only $75, since the owner is unsure of what is wrong with her Cham.
I took a good look at the picture and I already noticed many things about what could be wrong. The owner has seemed like they’re trying to help, as they offered to lower the price to get him/her into a good home. Here is the picture from the ad.

The ad doesn’t specify the species, and the image is blurry, but it looks like a veiled to me. I immediately noticed the uvb bulb and knew I would have to replace it with the tube (luckily, I already have one that would fit!) and I have a heat bulb that would work quite well. There doesn’t seem to be any drippers, and the Viv looks extremely dry, though you can only tell so much through a photo. I can’t really see the cham to determine what could be wrong with it, but in the post the owner had said that he/she wasn’t active. This could be due to many things, such as inadequate uvb, heat, moisture, or malnutrition. I would have to take a good look at it to see. They also said he hated to be held, which is understandable with chams. I’d immediately add some more plants. Is there anything else to consider setup-wise?

 

[The Wild One]

For plants since veileds sometimes eat them, Id put in some pothos, wandering jew etc. and take you the plastic ones. Imo, that cage looks dreadfully close to the Chameleon Kit, can you get the dimensions? that setup may be too small for it. Try and contact the owners and see if you can get more pics, history, gender things like that. Yes, it is a veiled and if its a girl it looks around the age for a lay bin. When and if you plan on getting her I would get a fecal done as soon as possible and have some horn worms on hand. Hope everything goes ok!

 

[beardiebaby19]

I have plenty of Pothos plants on hand lol, so I think I am all set there. I have looked up a list of non-toxic plants, so I would plan to get more. I am trying to contact the owner now. They for sure do not know the gender, and I can’t see anything in the picture that would help me. I would most likely replace the cage when I got the money. The owner had said the cage was a little warped, and I noticed it was a bit smaller. I will get the dimensions when I can. Thank you for your help!

 

[Carlton]

Before you pay anything for a sick cham I'd look it over carefully in person, maybe even having a vet look at it. Check for obvious things like intestinal or hemipene prolapses, swollen or crusted eyes, blocked nares, sores in its mouth, swollen or damaged claws/feet, crooked limbs (MBD), etc. If the poor thing is responsive at all there's a chance to save it. If it is sitting unresponsive, eyes shut, dehydrated to the point of organ failure, and ignoring the world, offer to TAKE it off their hands. You will be needing a vet visit immediately most likely so don't forget that cost, in addition to improving the setup so anything could survive in it. I suppose you feel you can justify paying $ for it because you are getting a minimal cage even if the cham doesn't survive, but still, you are rewarding this keeper for not doing any research into the needs of this animal before buying it. Not something that does anyone much good, including future animals she might buy with the money she gets from you. We've all been in your shoes believe me. We've all had to resist temptation too. Losing a pet due to your ignorance and not being able to coerce someone else into relieving you of the responsibility when things get too inconvenient is a harsh lesson.

 

[Ares05]

Could you post some up close pictures of him/her?