Rescued an adult male Veiled today, advice appreciated

[KLowery88]

Today I took in an adult male Veiled Chameleon from a man whose son had left it in his care. He seems to have several health issues and I would appreciate any advice as I research. He took the chameleon to the vet a few days ago (I heard about him from a friend who works at the vet office). Currently the chameleon is suffering from constipation and dehydration, and I believe either has MBD or at the very least, has suffered from it in the past.

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Veiled male, been in care less than one day
• Handling - So far just to move from old cage to new one.
• Feeding - Haven't fed yet, previous owner fed superworms, mealworms, and crickets. I will be feeding a mix of superworms and discoid roaches. I have some hornworms ordered and on their way to try and help with the dehydration.
• Supplements - Previous owner dusted with calcium and D3, but I'm not sure how often or how much.
• Watering - I have a dripper set up and have been misting
• Fecal Description - No droppings yet. Went a lot time without pooping which prompted his previous owner taking him to the vet. He seems to have some caked around his vent, which I applied some mineral oil to to try and soften it up. The vet also orally gave him some mineral oil to help out.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Screen, 16x16x30.
• Lighting - Previous UVB was coil based, so I switched to a Reptisun 10.0 tube
• Temperature - Will have to double check these when I get home from work. I had to scramble to get everything set up and had to leave before temperature and humidity normalized.
• Humidity - Will have to double check these when I get home from work. I had to scramble to get everything set up and had to leave before temperature and humidity normalized.
• Plants - I have a live pothos in the cage, will try and pick up another to fill space as the pothos was kept from trailing.
• Placement - In the spare bedroom on a dresser
• Location - North Florida

Current Problem - I'm mostly concerned about his general health and hydration levels since his eyes seem sunken to me. He also seems rather weak and uncoordinated in the limbs, especially his back limbs. What else can I do to help with hydration? I think I've seen some threads recommend taking him into the shower. Would that work well for him? So far I have yet to see him drink, though he did sit and stare at the dripper when I was leaving for work.

I have experience with blue tongue skinks, bearded dragons, crested geckos, and boas, but chams are new. I've been reading up on all the care sheets and threads I can, but I would love more experienced input. I plan on trying to get his vet records tomorrow if possible, as I'm only going off of what his previous owner said, and also working more on the cage to fill empty spaces.

Hopefully I covered everything. Please let me know if I left out any details that might be relevant to helping the little guy.

 

[jannb]

Welcome to the forums. Thank you for taking that little man in. He does look rough and I'm hoping with some TLC you can get him straightened out. You need to get him drinking. I recommend misting for a very, very long time.....like 20 to 30 minutes. If you can't do that then I recommend a shower. Not drinking can also make them constipated. As soon as you get a poop I highly recommend a fecal to check for parasites. Soon he will need a bigger enclosure. Adult males need at least a 48 inch high enclosure. I'll see if I can find a blog for you on how to give a shower. If I can find it I'll attach it below.

 

[GrimCamel]

His back leg looks like a typical case of MBD. It could actuallt be broken. An X-ray would tall for sure
Its ok to take him into the shower and get is drinking reflexes going, be prepared to sit there for a long turn. Some have said an hour would be enough for their chams so I would go with something like that
As for the enclosure, more vines could always do. As he seems to have MBD he could be falling alot so maybe a towel in the bottom in case he'll be falling.
Just some quick tips here. Listen to members like Jannb just above. They know what they're doing

 

[jannb]

I agree that that back leg does look bad. The vet should have at least put him on liquid calcium.

Here's the shower blog. As mentioned above be sure he doesn't fall or he could get hurt worse.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/entry/shower-chamber-treatment.594/

 

[KLowery88]

Welcome to the forums. Thank you for taking that little man in. He does look rough and I'm hoping with some TLC you can get him straightened out. You need to get him drinking. I recommend misting for a very, very long time.....like 20 to 30 minutes. If you can't do that then I recommend a shower. Not drinking can also make them constipated. As soon as you get a poop I highly recommend a fecal to check for parasites. Soon he will need a bigger enclosure. Adult males need at least a 48 inch high enclosure. I'll see if I can find a blog for you on how to give a shower. If I can find it I'll attach it below.

I agree that that back leg does look bad. The vet should have at least put him on liquid calcium.

Here's the shower blog. As mentioned above be sure he doesn't fall or he could get hurt worse.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/entry/shower-chamber-treatment.594/

Thank you very much. I figured he would need a bigger enclosure but this was the largest screen enclosure I could find at short notice. Hopefully he'll be okay with it as he recovers. I'm also hoping he gives me the coveted poop sample so the vet can prescribe Panacur if needed. I'll weigh him tomorrow before I give him a shower to get a baseline weight. As for the liquid calcium, the previous owner didn't seem too clear on what all the vet did. He said they gave him a shot, so I'm hoping that was liquid calcium. I'll see what answers I can get tomorrow.

His back leg looks like a typical case of MBD. It could actuallt be broken. An X-ray would tall for sure
Its ok to take him into the shower and get is drinking reflexes going, be prepared to sit there for a long turn. Some have said an hour would be enough for their chams so I would go with something like that
As for the enclosure, more vines could always do. As he seems to have MBD he could be falling alot so maybe a towel in the bottom in case he'll be falling.
Just some quick tips here. Listen to members like Jannb just above. They know what they're doing

Even quick tips are appreciated! Just trying to soak up all the chameleon knowledge I can. I plan to get more horizontal pieces for him. Just need to pick up some wire/zip ties to secure everything. I want to make sure it's all solid since he's a bit unsteady.

 

[wodesorel]

He's lucky you saved him!

I just rescued my first cham not long ago, and she was in a similar conditions but not nearly as bad healthwise. I have never seen her drink. She was dehydrated when I got her and I tried the shower trick but she would fall asleep every time. What I did was keep the dripper going all day long, and fed really juicy foods and she came around a lot faster than I had hoped for. Hopefully the vet records and/or a vet visitcan get you jumpstarted on recovery.

 

[KLowery88]

He's lucky you saved him!

I just rescued my first cham not long ago, and she was in a similar conditions but not nearly as bad healthwise. I have never seen her drink. She was dehydrated when I got her and I tried the shower trick but she would fall asleep every time. What I did was keep the dripper going all day long, and fed really juicy foods and she came around a lot faster than I had hoped for. Hopefully the vet records and/or a vet visitcan get you jumpstarted on recovery.

Your thread was one I just finished reading through, lol. I was glad to see your girl turn around, so hopefully I can get my guy to do the same. He's fiesty and has some fight in him, which I'm glad about. I'm hoping he'll take to the hornworms, I know my beardie loves them.

 

[kinyonga]

Hope you can help this poor chameleon...but he's in very rough condition.
The left knee definitely has/had an issue.
I don't like the way the belly is sagging and I don't like the look of the vent.

Has he been eating? If not...you can't expect poop. Was there substrate in his cage?

The sunken eye can be from dehydration but if a chameleon is sick from something else then you need to figure out what it is and correct that as well as keeping him hydrated in the meantime.

 

[KLowery88]

Hope you can help this poor chameleon...but he's in very rough condition.
The left knee definitely has/had an issue.
I don't like the way the belly is sagging and I don't like the look of the vent.

Has he been eating? If not...you can't expect poop. Was there substrate in his cage?

The sunken eye can be from dehydration but if a chameleon is sick from something else then you need to figure out what it is and correct that as well as keeping him hydrated in the meantime.

I did not try feeding him today since it was getting on to late afternoon before I had him settled in his new cage. I plan on trying tomorrow morning. His previous owner said he was eating "okay" but he also thought the chameleon's health in general was "okay." There was no substrate in his previous cage.

Whatever I hear from the vet I'll relay here. I expect to get more detailed answers from them (the previous owner wasn't very knowledgeable so his answers were rather vague), and we'll see where we go in his treatment.

 

[wodesorel]

Make sure the previous owners have called and given permission for the vet to speak to you or for records to be released. Most places treat animal health care much like human healthcare - nothing gets released without owner approval. When we did vet checks at a shelter I worked for years ago many offices would not even confirm if a person was a client of theirs.

 

[KLowery88]

Make sure the previous owners have called and given permission for the vet to speak to you or for records to be released. Most places treat animal health care much like human healthcare - nothing gets released without owner approval. When we did vet checks at a shelter I worked for years ago many offices would not even confirm if a person was a client of theirs.

Will do.

 

[KLowery88]

Well the vet's office is closed today so I won't get answers from them until tomorrow.

Tried the shower method for about 45 minutes and I don't think I saw him drink. I sat behind a partially drawn curtain for some of the time to see if he might drink without me hovering. I didn't want to leave him completely since he's still so weak and I'm afraid of him falling. I'll try again tomorrow.

Also tried offering him some roaches and then superworms, but he didn't show any interest. I'll leave the bowl in his cage and see if he eats any while I'm gone.

 

[ashmichaelson]

Bless you for taking this dude in on short notice. Chameleons are so complicated to take care of sometimes, and it takes someone who's willing to sacrifice quite a bit of time to take care of them, especially if they're injured or ill. I'm always super impressed when people can pull it off

As far as the eating and drinking goes, chameleons can be very shy and wont do it if someone is even in the room with them. My Pascal is like that sometimes, I don't think I have ever seen her drink. His eyes look a bit better than they did in the first pictures, so hopefully this means that he's hydrated a bit more. As far as the food goes: patience. I'm sure he'll come around

Also, do you have a name for him? I apologize if you've already said it in the thread and I just skimmed over it.

 

[brownie64]

Just curious does his pupils always look like that or am I just looking at what the flash did?

 

[KLowery88]

Bless you for taking this dude in on short notice. Chameleons are so complicated to take care of sometimes, and it takes someone who's willing to sacrifice quite a bit of time to take care of them, especially if they're injured or ill. I'm always super impressed when people can pull it off

As far as the eating and drinking goes, chameleons can be very shy and wont do it if someone is even in the room with them. My Pascal is like that sometimes, I don't think I have ever seen her drink. His eyes look a bit better than they did in the first pictures, so hopefully this means that he's hydrated a bit more. As far as the food goes: patience. I'm sure he'll come around

Also, do you have a name for him? I apologize if you've already said it in the thread and I just skimmed over it.

I'm glad to hear about the shyness, so I'll try to stop hovering like a mother hen so much. I really like the little guy so I hope he perks up. I know a bit of it is probably also adjustment to the new surroundings.

At the moment his name is Monty, courtesy of my husband.

Just curious does his pupils always look like that or am I just looking at what the flash did?

That's a good question, and one I was going to post about. His one turret and eye on his right side look normal with typical pupil function (to my untrained eye), but I'm wondering if the one on the left side suffered an injury since it is so much more sunken in and the pupil seems to be permanently constricted. The photos were taken without flash.

 

[Jahnna64]

I am glad to read that you have hornworms coming in. When they come I would try to have him eat those as they have lost of water in them and that will help him get some water. I really hope this little guys health will improve and so kind of you to take him in! Sending positive vibes to you and Monty

 

[KLowery88]

I am glad to read that you have hornworms coming in. When they come I would try to have him eat those as they have lost of water in them and that will help him get some water. I really hope this little guys health will improve and so kind of you to take him in! Sending positive vibes to you and Monty

From watching my bearded dragon chomp them in half I definitely know they are juicy! They should get here by Friday or Saturday, which will coincide well with some warmer temperatures here in north Florida. I'm hoping to get him outside for some nice natural sun this weekend, maybe even tomorrow morning if temps get high enough before I have to leave for work.

 

[KLowery88]

Someone was a bit feistier this morning.







This Saturday I have an appointment to talk to his vet and they'll be calling the previous owner to get his permission to hand over his vet records.

 

[wodesorel]

Awesome! He looks great, considering.

 

[Lathis]

I think he will brighten up wonderfully with some love and care. You can just see those spectacular colors hiding in there. Best of luck to both of you!