Shedding issues?

[rotarhead]

Moe has been shedding for at least four days now. It seems to be taking a lot longer than usual and he seems to be having difficulty getting the dead skin off of him. I have misted him to try and help and I believe I'll be giving him a shower today hoping that will help. Is there anything else that can be done? The shed on his head has been there for at least two days now. He is visibly not comfortable and I would like to try to speed up the process for him if possible. I'm attaching pictures so you guys can see his condition. Please let me know if you see anything out of the ordinary or have any advice. Maybe as they age it takes longer to shed so this is normal. If I'm making a big deal out of nothing then no big deal. Thanks.

 

[rotarhead]

The first picture makes his front leg look funky but it is just the angle or something. There are no issues there and his limbs seem all nice and straight.

 

[lindawaz]

Hello,
You can shower him to help that skin come off.

Put him on a plant or branch in your tub/shower. Then have the warm water from the showerhead spray onto the wall. Have him close enough so the water bouncing off the wall hits him. (do not want them to take the direct hit) as you know. It does take longer as they get older and they sometimes just do body parts not whole bodies either. It is frustrating especially since you watched it just pop off in moments as a baby.

The mist and water from the shower will help. Also up your mistings in their cage best of luck!

 

[rotarhead]

Yeah, that's the plan. I just let him come out of the cage and get on his willow tree if he wanted. I opened the cage door and left it up to him. He is now on his willow tree rubbing his face all over the branches. Maybe he wanted/needed another option to rub on? It doesn't seem to be coming off easily though so he will be shower bound here soon. I hope it helps. Just wasn't sure if there was something else that can be done as well, other than moisture. Thanks for the reply.

 

[lindawaz]

Maybe after the shower back on the willow since he seems to want to rub on that. It should be softer after the shower too

 

[ashley9333]

you can get a spray that keeps them hydrated and it also helps them shed im not what its called maybe its vit. spray

 

[rotarhead]

Well, if anything, the shower perked him up a bit. He isn't the dull coloration anymore which is good. Hopefully he will rub on the willow some more and it will help. If not, I'll see what they may have at PetSmart when I get a chance.

 

[koinos]

Curious to know... How do you shower your chameleon, and what are the benefits of this? We've had ours just over a month now so still learning...

 

[camimom]

Curious to know... How do you shower your chameleon, and what are the benefits of this? We've had ours just over a month now so still learning...

get a plant, put it in the shower on the floor, aim the shower head towards the wall, let the water bounce off the wall and lthe mist land on the plant, place chameleon on plant.
Showers are used for shedding issues, dehydration, cleaning females when they have been digging to lay eggs. I do it once a week to both my chams just to get extra water and stuff.

 

[rotarhead]

Just to update. The shower seemed to help. The skin around his eyes are now gone with a little extra rubbing after the shower and most of what was on his head is also gone. There are still parts on his body there but not as much and he seems a bit more relaxed and not so miserable. I have showered him before and he normally hates it. I swear he knows what the shower looks like as he is usually a pain to get off me and onto his plant or to keep on his plant (he usually get down and walks around the shower looking to escape). I left him in there for 20 minutes and he remained on the plant the whole time. I got him out of the shower and his coloring was a lot better, put him back on his willow for some extra branch rubbing which he did right away. I just checked on him (he has been in his enclosure for a while now) and he looks a lot better. If the rest of the shed doesn't come off he will be shower bound again, whether he likes it or not. I won't be in town but my roommate has no problem making sure he hits the shower again if necessary. I guess I will have to start showering him regularly.

 

[camimom]

Just to update. The shower seemed to help. The skin around his eyes are now gone with a little extra rubbing after the shower and most of what was on his head is also gone. There are still parts on his body there but not as much and he seems a bit more relaxed and not so miserable. I have showered him before and he normally hates it. I swear he knows what the shower looks like as he is usually a pain to get off me and onto his plant or to keep on his plant (he usually get down and walks around the shower looking to escape). I left him in there for 20 minutes and he remained on the plant the whole time. I got him out of the shower and his coloring was a lot better, put him back on his willow for some extra branch rubbing which he did right away. I just checked on him (he has been in his enclosure for a while now) and he looks a lot better. If the rest of the shed doesn't come off he will be shower bound again, whether he likes it or not. I won't be in town but my roommate has no problem making sure he hits the shower again if necessary. I guess I will have to start showering him regularly.

glad hes got some of the skin off.
Some chams just have a harder time shedding, I would recommend trying to up your humidity levels, it might help for future sheds.

 

[rotarhead]

His humidity gage in the cage reads an average of 60%, though it can drop in the 50% range at times and climb as high as 90% when the RainDome is on for a long period of time. Is 60% still too low?

 

[camimom]

His humidity gage in the cage reads an average of 60%, though it can drop in the 50% range at times and climb as high as 90% when the RainDome is on for a long period of time. Is 60% still too low?

normally thats a good spot to be when the cage is dry, but if he is having problems with shedding, i would raise it a bit, but not too much as too much humidity can cause a respiratory infectin.

 

[rotarhead]

Alright, thanks for the information.