bbyoda
Chameleon Enthusiast
Hi all,
This morning Yoda didn't follow his usual routine and "slept in" until about 10am. Usually he's up and roaming about by 7:30, after his lights come on. I got an appointment with his vet (Dr. Bruce in Orlando) on Monday afternoon. I'd love your advice on what to ask Dr. Bruce (x-rays? Blood work) to advocate for Yoda, but also any thoughts on what could cause this based on husbandry.
One thought we had is that it was too cold this morning - about 60 at the top of his cage - so we cranked the heat in our home and got it up to 82 in his basking spot and 70 ambient. He started moving about after that.
Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Yoda, Veiled Chameleon. He's little over year old. I got him last March.
Handling - Only for medical reasons or pruning back and rearranging cage. We took him outside once and it freaked him out but will try again in the summer so he gets natural sun.
Feeding - I feed two bugs every 3 days now that he's fully grown. Usually roaches or silkworms, superworms and hornworms for treats. I feed the roaches and superworms greens (mustard, collard, turnip), carrots, sweet potatoes, and a mix of spirulina, bee pollen, ground flax seed, and chlorella.
Supplements -
Reptivite with D3 every two weeks
Rep-cal calcium (no phos or D3) for the other feedings
Watering - mistking goes over for 90 seconds at 8am and 12am. I have a fogger that runs from 1-3am. I don't see him drinking but his urates are white and firm. They used to be runny and my bioactive soil was getting too wet so I cut misting down from 3 min over the course of a month.
Fecal Description - haven't seen one this past week since he's pooping less as an adult and likes to poop in a bromeliad, but the ones I saw last week were solid. Urates looked firm and white. He has been tested for parasites. Had coccidia but I cleared that up before moving him to this adult cage. He had pinworms after that which was treated but not re-tested for.
History - the issues with the parasites described above. He also had some minor casque burns that we treated with silvadene. He gets alarmed when I'm near unless I'm holding food, so most pictures I have of him his eyes are sucked in. It makes these online diagnoses tougher! Also, we did recently spray for fleas but I took precautions to remove him and his feeders from the room that day and cover his cage and materials with plastic sheeting to protect the cage, cuc, and plants.
Cage Info:
Cage Type - Dragon strand screen with pvc back. 2×2×4.
Lighting - Reptisun 5.0. solarmeter UVB rating varies in different branch spots but there are places where he can get 2.5-3 and places where he can get less. His basking lamp is zoo med 75w. His basking branch gets to about 80 degrees. I'm using a probe on the branch to measure the temp.
Temperature - it's about 60-65 at night so I can fog. Then 70-75 throughout the day. Basking spot is 80 at the branch. I have a flukers thermometer outside the cage to measure the room temps, a probe inside on the basking branch, and a temp gun. My govee bluetooth tracker kicked the bucket sadly! I put it in a bad position in the cage and it got misted.
Humidity - I'm in Florida so they're pretty high throughout the day. I turn on a humidifier to get it down to 40 in the morning. Then I let it climb naturally in th afternoon and evening. I have a computer fan on top of the cage to keep air circulating.
Plants - yes - bromeliad, umbrella plant, airplane, ficus, and pitcher plant. I have a bioactive setup.
Placement - corner of a room on top of a table so he's nice and high. My work office is in the room but otherwise not high trafficked, not under a vent, and no cats are allowed in the back room.
Location - Orlando, FL.
Current Problem - Yoda was roosting in his sleepy spot at 10am instead of doing his usual routine. Once we turned up the heat in the house he started moving around. He's basked for a bit and done his rounds. He's got good grip. I don't see him gaping or breathing strangely.
So...what do you think? Any advice on what to tweak? Any thoughts on what I should tell and ask the vet on Monday?
This morning Yoda didn't follow his usual routine and "slept in" until about 10am. Usually he's up and roaming about by 7:30, after his lights come on. I got an appointment with his vet (Dr. Bruce in Orlando) on Monday afternoon. I'd love your advice on what to ask Dr. Bruce (x-rays? Blood work) to advocate for Yoda, but also any thoughts on what could cause this based on husbandry.
One thought we had is that it was too cold this morning - about 60 at the top of his cage - so we cranked the heat in our home and got it up to 82 in his basking spot and 70 ambient. He started moving about after that.
Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Yoda, Veiled Chameleon. He's little over year old. I got him last March.
Handling - Only for medical reasons or pruning back and rearranging cage. We took him outside once and it freaked him out but will try again in the summer so he gets natural sun.
Feeding - I feed two bugs every 3 days now that he's fully grown. Usually roaches or silkworms, superworms and hornworms for treats. I feed the roaches and superworms greens (mustard, collard, turnip), carrots, sweet potatoes, and a mix of spirulina, bee pollen, ground flax seed, and chlorella.
Supplements -
Reptivite with D3 every two weeks
Rep-cal calcium (no phos or D3) for the other feedings
Watering - mistking goes over for 90 seconds at 8am and 12am. I have a fogger that runs from 1-3am. I don't see him drinking but his urates are white and firm. They used to be runny and my bioactive soil was getting too wet so I cut misting down from 3 min over the course of a month.
Fecal Description - haven't seen one this past week since he's pooping less as an adult and likes to poop in a bromeliad, but the ones I saw last week were solid. Urates looked firm and white. He has been tested for parasites. Had coccidia but I cleared that up before moving him to this adult cage. He had pinworms after that which was treated but not re-tested for.
History - the issues with the parasites described above. He also had some minor casque burns that we treated with silvadene. He gets alarmed when I'm near unless I'm holding food, so most pictures I have of him his eyes are sucked in. It makes these online diagnoses tougher! Also, we did recently spray for fleas but I took precautions to remove him and his feeders from the room that day and cover his cage and materials with plastic sheeting to protect the cage, cuc, and plants.
Cage Info:
Cage Type - Dragon strand screen with pvc back. 2×2×4.
Lighting - Reptisun 5.0. solarmeter UVB rating varies in different branch spots but there are places where he can get 2.5-3 and places where he can get less. His basking lamp is zoo med 75w. His basking branch gets to about 80 degrees. I'm using a probe on the branch to measure the temp.
Temperature - it's about 60-65 at night so I can fog. Then 70-75 throughout the day. Basking spot is 80 at the branch. I have a flukers thermometer outside the cage to measure the room temps, a probe inside on the basking branch, and a temp gun. My govee bluetooth tracker kicked the bucket sadly! I put it in a bad position in the cage and it got misted.
Humidity - I'm in Florida so they're pretty high throughout the day. I turn on a humidifier to get it down to 40 in the morning. Then I let it climb naturally in th afternoon and evening. I have a computer fan on top of the cage to keep air circulating.
Plants - yes - bromeliad, umbrella plant, airplane, ficus, and pitcher plant. I have a bioactive setup.
Placement - corner of a room on top of a table so he's nice and high. My work office is in the room but otherwise not high trafficked, not under a vent, and no cats are allowed in the back room.
Location - Orlando, FL.
Current Problem - Yoda was roosting in his sleepy spot at 10am instead of doing his usual routine. Once we turned up the heat in the house he started moving around. He's basked for a bit and done his rounds. He's got good grip. I don't see him gaping or breathing strangely.
So...what do you think? Any advice on what to tweak? Any thoughts on what I should tell and ask the vet on Monday?
