Veiled chameleon

sarahgeorge

sarahgeorge

New Member
So hey I don't know where to start lol I've had my chameleon back and to to vets recently about 3 different vets in total the 1st one said she wasn't getting enough calcium and put her on nutrobal so I've been giving that but apparently ive gave her too much so I got that checked out but lately she's been going really down hill some of her tail is ready to fall off she has suddenly got a black lump on her right back leg and she's prolapsing every time she poops I really don't know what to do anymore I've spent £150 in vets bills recently and they aren't helping I've had her about a year now and I've recently changed her UVB bulb (10.0) temp in the tank is at 81f under basking spot and the humidity is at 75% this is my first ever chameleon
 
Wow that is a lot of bad things happening with her. My recommendation is if she has had that much care done already and there isn't any improvement, AND you don't have the money to keep going back...Put her to sleep. I mean a prolapse is extremely serious and can lead to death anyway. Obviously your vet, and I mean this kindly, does not have enough experience and is playing a guessing game. This just seems like a horrible situation to me. But anyway although I do not want to waste time with the help form, it is best you fill it out to show us the way you take care of her.
 
Sorry to hear you've had such problems with your first Cham, is she prolapsing literally every time? How many times? Could you post a pic of her?
 
Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - veiled chameleon, female, I've had her a year
Handling - I handle her every day she's very tame
Feeding - I feed her wax worms, crickets, moths I put a tiny bit of nutrolbal on every 2 weeks every day or 2 days
Supplements - nutrobal at the moment
Watering - I have a spray bottle normally 3 or 4 times a day and I have a dripper
Fecal Description - Her poops Normaly healthy and she's Normaly a healthy colour until she poops and goes pale!!
History - she's got swollen ankle from calcium

Cage Info:
Cage Type -its glass it's a exo terra one a medium I don't know the measurements
Lighting - Exo terra UVB bulb 10.0 and exo terra 100w
Temperature - 81f in basking spot and drops to 75ish f at night
Humidity - 75% - 80%
Plants - I have fake leaves and vines
Placement - it's in my room on top of a drawer not near a fan or window
Location - Carlisle Cumbria uk

Current Problem - prolapsing, black lump on back right leg and some of the tail is going to drop off


I'll post some pics up tomorrow when I can get onto a laptop and get photos
 
How much d3 does the Nutrobal have? This forum mostly recommends plain calcium (no d3) for everyday. A calcium with d3 twice a month, and a multivit twice a month.
It looks to me like the mark on her back leg is a burn, her tail could be too. The swelling might be edema or gout (not from too much Calcium though maybe too much d3 has contributed).
Her poops should have a brown and a white part (if the white urate section is yellow or orange this would indicate dehydration).
Do you take her in for the vet to help her every time she prolapses? Has she had any stitches put in?
 
DavidBuchan said:
How much d3 does the Nutrobal have? This forum mostly recommends plain calcium (no d3) for everyday. A calcium with d3 twice a month, and a multivit twice a month.
It looks to me like the mark on her back leg is a burn, her tail could be too. The swelling might be edema or gout (not from too much Calcium though maybe too much d3 has contributed).
Her poops should have a brown and a white part (if the white urate section is yellow or orange this would indicate dehydration).
Do you take her in for the vet to help her every time she prolapses? Has she had any stitches put in?
Click to expand...

I agree, you may be over supplementing her if she is having an edema. I agree with Dave also that the black spots do look very much like burns.

For the prolapse you really need to take her in. You do make it sound like every time she poops it goes out but then it goes back in, which is weird. I would go to the vet again
 
Erm I dunno I haven't checked the vets kept her in to have a X-ray and she said its just build up calcium around her ankles ohh hmm yeah her poop is fine just a little yellow but I'm sorting that I've been to 3 different vets about this and there just useless really
 
DavidBuchan said:
How much d3 does the Nutrobal have? This forum mostly recommends plain calcium (no d3) for everyday. A calcium with d3 twice a month, and a multivit twice a month.
It looks to me like the mark on her back leg is a burn, her tail could be too. The swelling might be edema or gout (not from too much Calcium though maybe too much d3 has contributed).
Her poops should have a brown and a white part (if the white urate section is yellow or orange this would indicate dehydration).
Do you take her in for the vet to help her every time she prolapses? Has she had any stitches put in?
Click to expand...

Nutrabol has 1501u d3. 200mgs calcium
 
Kate said:
Nutrabol has 1501u d3. 200mgs calcium
Click to expand...

That's not really much d3........probably meant for everyday use.......I'm not sure about the swelling so I don't really know what to recommend. I didn't think about the prolapse going back in by itself. Also on one of the photos she has a kind of masculine pattern......does she have a spur on her back ankle? - http://www.veiled-chameleon.com/care-sheet.html Maybe it's a male flashing his hemipenes?
 
Ah she does have them on the feets hmm it's just cause she's tiny my friend got a male at the same time as me and his is a huge male
 
sarahgeorge said:
Ah she does have them on the feets hmm it's just cause she's tiny my friend got a male at the same time as me and his is a huge male
Click to expand...

If all your vets missed that then you really are going to the wrong vets :rolleyes:
If George is a male then higher temps and more food would make him grow faster. Maybe you got the runt of the litter here and was always going to have problems. Are these pics all recent? That would be a very small casque for a 1 year old male.....
 
LOL those spurs are hard to miss! Good thing you found out now though :D and you can go back there and tell them they were wrong. Like Dave said higher basking temps and a bit more food for him.
 
Oh I don't know I put the box of crickets in there and he goes wild at them lol he does eat a lot I want to buy him a plant but don't know where sells in the uk
 
Hi Sarah, sounds like you and George have been through a lot lately. I have a veiled named George too! Yours is indeed a male by those pictures.

Is it just the one ankle or are all the ankles swollen? There are a few things it could be: gout (caused by buildup of uric acid crystals usually from excessive animal proteins in the diet) - gout usually affects all joints so if it's multiple joints affected this makes this more likely. In a single joint it may be an abscess of that joint, which often requires surgically cleaning it out because antibiotics just won't do it alone - could be bacterial or fungal. It could be some arthritis, or a poorly healed fracture. His legs look nice and straight so he doesn't appear to have metabolic bone disease from lack of calcium, however he is small for his age so it's possible. I'm much more worried about an abscess in that joint.

The tail and dark spot on the back ankle are definitely concerning. Those areas could be infected already or get infected if the tissue has died (which it appears that it has) with bacteria or fungus. If the area on the tail especially looks like it's spreading then the tail should be amputated to stop the spread.

If he prolapses when he poops but it goes back in and doesn't get stuck out then that is okay. It's when it gets stuck that it's dangerous.

He is small for his age if you've had him for a year. What have you been feeding his crickets and what supplements were you using before the nutrobol? And how many crickets are in the box you give him?

The other problem I see is his cage. A medium exoterra is not big enough for an adult male veiled. He should be in a minimum of 18x18x36" (45x45x90cm) but 24x24x48" (60x60x120cm) would actually be more appropriate. In glass cages the humidity can remain high enough to allow bacteria and fungi to grow, and take root in areas that are damaged (like if the foot was burned).

He has a couple of problems currently so it sounds like he may still need more vet care and needs an investment in a cage upgrade regardless.
 
It's just 1 ankle what's swollen I'm gonna try and find another vet around my area what knows stuff about reptiles I think your right about it having an infection I'm gonna look into bigger cages and probably mesh
 
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