World, Meet Proteus

[Rogue]

After months of research, prep, cage building, and picking a breeder we meshed with, THE day finally arrived! He just landed this morning so he is clearly not happy with Mom in these pictures lol. He ran out of his container straight to his basking spot but is already eyeballing his buffet of Dubias and Supers lol. He has such bright red markings and he had a lot of teal blues showing when we first opened his shipping box. At only 3 months old, he is already showing a TON of color variations. We are excited and proud new parents!

Um, who are you, hooman?

I puffs up and shows you how bigs I REALLY am, new hoomans! Fear me!

 

[laurie]

After months of research, prep, cage building, and picking a breeder we meshed with, THE day finally arrived! He just landed this morning so he is clearly not happy with Mom in these pictures lol. He ran out of his container straight to his basking spot but is already eyeballing his buffet of Dubias and Supers lol. He has such bright red markings and he had a lot of teal blues showing when we first opened his shipping box. At only 3 months old, he is already showing a TON of color variations. We are excited and proud new parents!


View attachment 189077 Um, who are you, hooman?


View attachment 189078 I puffs up and shows you how bigs I REALLY am, new hoomans! Fear me!

Just give him a while, he will get you whipped into shape! He looks a lot like my beloved Pickle. Congrats

 

[Rogue]

Just give him a while, he will get you whipped into shape! He looks a lot like my beloved Pickle. Congrats

I was glad to see he didn't display his "dark side" (that's what his breeder calls it lol) for but a moment. He immediately lightened in color when he jumped out of the shipping container into his huge cage (it is 2' deep, 3' wide, 4' tall and on it's base, stands 7' tall) so I was glad to see that. He is now turned around basking and laying down so he can watch his lunch move around haha! He is used to being on a much smaller enclosure and hunting his food so I am sure it's very strange that they are in a stainless steel bowl, wiggling.

We won't interact with him for a good two weeks. He has a lot of exploring to do and acclimate with so we will give him his space. He is used to being handled so after that time frame, I will give hand feeding a try. It's so hard not to just watch him tho lol

 

[Rogue]

Welllll, that didn't take long! Had to make a few minor cage adjustments, little booger!

 

[Rogue]

So, it is officially lights out for the little guy. He LOVES his mister, even sits in front of it when it goes off but like a goof, he started to body sway at it. I am a bit concerned... we gave him some dubias and supers thinking he would go nuts since his last meal was Tuesday but we also understand today has been extremely stress full for him. When lights went off, we took out all of his feeders and covered his viv. Is it normal for panthers to not eat the first night at their new home from all the stress and change?

 

[Kristen Wilkins]

So, it is officially lights out for the little guy. He LOVES his mister, even sits in front of it when it goes off but like a goof, he started to body sway at it. I am a bit concerned... we gave him some dubias and supers thinking he would go nuts since his last meal was Tuesday but we also understand today has been extremely stress full for him. When lights went off, we took out all of his feeders and covered his viv. Is it normal for panthers to not eat the first night at their new home from all the stress and change?

Congratulations . Yes it's very normal . Just keep an eye that he's hydrating .

 

[Scottsquatch]

Congrats Rogue! He is a handsome looking boy. Do you have any pics of his sire?

 

[Rogue]

Congrats Rogue! He is a handsome looking boy. Do you have any pics of his sire?

Thank you! Here is a picture of his sire and grand sire

 

[Rogue]

Congratulations . Yes it's very normal . Just keep an eye that he's hydrating .

He is definitely drinking. Thank you, I am a very over cautious Mommy.

 

[Monta]

He is definitely drinking. Thank you, I am a very over cautious Mommy.

That cautiousness never goes away... i like to wake up before he does and make sure I watch him get his first long drink of the day.im so paranoid about dehydration .

 

[Rogue]

Update: It has taken all morning for me to be able to write this because I am so overcome with guilt. Last night when my husband and I went to sleep, we allowed our adopted kitten (he is 11 months old) to freely roam the house because he had shown no interest in Proteus and his covered cage.
My husband woke me early this morning holding Proteus in his hand. Proteus was dark, eyes closed, and had a slice on his left side which could have been caused either by the screen or by Loki, the kitten. He was still breathing. I ran in the living room and saw the tennis ball sized hole that Loki made.
Proteus was wrapped in warm wet soft paper towel and in his carrier. He grabbed his branch in the carrier but laid down. While my husband was calling the emergency animal clinics (it was 5 am), I was trying to get him to take a few drops of water to drink. At the same time, I was balling with tears. Not even 24 hours in our care, and a huge fuck up on our part occurred. I saw some black fur in his mouth so I know the little guy tried his best to fight back.

Proteus was rushed to an emergency clinic with an exotic vet. I stayed home because I am both sick and because of the emotional ball of mess I have been. We received word from the vet that he is ok and recovering and we can pick him up this evening. Thank the Gods, the slice in his side was only flesh-deep.

Please, please no harsh comments. No one is beating me up over this more than myself. I have planned and loved this little one for months. I promised his breeder to give him a loving home and take the best care of him. All I can think about is how in less than 24 hours I managed to fail Proteus and his breeder with my stupidity. I am eternally grateful to his vet and the clinic.
I am positive we will have antibiotics, etc. along with hourly care for awhile. The vet said his biggest concern was infection, but since his viv was brand new as is his carrier, he has a good prognosis. I am proud that my little guy stood up against Loki through it all. I feel beyond terrible and I have spent the day crying. He depends on us to love, care, and protect him, and I failed.
I will post pictures and updates after we pick him up. I am destroyed and devestated.

 

[Rogue]

Note: While in his carrier waiting to be rushed to the clinic, he accepted sips of water from a medicine syringe.

 

[Kristen Wilkins]

Update: It has taken all morning for me to be able to write this because I am so overcome with guilt. Last night when my husband and I went to sleep, we allowed our adopted kitten (he is 11 months old) to freely roam the house because he had shown no interest in Proteus and his covered cage.
My husband woke me early this morning holding Proteus in his hand. Proteus was dark, eyes closed, and had a slice on his left side which could have been caused either by the screen or by Loki, the kitten. He was still breathing. I ran in the living room and saw the tennis ball sized hole that Loki made.
Proteus was wrapped in warm wet soft paper towel and in his carrier. He grabbed his branch in the carrier but laid down. While my husband was calling the emergency animal clinics (it was 5 am), I was trying to get him to take a few drops of water to drink. At the same time, I was balling with tears. Not even 24 hours in our care, and a huge fuck up on our part occurred. I saw some black fur in his mouth so I know the little guy tried his best to fight back.

Proteus was rushed to an emergency clinic with an exotic vet. I stayed home because I am both sick and because of the emotional ball of mess I have been. We received word from the vet that he is ok and recovering and we can pick him up this evening. Thank the Gods, the slice in his side was only flesh-deep.

Please, please no harsh comments. No one is beating me up over this more than myself. I have planned and loved this little one for months. I promised his breeder to give him a loving home and take the best care of him. All I can think about is how in less than 24 hours I managed to fail Proteus and his breeder with my stupidity. I am eternally grateful to his vet and the clinic.
I am positive we will have antibiotics, etc. along with hourly care for awhile. The vet said his biggest concern was infection, but since his viv was brand new as is his carrier, he has a good prognosis. I am proud that my little guy stood up against Loki through it all. I feel beyond terrible and I have spent the day crying. He depends on us to love, care, and protect him, and I failed.
I will post pictures and updates after we pick him up. I am destroyed and devestated.

@Rogue im so so sorry to hear this . You have to be Heart sick !!. That's not the lesson you want 24 hours into a new chameleon or ever expect . I will be praying for a full recover . Please keep us posted .

 

[Rogue]

@Rogue im so so sorry to hear this . You have to be Heart sick !!. That's not the lesson you want 24 hours into a new chameleon or ever expect . I will be praying for a full recover . Please keep us posted .

Thank you for your kindness. I am absolutely torn up and I feel like an awful cham mommy. I will definitely update after we go get him. That poor baby has been thru hell in the last few days.

 

[laurie]

Thanks, I have to go somewhere and I am crying! You are an excellent Cham Mom or he would be dead. You made a mistake, that does make you human, but not a bad keeper! I still love your boy and you! Let me know how he is doing and if I can help in any way!

 

[Kristen Wilkins]

Thank you for your kindness. I am absolutely torn up and I feel like an awful cham mommy. I will definitely update after we go get him. That poor baby has been thru hell in the last few days.

You could not have ever guessed that would have happened . I'm positive you would not have allowed the kitten to have been out . It was a terrible accident .

 

[Rogue]

Thanks, I have to go somewhere and I am crying! You are an excellent Cham Mom or he would be dead. You made a mistake, that does make you human, but not a bad keeper! I still love your boy and you! Let me know how he is doing and if I can help in any way!

Thank you for that. I won't feel better until I see my baby. I just can't believe I let this happen. One thing is for sure.... I won't sleep much for the next few months making sure he is healthy and safe. It was such a stupid thing for me to do.

We are thinking about changing his name to Laoch which is Gaelic for warrior. I'm sorry I made you cry But thank you for your kind words and easing my guilt ♡

 

[Rogue]

You could not have ever guessed that would have happened . I'm positive you would not have allowed the kitten to have been out . It was a terrible accident .

I hate how my mind and emotions work hand in hand at punishing myself. This baby relied on me and even after all the research I did, I still found a way to screw something up. I just feel terrible beyond words but I am thankful he survived. It certainly could have been so much worse.

 

[Karancon]

Prayers for you all....and the kitten is a kitten.....keep us posted....I worried the first time we were gone and Steve and the dog were together. Maverick sometimes shows interest around the cage since I am spending probably way too much time staring at it.

 

[Rogue]

Loki will either go back to the shelter (which kills me because I love him and he came from an abusive situation) or he will have claw covers on all the time as well as kept in our bedroom with us at night or anytime he is not supervised around the viv, once it is repaired.