We just bought our first chameleon, hes a 5 month old male yemen and wasn't being kept in the best conditions, he seems to have a couple of probs but we have no idea what to do for him. The first problem is a leg injury, his front knee and forearm are larger than the othe side and the scales are bunched up leaving the skin on his knee smooth (and seems to be turning red) The second problem is some weird white marks on his back and face they dont look like white colouring, dont know if anyone has any ideas. Here are some photos.
Rather than wait for replies on here, I would seek vet advice immediately, it doesn't look good. Could be many things, I dont know anything about chams really, it may be a dislocated joint, infection or worse MDB, the redness suggests internal bleeding. Please find a good vet a.s.a.p. they are delicate creatures at the best of times, this may be serious.
I agree, the fellow doesn't look well. With the leg problems, it does sound like MBD. The injury looks a bit like a burn to me, but the pictures are small. Are his eyes sunk in? It looks like it from the picture. Veileds are pretty notorius about sinking their eyes when they are pissed about being handled, but it can also be a strong sign of dehydration. Taking him to a rep vet would be the best thing to do. How are you keeping him now? What lights are you using? Misting schedule? Caging?
At the moment hes being kept in a flexarium, we were having probs keeping him warm so he has a uvb light in his cage which is a 10 which I know is too strong it was all we could get at the time he also has a 100 watt heat lamp in a dome above his tank with an umbrella plant, plastic tree and an exo terra vine for climbing/perching. I mist him twice a day (am waiting for a little dripper to arrive in the mail) and he usually drinks a fair bit in the evening but not always, we have only had him a week so he is still settling, he doesnt seem to eat much either, we dust food in calcium daily and reptivits 1 or 2 times a week. I haven't noticed his eyes are shrunk but he does seem to enjoy being out. The shop we got him from he had no heating , they apparently sprayed him but I have spent 30 mins twice a day once or twice dripping water for him to drink cant see the shop having time for that, and did already have that injury that they never mentioned to us although my husband noticed it. His colours have improved since we got him so I think hes generally happier. Any tips on keeping a flexarium at temperature would also be appreciated. Thanks
With a 100 watt light bulb and the cage at room temperature (68-70 degrees during the day) the temps should be fine. The light will be providing a nice variation in temperature for him to move in and out of as he regulates. By turning off the lights at night, it will provide a decent nighttime temp drop which is also important. Is he huddling under the lamp for long hours? That is a pretty good indication that he is cold. If he goes to the light in the morning and "suns" himself for an hour or two and returns there a few times a day, he is doing just fine. Not sure what you mean by 10 for uvb.. some stuff in Europe is different than in the U.S. If you are referring to something like a reptisun 10.0 florescent, that sounds like a good idea for now. Your misting sessions sound great! Glad to hear you have a live plant in the cage.. it will help with humidity. Are you gutloading your feeders? That is pretty important for the health of the animal. You might want to try some different foods for him to get him eating. Superworms are a favorite around here.. I place them in site of the chameleons and let them crawl up the screen. It gets even the most finicky of eaters moving. Chameleons his age in my care generally eat around 6 insects a day. After they reach a year, I only offer food every other day. I just took another look at the pictures.. they weren't opening to full size for me last night. It really does look like a burn on his leg. Can you take a close up of it? If it is a burn, silvadene cream helps it to heal faster, and with less scarring. Burns will happen when the lamp provides a hot spot that is too hot.. chameleons don't seem to have much in the way of pain sensors for that. The white spots are stuck on shed. In the first pic, it is pretty obvious he is in need of a good shed. Keep the misting and feeding up, and he will pop out of that skin and look like a new animal. Chameleons sometimes won't shed when they are poorly cared for or stressed out, and a shed or two will build up. As long as it isn't too bad, it resolves itself pretty quickly with good care.
Hi i have a 8 week old yemen chameleon male, and he has eaten for two days, he shed his skin once in the last two weeks. Do they go off their food when going to shed again, as I have no idea, as im new to this. The tank gets sprayed 3-4 times a day with water and the food is in the same place for him, so i know hes not eating the food. Can you help?
