Veiled Chameleon Help Needed

[tyflier]

OK...I don't know a whole lot about veileds. But my girlfriend got one in at the vet hospital today, and the poor thing is in pretty bad shape. He is very thin, appears to be dehydrated, is weak and off balance.

Unfortunately...that's all I know. I have no idea what the conditions are like where this animal lives, and I have no idea how long it has been lethargic. The vets gave him to us for the weekend because frankly...they have come to a loss and don't know what else to do.

X-rays were taken and there doesn't appear to be any fractures of any sort, however, he will not open his mouth to eat or drink. He shows interest in crickets, but will not eat.

The vet gave subcutaneous fluids twice this morning and afternoon, and he absorbed them, and even managed to urinate. Xrays do not show any form of impaction.

I have him now...ambient temps around 83*F, no basking spot because it is night, and high humidity to try and help his dehydration.

I am not looking for diagnoses, just advice. What else should we do? What can we do to minimize stress levels and help this poor guy recover...or heal...or...? Any tips and advice that anyone can offer would be greatly appreciated.

Also...I believe there may be muscular atrophy or injury preventing the mouth from opening. Anyone able to provide up close pictures concentrating on the front of the face and the musculature around the jaw hinges on both sides would be VERY helpful. The vets have no more ideas, and we just want to help this poor thing get better, so really...any help is great.

I currently have him in an acrylic but well-ventilated cage with a basking spot of around 98*F, and an ambient temp in the low 80's. His color has improved drastically since last night.

As well...the hospital and vets have agreed to let us keep him through the weekend, as we can provide a more specialized form of care than at an empty hospital.

Thanks, everyone!

 

[wade]

Chris, I know a little about Veilds. I used to breed them. They don't do well in viv type cages. They usually keep them in screen cages. They are strictly arboreal and need lots of branches to climb on. They don't recognize a pool of water as something to drink. In the wild the lick dew from the leaves. Most dehydrated Chams are caused by people giving them a water bowl and not understanding that the Cham doesn't know what it is. You need to get some plants like ficus or pothos with lots of leaves and then two or three times a day mist the leaves and get them all wet. Also mist the critter and he will drink off himself.

You can use a syringe and feed him pedealite (spelling?). You get it by the baby food; it is used to rehydrate babies with diarrhea.

Toss in one or two crickets and just let him find them. If he is severely dehydrated he may not eat for a while. Catch some moths tonight or go find some caterpillars. Give him a variety to look at. They like houseflies.

http://www.chameleonsonly.com/

This is a link for Kammerflage Kreations. Call Liddy Kammer. She is the smartest person on earth. I haven’t talked to her for years but she is usually very eager to help. Great Lady.

Hope that helps.

 

[kathylove]

If you could get him in a large screen cage outside (assuming the weather is cooperative), where he can have a choice of sun or shade, that could be helpful. They come from a pretty extreme climate, so can deal with SOME heat or cold. But sun is important (as long as he can escape it if needed).

If he can't open his mouth, that is a problem. They don't like to be handled, but if he is reasonably healthy and you restrain him, he will try to bite if he can. That is when you can squirt some Pedialyte or Gatorade into his mouth if he does open it, to hydrate and give some calories. Chameleons can go downhill really fast, and it is hard to bring them back. But veileds are the hardiest of all chams, so hopefully you can get him "back on his feet".

They also eat some vegetation, but eat mostly bugs. The bigger and juicier the bug, the more exciting to them. We have seen them eat ficus leaves and mushy strawberries, but they have been known to eat other vegetation as well.

Good luck!

 

[crackerhead]

Can you post pictures? I'd like to see the fat pads on top of his head behind his eyes. If they are deflated looking he needs calories as well as hydration quickly. Ask the vet for some Oxbow critical care formula. It is a powder that you mix with warm water or pedialite to make a slurry that you will syringe into his mouth. If he is not opening his mouth on his own you will need to restrain him in a towel and gently but firmly pull on the dew lap under his lower jaw. Squit the food pretty far back into his mouth otherwise they just spit it out. It's messy but doable. I've had quite a few sick veileds in the shop. People don't know how fragile they are and dump them when they go downhill. Both Kathy and Wade gave excellent advice. Wade is spot on about the glass Viv them don't do well because of ventilation issues as well as being able to see their own reflection in the glass and thinking it's another veiled which is stressful. Good luck and I hope he makes it.
Terri

 

[Susan]

I can't add anything (Kathy and Wade said it all), so searched for some photos for you:

I hope you can save him! And cockroaches were never turned down by the veiled chameleons we kept and bred. Those were extra special treats.

 

[tyflier]

Well...we found out the main problem...it's a 5 year old female. Five years and a few months. It's my understanding that the females don't typically live much longer than 5 years...??correct??

The other thing is...we can't keep this girl. We are merely the most knowledgeable people around when it comes to reptiles, so the vets at the animal hospital, completely at a loss and lack of supplies to care for her even at a base level, gave her to us simply to "work with" through the weekend.

We managed to get her to eat a couple crickets, and we managed to get her to drink some fluids from herself. We also managed to de-stress her tremendously, and her color has brightened up considerably, and she seems much happier. We don't have a scre4en terrarium, but we know that is what she needs, so we take her outside ALOT and let her play in the grass and fruit trees. She REALLY seems to enjoy this.

Given her age and her life expectancy...I am of the opinion that the best we can do for her is to make her happy and comfortable. And this is the recommendation we are making to the owner come Monday Morning when she comes to get her.

We did manage to take a LOT of pictures of her when her colors brightened outside climbing the trees and playing in the grass. I figured...at the very least, she will have some nice pictures to remember her by. When we give the cham back to the owner, we will give her a CD-ROM of all the pictures, and wish her well.

Thanks all for the replies!

 

[Nanci]

My daughter had a veiled female that lived to be seven. That was when I found out how short a lifespan they have.