Posted by:
kinyonga
at Sun Jun 26 22:12:04 2005 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by kinyonga ]
I would expect that it was metabolic bone disease that you are
referring to when you say some sort of bone disease.
That's usually caused by imbalances in the diet or lack of
proper lighting or could even be that your chameleon's mother
received improper care, but can have other causes too.
As for the tail, it could have been an infection of some kind
but there could be other things that cause it too. (I'm not a vet
and what I'm telling you are only possibilities. The only way to
know for sure what it was would have been for a vet to see it.)
Regarding the foot...it should have been looked at by a vet and
necessary cultures and/or blood work done to determine the cause.
Whenever a chameleon has an infection in the foot, IMHO, it is
necessary to have the pus removed and cultured to determine what
bacteria is causing the problem so that the proper medication can
be given. If the pus isn't removed, the infection, in my
experience will not go away simply by giving the chameleon
antibiotics.
Since your female is exhibiting some of the tail symptoms, I
would get her to the vet's ASAP....before you end up with another
dead chameleon.
You said..."I dont know what is wrong with what I am doing"...
regarding the foot and the tails it might not be that you did
anything wrong....but since there is a possibility of MBD (bone
disease) I would check your husbandry methods...just to make sure
that there isn't anything that needs improvement. (Lighting,
gutloading the insects, supplementing the insects, hydration,
temperatures, etc.) Does the female exhibit any symptoms of bone
problems? (Bump above the elbow that looks like an "extra" elbow.
crooked back legs, soft (flexible)bones in the casque or jaw,
inability to hold herself up off of the branches, for instance?)
You said..."I need to know if she is ready to lay eggs for sure"..
I can't give you a certain answer for that. Sorry.
If you aren't too late (if she isn't already eggbound), putting
a container of sand in with her may tell you the answer to that.
If she starts digging in it, then you will have your answer.
Not eating is often a "symptom" of impending egglaying, but many
stop eating. If she has an infection she might not feel like
eating either.
Potting soil will likely work...but I wouldn't use it if it
contains any fertilizers, etc. For many years now, I have used
sand just because I haven't had any problems with it....but there
are lots of others who use other things for the females to lay
their eggs in. (Things like vermiculite that can cause impactions
I would stay away from though.)
Hope everything works out for your female!
Keep me posted and if you have any other questions, just ask.
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RE: Help, veiled not eating and staying at bottom of cage - kinyonga, Sun Jun 26 22:12:04 2005