Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My 6 month old male veiled cham is not eating!! I took him to the vet about a month ago because he wasn’t eating and his colors were not good. The vet put him on an antibiotic because he said that since my cham couldn’t tell him what was wrong , he just wanted to cover all the bases. I just finished giving him his last dose on Sunday because it was every other day medication. The vet also told me to feed him baby food since he was not eating. Well…. now that the antibiotic is finished he is still not eating. We have tried giving him meal worms as a change from the crickets but he still won’t eat. I really do not want to feed him baby food all of the time but what else can I do??? I would appreciate any suggestions.

His humidity is always above 60 % and his temps are good.

Why the vet gave antibiotics in the first place without testing for specific bacteria is a mystery. They can suppress appetite and make the cham feel sick, plus all the stress of handling every other day adds to the problem. I think I would get an accurate weight of the cham, make sure it's able to drink, bask, etc. and stop all handling. Give it some days of peace and privacy, then put something new and interesting in the cage like blue bottle flies, katydid, anything green like a stickbug, or moths. They may get his attention and hopefully he'll try hunting. Weigh him once a week and if he's still not eating and losing weight you'll have to hand feed again. But, instead of baby food (which is really unbalanced for chams) you may have to try the "bug juice" recipe listed on www.adcham.com. It is basically crushed insects mixed with Pedialyte and possibly Ensure. Also list member Icequeen has been hand feeding her rescue veiled Zoe with a formula (can't remember what it is Icequeen). If he's been getting any food recently he can go a few days without eating much, and the stress relief may help a lot. Good luck!

What exact meds did they put your chameleon on? Flagyl, for example, doesn't suppress appetite but actually makes many non-feeders eat. It's not the safest of the common meds used, however, but it did work wonders for a Leopard gecko of mine who wouldn't eat before it.
-----
Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame

I think you should find another vet. This time, take a stool sample with you & have it checked for internal parasites. Your current vet should not be BLINDLY treating your chameleon without knowing what to treat it for. A lot of antibiotics cause liver & kidney problems and should not be used unless absolutely necessary. Also you did not mention if the medications were for infection or parasites. Flagyl & panacur type meds should not be given every other day. Small doses are ineffective , and larger doses can do more harm than good. If your cham has a heavy parasite load, killing them all will be hard to pass & can actually clog up & rot in his digestive tract. Causing death. You need the weight of the animal to give the proper dosage. And treatment is at two week intervals.
Let me add that I am NOT a vet! I learned this the hard way,
and I do mean the hard way. Please don't repeat my mistakes. Find a qualified vet.
Cricket

The vet gave him enroflox. He did a fecal when I went and he said that is to good, no parasites. I even questioned him about why he was giving him anitbiotics...since I am a nursing student I know that even for humans its not healthy just to give antibiotics. But Mr.Bojangles (my cham) has been eating crickets but only if we let them climb on the cage. It's like he is afraid of his food bowl or something??? Thanks for your help everyone!