Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I know we have heard too many of these stories but I want to stop it. I just came back from the pet store and am very upset. I saw a chameleon(not sure on the species) near death and no one caring about it. It was housed in an AQUARIUM with other anoles and tree frogs. It's eyes were closed and it was very skinny and you could tell dehydration had set in. I was very tempted in seeing if they would give me a deal and I may save the lil guy, but I know there is little hope. I am going to call them and tell them what I think about their arrangement of animals. The chameleon was about 3 inches Snout to Vent, it was a pale brown with small dark spots. It had a very smooth appearance. I would like to know what kind it was and any help would be appreciated. Thanks a lot

i knwo the pet store i go to specializes in reptiles, and all chams are in screen enclosures - they even have a nosey be panther which they rescued, its owen cut all the nails off the little guy once a week - i was so tempted to buy him, but i did not have the space for a screen setup large enough for him ... no one is buying him - if my parents say yes, i am going to get rid of one of my dressers in my room, so i can have space for him - his colors are impecable, and it is hard to beleive anyone would do anything to harm them

hope you find out more about the little guy, and get him if you can
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Jason, Ichiro, Mika & Toki

razior_@hotmail.com

Justin,

Did it have a prehensile tail or just a stumpy one? If it doesn't have the longer prehensile tail it may very well be one of the leaf chameleons. Or it may be a baby something. Do some searches online to see if you can see what it is.

Before you call the pet store and tell them what you think maybe you can work out a deal (how much were they seliing it for?) and if the poor thing is doomed at least you can give it a kinder death (your freezer) than suffering in the tank. Poor thing

Anyway, just my thoughts - it is heart breaking and frustrating when we see the type of care that pet stores (esp. chains) are notorious for - UGH!!

lele

>>I know we have heard too many of these stories but I want to stop it. I just came back from the pet store and am very upset. I saw a chameleon(not sure on the species) near death and no one caring about it. It was housed in an AQUARIUM with other anoles and tree frogs. It's eyes were closed and it was very skinny and you could tell dehydration had set in. I was very tempted in seeing if they would give me a deal and I may save the lil guy, but I know there is little hope. I am going to call them and tell them what I think about their arrangement of animals. The chameleon was about 3 inches Snout to Vent, it was a pale brown with small dark spots. It had a very smooth appearance. I would like to know what kind it was and any help would be appreciated. Thanks a lot

sounds like a C. Deremensis (spelling) or C. Dilepsis. It is sad to hear stories like this. My store is stupid when it comes to animals, they dont seem to care.
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Jamie whitehouse

Justin,

We go into pet stores too - trying to educate store operators about chameleon care. Often we see a suffering cham - and "rescue" them. Most times, the store owner will settle for cost - to sell it.

Just today we came home with a young pair of cb deremensis... the female is very thin and her tail may be necrotic. The male only has tiny nubs for horns... so hopefully we can turn them around and get them healthy again. Being out of an aquarium is the first step - next is feeding a proper diet and fecal exams.

A couple of stores have asked if I would work for them - but since we have our hands full with our breeding colony and importing - it's just not possible for me to squeeze out any time for working elsewhere.

If it is stressed and has spots, it could be a deremensis or a flapneck. Check the species pictures at AdCham - "chamaeleo"
http://www.adcham.com/html/taxonomy/taxonomy-map.html
Be sure to check the husbandry requirements.

Many times with "rescues" we have to tube-feed. We use pedialite; crickets; superworms; waxworms; and vitamins (a bunch); add some Repti-Aide powder and mix it all in the blender - on liquify. This provides a balanced thick food, that can be fed though a syringe & tube. It is tricky business - but a vet can teach you to tube-feed safely. Keep the cham warm too (check temperature guidelines - stay close to ideal basking temps). Mist often, moist surroundings can help rehydrate. Chams can absorb moisture through their nasal lining too.

Best of luck if you decide to "rescue" the little guy.
Morgana - Reptayls, Ltd.

I know how you feel. It breaks my heart when people don't look after animals. You would think a pet store, of all places, would look after animals properly. The problem is, a lot of them just want money. Proper care costs more, and their inflation goes down. Also, if they sell the animals that are sick, than why change what they are doing? I know it is hard, but when people rescue animals from stores, sometimes the stores just replace the animal with another sick one. Also, they make money off of selling the sick ones. If no one buys the sick ones, and enough die, than the store will probably not have that species anymore because they are losing money. It is heartbreaking, but it may keep them from bringing in more of a species they can't/don't want to look after.
~Lindsay

Buying from a store is supporting it's business whether you buy a sick or healthy animal. As long as the shop stays in business they will keep looking after animals poorly. It is hard, but I try and give my business to the stores I find that look after their animals well. Not just as far as chams go... but I will walk around a store and see if there is anything horribly wrong before I will buy from them. I would contact your local animal shelter and see if there is anything they can do. Also, I would write a formal letter to the store explaining what you saw wrong. Maybe they just didn't know, and will fix it. Probably not... but it's worth a shot...