Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Welcome to kingsnake.com's message board system. Here you may share and discuss information with others about your favorite reptile and amphibian related topics such as care and feeding, caging requirements, permits and licenses, and more. Launched in 1997, the kingsnake.com message board system is one of the oldest and largest systems on the internet.

Click for ZooMed
Click here for Dragon Serpents

4 month old veild, poss. sick. help

littletragedy Jul 12, 2003 01:48 AM

Forgive me if I've cross posted this anywhere. I'm new,and I don't get any of this. :[

Alright, I'm in need of help here, and I have some pictures if anyone wants to see what I'm talking about, you can email me at littletragedy@yahoo.com. Here's the deal: We've been dealing with vields for a while now, we used to breed, then we got too busy and gave up the chameleons completely. Well, a few months ago, we got a male vield chameleon. He's great...or at least he was, up to a few days ago. Over night, my boy Sam, became aggresive and scared of us. He's done nothing but hide, and he's surely freezing, he hasn't gotten any light until today when we forced it upon him. He used to take silkies from our hands, now he won't even eat, and he hides the second the cage door opens. He had 2 silkies (MAYBE 2, more likely 1) on Wednesday which is way less then normal. He'd normally eat 3 silkies and a dozen crix. And Thursday and today, he's eaten nothing. His eyes are beginning to look a tad bit sunken and he's definately skinny. We've been drenching him in water, but he just hides again. His colours used to be fantastic (that's the picture I'm talking about) but now he's gone all brown, black and yellow (I've a picture of that also, for comparison, if you'd like). His colours may be dark because he's trying to get heat, but I can't figure him out. I'm just stuck and clueless as what to do with him, and my mother's sure he's going to die. He used to enjoy coming out of his cage for some outdoor sun, but he hisses and hides now, if he wasn't hiding already (which is unlikely, that's all he does). We've covered his cage, but he's sticking in one corner, so we've set his lights up in that corner. God, I'm clueless. This has never happened with my other chameleons, I'm at a total loss. Could it be like 'puberty' or, I don't know, help, advice...anything, I don't want to loose him. He's my baby :'(

Replies (5)

matt15 Jul 12, 2003 09:53 AM

this is exactly what is happening to me execpt mine is still drinkin and doesnt sound as scared but i havent seen it eat in a wile now. His colors are exactly what u said and he is really mean now he actually bit me.
-----
1.0 veild chameleon 2.1 firebellie toads
1.1 jackson chameleon
1.2 leopard geckos
3.0 golden geckos

eric adrignola Jul 12, 2003 10:15 AM

All but one of the veilds I have raised have gone through a phase when they do nothing but hide, hiss, turn brown, piss me off. I don't know why it happens, but I think it could have to do with changed environments. When they are moved from their baby cage to their juvinile cage, it always happens. The one that didn't was kept in a 10 gallon with blocked out sides from his 2nd month till he was about 9 months old. He never did that. allt he other ones did.

littletragedy Jul 12, 2003 11:59 AM

Piss me off indeed. How long did yours do this for? If I'm remembering correctly, Oscar and Romeo (or our other m. veilds) started in the same tanks and stayed in them they're whole lives, so maybe that's got an effect on him.. Please please please tell me he grew out of it. He just ate one silkie, and pooped, finally. A friend told me to try steaming him so he could get some moisture, do you know anything about that because he seems to really like the steam.

eric adrignola Jul 12, 2003 02:31 PM

Well, My big male is still pissy. I cannopt put him in his outdoor cage cause he'll stay at the bottom in a state of stress. When I put him back inside, it takes days for him to calm down. I have learned how to handle him, and he has never managed to bite me. But I think he will always be this way. All I can say is that you need to learn to handle evne the mose evil veild, because someday, you're going to need to get him, and if you can't deal with them normally, when they're in a situation that you need to intervene, you won't be able to get him. Believe it or not, watch the croc hunter handle animals. He distracts them with one hand, and comes up from behind with another. What seems to work best for my big, nasty veild is distracting him with one hand, and letting him go after it, put my other hand in front and under him, and in his pursuit for the other, he'll climb on your other hand--wont even try to bitre it as he thinks it's a branch...practice practice...

matt15 Jul 12, 2003 09:54 AM

this is exactly what is happening to me execpt mine is still drinkin and doesnt sound as scared but i havent seen it eat in a wile now. His colors are exactly what u said and he is really mean now he actually bit me.
-----
1.0 veild chameleon 2.1 firebellie toads
1.1 jackson chameleon
1.2 leopard geckos
3.0 golden geckos

Site Tools