Problem with Chameleon

[ChuckMiami]

My veiled chameleon somehow is losing his ability to use his hind legs (they are starting to drag behind him when he walks). He cannot climb now and is constantly clamped onto his front legs with his hind feet. The local reptile store said he is probably lacking calcium and reccomended a new uvb and calcium supplement.

Has anyone experienced anything like this?

[prismwolf]

I think the pet store information is dead on. Paralysis is not something to take lightly. He should be going to a herp vet...one who knows lizards and how to treat calcium deficiency...aka...Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD).

What is your UVB bulb?
How old is it?
What do you feed your cham?
What do you feed the food?
What are your cage temperatures?

These will help give a clue as to what's wrong, but a vet is seriously needed to help get your cham better. Hopefully you can find one within a reasonable distance through one of these sites:
www.herpvetconnection.com
www.arav.org <---click on "Members"
www.anapsid.org/vets

Let's see if we can find the problem....and make sure when you call for the vet appt. that you tell them it is an emergency...which it is. Paralysis is one of the biggies for emergencies.

[ChuckMiami]

Ok, I've already contacted a specialty Vet through a friend of mine. Going to see him today.
I guess this is a problem with pet stores selling these types of animals to just anyone, lack of knowledge when it comes to proper care.
-My UVB was seriously overdue for changing, it was about a year old. I replaced it with a Reptisun 5.0 yesterday.
-I normally feed my Cham live crickets, about 8 per day.
Sometimes I'll give him bananas or wax worms.
-I have a stock tank of crickets, and i keep them fed with Total Bites Food/water/gutload. I also feed them bread.
-I have no clue what my temps are, I have a 30"long 30"tall by 12"wide all screen cage with wood and vines to climb to the top.

Going to the vet in an hour so ill see what he says.

[prismwolf]

I hope the vet gives you good news about it being easily treatable, although it will need to be an aggressive treatment. It is fixable though... ;D.

There is another food that would be an excellent choice, too. Silkworms are highly digestible and high nutrition. Wonderful for insectivores! I know chams can get stressed pretty easily, but if you carefully hold him and take him outside for 20 minutes everyday for some real sunshine...the benefits are huge! Be very careful, though. With MBD his bones will be weak and may break. If you can get his cage outside where he has sun and shade, this would be better. Leave the lighting inside.

Temperatures are pretty important. This is to make sure they're digesting properly. Higher basking tamps assures this. The lower the temps the less adequately they can glean/disperse the nutrients for good health. Veiled chams need basking temps between 90-95. You can get a digital indoor/outdoor thermometer/hygrometer at any home improvement store for less than $20. Humidity is also important...that's why it's nice to have the combo therm/hygrom. Achieving 50% would be ideal.

You're right...many pet stores do not give information freely. They're often afraid of losing a sale instead of caring for what's best for the animal. They are in the business of profits after all.

Please keep us updated on your scaly friend!