To All Chameleon Owners

[ZooRex]

A few days a go I had to take my male veiled chameleon to the vet. This is because the frontal bony ridge on his casque (helmet) came off with his shed. What had happend is overtime, some previoulsy retained shed had cut of circulation to the part, it died and then proceded to fall off. The vet also said that he will probalby lose about the top 1/4 inch of his casque as well.

After hearing this I felt really bad, this was my fault. I had never thought of taking my pet to the vet with something as trivial as a bit of retained shed. Yet this was a mistake that I now have to live with.

But now I have learned my lesson, I have always known that chameleons are advanced reptiles (which is why I waited years to get one). Yet now I can see that they are truly in a leauge of there own. They are actually alot like parrots: great colors, rewarding if kept right, many health problems if not kept right. From now on I will be taking in my Veiled to the vet atleast once a year for a check up, and strongly urge anyone else who owns such an amazing creature to do so. ~ Rex

 

[Bayushi]

dude, that sucks. sorry to hear your veiled lost it's 'crown'.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

In the future if your cham retains dead skin too many days past the shed, you can help him remove it with a Q-Tip and the tiniest bit of olive or mineral oil.
Gently massage the areas where stubborn skin is hanging on to successfully help him remove it.
Be careful doing this around the mouth area....they have a pretty strong aversion to any type of oil.
Heavy mistings also seem to help during shedding despite the (i believe false) belief that you should let them "dry out" at that time.
In addition (and this is a bit of a controversial topic) a tiny dose of preformed vitamin A once a month helps a great deal.
Purchase vitamin A gel caps (intended for people) in the lowest dosage you can find. When administering, puncture the capsule with a pin or finish nail and spread what comes out on the pin onto a silkworm or waxworm (I have found these work best) This will be a very tiny amount of the vitamin.
Using one of the above mentioned feeders will ensure your cham gets the vitamin since they tend to be eaten right away.
Bad sheds can be a sign of hypovitaminosis (generally A)
Too much preformed A can cause hypervitaminosis and inhibit the absorbtion of Calcium. So it is important to do this sparingly and with caution.

-Brad