# Lizards > Chameleons >  Chameleon in bad shape given to me

## jclaiborne

hoping we have some chameleon people on here...my wifes friend had a 1 year old (approx) panther chameleon.  I think it was a bit of an impluse buy, because they didnt know how to really care for it... they tried the best they could, but this poor things health has drastically declined.  They told us they were done trying and would just let it run its course if they couldnt gind someone to care for it...instead of letting that happen they dropped it off at my house with all the cages and supplies they had...the little guys is sooo skinny and his hemipenes have prolapsed...i soaked him in sugar water last night and this mornig before work i got him to eat 9 silk worms amd drink some water from a dropper.  I have an appt with our local herp vet at 3pm.  I feel terrible for this little guy, but i am hopeful we can save him.  Despite his appearance he is alert and moves around.  I will post some pictures when i get home from he vet today.



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## jclaiborne

Last night when he was dropped off


This morning


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_GpBp_ (09-09-2019)

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## SteveySingle

Poor guy :-/ Glad you got ahold of him and are willing to do what needs to be done by taking him to the vet. Good luck, and keep us posted!

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_Ashley96_ (11-01-2016),_jclaiborne_ (04-15-2014)

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## AlexisFitzy

Awww poor little guy  :Sad:  I wish I could be more helpful, but all I can say is I hope you can nurse this guy back to health! I'm glad he's in the hands of a more caring owner. 


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_jclaiborne_ (04-15-2014)

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## jclaiborne

The friends that we got him from i think were just in over their head.  They took him to a vet, but it wasnt a herp vet...they had the uvb bulb too far away so he wasnt getting any uv.  1 1/2 hours till the vet.  I took the rest of the day off of work to try and hydrate him.  My wife has been watching him all morning.

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## jclaiborne

Just got back from the vet...as of now he thinks the little guy will make a recovery...his hemipenes still have blood flow to them so they are savable as of now.  he told me to keep doing what I am doing.  Continue to soak him daily and feed him worms daily.  I have a checkup in a week...if the hemipenes havent pulled back in he is going to try and stitch them back in.  


His color is slowly coming back and he curled his tail, which the previous owner said it never curled...so i think we are making baby steps in the right direction
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## jclaiborne

This is him at 3pm


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## AlexisFitzy

He's looking better and better with every picture you post  :Smile:  glad he will make a full recovery and isn't in too critical of a state. Keep us updated  :Smile: 


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_FollowTheSun_ (01-27-2019),_jclaiborne_ (04-15-2014)

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## jclaiborne

> He's looking better and better with every picture you post  glad he will make a full recovery and isn't in too critical of a state. Keep us updated 
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


 

Thanka will do...we arent out of the woods just yet.  The vet said this week is critical...but he has high hopes.  We will get this lil guy back on track...i am taking the tall screen cage the origional owner gave me amd building it up with branches for when he is healthy...just finished bleaching and cleaning it.   Will be hitting lowes tomorrow durning my lunch break to buy some wood dowels to make climbing branches to weave through a live ficus tree.

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_AlexisFitzy_ (04-14-2014)

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## AlexisFitzy

I hope the little guy pulls through I really do. He looks like he's perking up and fighting to hang on so I hope everything goes well for you both! Will be looking forward to more updates. 


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_jclaiborne_ (04-15-2014)

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## leylaraks

Yup!!  He's looking better with each pic, hope he pulls through all the way!  :Smile: 


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_jclaiborne_ (04-15-2014)

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## colton62

Awh  :Sad:  that's so awesome you took him in! The world needs more people like that. Please keep us updated because I really want him to make it


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_jclaiborne_ (04-15-2014)

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## jclaiborne

So my wife and I rotated getting up every hour during the night to check on him.  He was able to hang on the fake vine all night long without falling once.  That is a great sign!  This morning he perked right up when I turned on his Power Sun,  he drank some more water from the dropper and ate 5 more dusted wax worms.  I am going to Lowes on my lunch break today to get some dowels to make climbing posts that I can anchor in his new cage so it will be ready to go when he is strong enough to climb.  I will try and snap some pics of him when I get home if he is looking any better.

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_AlexisFitzy_ (04-15-2014),ballpythonluvr (04-15-2014),*bcr229* (04-15-2014),colton62 (04-15-2014),_FollowTheSun_ (01-27-2019),_GpBp_ (09-09-2019),leylaraks (04-15-2014),ViperSRT3g (04-15-2014)

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## jclaiborne

Alright here is todays update...i am taking the vet and everyone on the chameleon forums  recomendation and putting him in a proper enclosure where he can climb...i have spent the past two hours setting this up with padding just in case he does fall...i have dowels attached firmly in place everywhere so he will always have a place to grab onto...hopefully this perks him up even more...

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_AlexisFitzy_ (04-15-2014),ballpythonluvr (04-16-2014),colton62 (04-15-2014),leylaraks (04-15-2014)

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## jclaiborne

Well we are making baby steps in the right direction...he fell last night but i caught him...we are putting him on the top branches to bask when we are around and moving him to the bottom if we have to leave the house...he at 3 more dusted wax worms this morning and took another 3cc of water from a syringe.  His prolapse still hasnt gone back in, so i will give it until sat before heading into the vets office again...hopefully by then he has some weight on him so we can treat the eye infection.



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_AlexisFitzy_ (04-16-2014),leylaraks (04-16-2014)

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## mikelowery8790

Hey I've never tried to care for a chameleon but you my friend are .....awesome you stepped in and saved the life of a living creature you deserve a heartfelt gratitude for being an upstanding human being and I hope all works out for the best cheers


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colton62 (04-16-2014),_jclaiborne_ (04-17-2014),Marzipan (01-18-2017)

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## alan12013

That is so awesome you are helping him!  I think I was following your posts on the chameleon forums too.  How is he doing now?  Any updates?

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## jclaiborne

> That is so awesome you are helping him!  I think I was following your posts on the chameleon forums too.  How is he doing now?  Any updates?


he is doing alright...baby steps all the way...his colors are getting brighter and he is stronger, but two days ago he decided to push his hemipenes comoletely out and no mattoer how much i soak him, using sugar water, and apply KY they wont go back in, so we may have to amputate them  :Sad: .  

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## alan12013

Oh no that sucks!  I wish you the best with him.

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## owl307

wishing this guy the best of luck! I'm so glad you rescued him!

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## faydeacon

Any news on this guy ?? 

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## jclaiborne

> Any news on this guy ?? 
> 
> Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk


same status as posted on the 15th...he is eating and getting stronger but he has fully pushed his hemepines out...i am keeping them lubricated and giving daily sugar soaks bit no luck on them retracting...vet thinks he is too weak to remove them. we have already tried stitching them in with no luck...at this point thw vet is worried that any aurgery may kill him...but if we do nothing he may die as well...

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## George1994

> same status as posted on the 15th...he is eating and getting stronger but he has fully pushed his hemepines out...i am keeping them lubricated and giving daily sugar soaks bit no luck on them retracting...vet thinks he is too weak to remove them. we have already tried stitching them in with no luck...at this point thw vet is worried that any aurgery may kill him...but if we do nothing he may die as well...
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk


Quite sad to hear  :Sad:  Props to you for doing this, you have done great!

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_jclaiborne_ (06-19-2014)

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## Eramyl

My veiled cham prolapsed one of his hemipenes a while back. My vet isn't a reptile vet, so she didn't want to attempt surgery to remove it since we couldn't get it back in. We tried sugar water and all kinds of other stuff. It eventually just died and fell off. That was six months ago, and he seems no worse for the wear. He still eats and poops with no problems. 

Just keep it as clean as you can and keep trying to get it to stay in, but it isn't the end of the world if it doesn't return to normal.

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_jclaiborne_ (06-19-2014)

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## Lotix

Wishing the best for this little guy, seeing his long recovery had me in tears, thank you for your and your wife's dedication! 

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