Fat Storage And Obesity
21/09/2019
Obesity is one of the most problematic and frequent diseases and physiological disorders.
Almost every single captive chameleon is overweight by the wild standards and the number of really obese ones weighing double to tripple of their norm is alarming.
Obesity is the root cause of many other diseases. It leads to the break down of homeostasis and physically or biochemically causes the failure of many internal organs, is a most frequent cause of egg bonding, a sister of gout, it causes starving and death. In general, obesity cuts the life expectancy of chameleons directly and indirectly to less than a half!
In the wild, chameleons are so well balanced with he other ecological factors of their ecosystems, that practically do not store fat and if, then in minute amounts.
There is a strange logic how chameleons store fat, it has phases, out of which the first 2 ones are badly visible:
1. Pelvic fat body
2. Fat body filling the majority of body cavity, the liver triples by fat degeneration simultaneously
3. Subcutaneous fat deposits visible
4. Best in extremities, tail and along the spine.
5. Casque and cheeks fat deposits
Once the chameleon starts to have oedematic extremities, the situation is very bad.
Once the casque starts to be puffy, and cheeks too, it is a disaster.
It is ethically wrong and irresponsible to make chameleons fat!
It causes health problems, starvation and death.
A dat chameleon must be a subject of dietary programme...
Author: Petr Nečas