need help finding vet in my area!

[cyprcham]

hi again,
i thought my chameleon, Cypress, was going to be seeing the vet this friday, but i was mistaken and it’s next friday. they don’t have any earlier openings.

i’ve been doing quite a bit of research and i’m concerned that Cypress might have gout or pseudo-gout. i’m worried it might be too late for treatment to be effective. and gout by itself is difficult to treat.


here’s the situation:
he’s had these small bumps on his tail (i made a post about this a while ago) for almost a year now. i took him in to see the vet and they said that it was seemed to be an injury. we put vaseline on the bumps, they didn’t go away, then we gave him antibiotics but they still didn’t go away. i thought that the bumps were turned into some kind of scar and i was fine with it as long as they weren’t harming/affecting him so i let it be.

at the same time he has had this bump on his hip that the vet said was mbd that was pretty much healed over so i let that be too. it’s grown a little bit now.

then he has this bump that’s on his wrist that came up a week ago or so.


as of now, he is still eating fine but he seems to be drinking water more than he usually would. his activity level is still pretty normal too. on what i can do from my end, i’m keeping a close eye on him. i’m switching his calciums from zoomed to arcadia right now too and also looking for another vet that can get us in sooner (and give us a second opinion) but i haven’t had much luck finding another one in my area.

i’m in colorado springs, colorado in the USA. i am willing to drive but i’m trying to avoid driving more than an hour because i do not want to stress Cypress out more.

i truly do love this little guy and i wish i had done more sooner. i appreciate any and all help. i’ll include husbandry info after i post this.

 

[PoseidonTheChameleon]

@jannb is usually good with helping people find vets

 

[cyprcham]

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Male Panther Chameleon, 2 years old. I’ve had him since he was 3-4 months old.
• Handling - Not that often because I can tell he prefers to be left alone. When I am handling him though he is good about it.
• Feeding - Feeding about 10-12 dubia roaches every 3 days, he usually doesn’t eat more than that. Feeders get gutloaded with carrots and sometimes apples.
• Supplements - Currently using ZooMed without and with D3, also Sticky Tongue Farms Miner-All w/ D3. I’m switching him to Arcadia calcium whenever my order get here.
• Watering - Automatic mister that goes off 3 times per hour for about 30 seconds. I do see him drinking sometimes.
• Fecal Description - Poops are normal.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - X-LARGE Reptibreeze screen cage.
• Lighting - For heating, ZooMed 75w bulbs. For UBV, Reptisun T5 HO 5.0 linear UVB. Both lights are on a 12 hour on/off schedule.

 

[Jevin]

Those bumps look awfully similar to what I had with my first chameleon, a female veiled. It was a while ago and my memory isn't the greatest, but I remember the vet explaining it was basically a subcutaneous deposit of a certain compound caused by over supplementation. I want to say it was a derivitive of D3, but I'm not sure and honestly despite them being specialized in reptiles, not 100% certain on it. How it was explained to me was it had built up in my chameleons body to the point that it was precipitating as a mass similar to what is on your chameleon. I believe it was the kidneys that were responsible for filtering excess out. As I said I'm going off memory of something from 9-10 years ago I think. My current cham gets Calcium with D3 once in a blue moon and has good bloodwork, had a bit of an issue early on with too much D3 despite only doing it biweekly. Essentially my gut loading for my feeders and light setup ensures he's able to get sufficient D3.

The bumps I'm guessing are hard or firm to the touch?

 

[cyprcham]

Those bumps look awfully similar to what I had with my first chameleon, a female veiled. It was a while ago and my memory isn't the greatest, but I remember the vet explaining it was basically a subcutaneous deposit of a certain compound caused by over supplementation. I want to say it was a derivitive of D3, but I'm not sure and honestly despite them being specialized in reptiles, not 100% certain on it. How it was explained to me was it had built up in my chameleons body to the point that it was precipitating as a mass similar to what is on your chameleon. I believe it was the kidneys that were responsible for filtering excess out. As I said I'm going off memory of something from 9-10 years ago I think. My current cham gets Calcium with D3 once in a blue moon and has good bloodwork, had a bit of an issue early on with too much D3 despite only doing it biweekly. Essentially my gut loading for my feeders and light setup ensures he's able to get sufficient D3.

The bumps I'm guessing are hard or firm to the touch?

yes, they are. i’m thinking that i’ve been giving him too much D3 by accident. so i’m changing his D3 schedule for now.

if you remember, was the vet able to treat it?

 

[jannb]

You need to go see Dayna. She is excellent with chameleons and a member of the forums.
https://www.auroraanimalhospital.com/our-team

 

[cyprcham]

You need to go see Dayna. She is excellent with chameleons and a member of the forums.
https://www.auroraanimalhospital.com/our-team

thank you! i will call them tomorrow morning and see if i can get an appointment soon

 

[Jevin]

yes, they are. i’m thinking that i’ve been giving him too much D3 by accident. so i’m changing his D3 schedule for now.

if you remember, was the vet able to treat it?

Unfortunately, no but do a vet checkup with bloodwork to ensure the kidneys and such are functioning properly. A bit more of the memory has come back, it was vitamin D3, essentially the preformed version from supplements is difficult for a chameleon to excrete, so it ca build up in their bodies, while the vitamin D3 they synthesize through exposure to UVB is easier to excrete if there is too much, at least that's what the vet told me. Technically the bumps can be removed through surgery, how everyone surgery to my knowledge isn't recommended with chameleons generally.

 

[cyprcham]

Unfortunately, no but do a vet checkup with bloodwork to ensure the kidneys and such are functioning properly. A bit more of the memory has come back, it was vitamin D3, essentially the preformed version from supplements is difficult for a chameleon to excrete, so it ca build up in their bodies, while the vitamin D3 they synthesize through exposure to UVB is easier to excrete if there is too much, at least that's what the vet told me. Technically the bumps can be removed through surgery, how everyone surgery to my knowledge isn't recommended with chameleons generally.

yeah, i was afraid of that. my chameleon probably has what your old cham did. i’ll have him see a vet to get a confirmed diagnosis

 

[cyprcham]

thank you! i will call them tomorrow morning and see if i can get an appointment soon

so just an update, we called them and their next open slot is on the 17th. we’re gonna call again early in the morning on monday the 10th to see if there’s any cancellations and we can get in sooner.

 

[cyprcham]

hi all, i took cypress to the vet today and he does have gout. i’ll be giving him the medication the vet prescribed to him and hydrating him as much as i can to help ease any pain he might have. i will keep going as long as he wants to.

 

[MzLaurie11]

Well i have suedogout in my hip and can attest to the fact thats its painful. On the good side it comes and goes. i can tell you luv your baby and i suggest adding hornworms to the diet for hydration and natural calcium. justmake sure ubuy hornorm food to make cause all they do is eat! I know you will take care of your baby hope the vet visit wasnt too stressful

 

[kinyonga]

@MzLaurie11 ...this is an old thread and the op hasn't been on here for many days. If you reply to an old dead thread, it wastes a lot of time if people don't look at the original date and realize it is a dead thread and read it all intending to help.