Bulging eye?

[v3iledchameleon]

Today I noticed that my male veiled chameleon had a bit of a lump in his eye. I freaked out because i'm really scared and don't want to lose him. I looked online to find vets, and in my area there really isn't any vets who specialize or see reptiles (i plan on calling them and double checking).

So, I spent a majority of my school day in between classes researching what would be wrong and there are so many possibilities. I just want to ensure that i treat the right thing, and not make his condition worse.

i read somewhere you can gently rinse their eyes with saline solution but that makes me kind of nervous (but i will do it if it will help him). i also read about giving him beta-carotene or vitamin A. it could be so many things and i want to make sure i help him and not hurt him. i have attached pictures that i took this morning and pictures I took about 10 minutes ago. it appears to have gone down, but that could be just me trying to reassure myself. the first 4 images i took about 10 minutes ago and the last four i took this morning. he can still move the eye and he is eating well, no lose of appetite and can still see his food.

i don't want to inject him with vitamin A and i will do anything i have to do to get him in better shape again. can someone please tell me exactly what to do/give him and what is the most likely thing that has happened?

 

[Carlton]

Sometimes this can be a symptom of an ongoing sinus infection, but this doesn't look severe. Is he rubbing his eye or keeping it shut during the day? You can rinse the eye with sterile saline if he seems to need to clean it often or the lids stick shut. It will sting less than plain water. Slow gentle misting with warm water can help him clean the eye. You can dab vitamin A on a feeder occasionally without hurting him. Just don't overdo it. Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin and does accumulate.

There are many threads on this forum discussing swollen eyes. Might be worth reading through them for other suggestions.

 

[v3iledchameleon]

Sometimes this can be a symptom of an ongoing sinus infection, but this doesn't look severe. Is he rubbing his eye or keeping it shut during the day? You can rinse the eye with sterile saline if he seems to need to clean it often or the lids stick shut. It will sting less than plain water. Slow gentle misting with warm water can help him clean the eye. You can dab vitamin A on a feeder occasionally without hurting him. Just don't overdo it. Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin and does accumulate.

There are many threads on this forum discussing swollen eyes. Might be worth reading through them for other suggestions.

Thank you so much. He hasn't been rubbing his eye and it isn't shut but it's slightly squinted almost. But it isn't completely shut.

 

[Scottsquatch]

How long are your misting sessions? You should have one misting session a day that is quite a bit longer than the others. This will give your cham time to clean his/her eyes. Chams have the ability to drink water and force it through their lacro-nasal (spelling?) duct into their eyes to wash them and rinse away debris. If they dont have adequate time to clean their eyes at least once a week, they can have eye issues. I have heard it recommended that one misting session a day should be longer (some go up to and over 10 minutes) than the others to allow for this. If you get a chance, listen to the chameleon breeders podcast episode #66 on chameleon eye health. Obviouslly this wont fix your cham's current eye issue, but it may help prevent further eye issues in the future. Good luck with your cham and keep us posted.

 

[kinyonga]

@Scottsquatch you might like to read this...
https://www.chameleonforums.com/thr...-nasal-passages-and-nasolacrimal-duct.101170/
"I suppose that it's possible that some could travel back up those passages, but I don't think that would necessarily be likely, or something that I would expect. If her mouth was completely full and there was enough pressure to basically force some fluid up those I guess it could, but I would expect it to come out the nostrils way easier than up that small, long passageway. Out the nostrils would be a bigger, shorter path of least resistance, and fluid follows the path of least resistance. Of course if there was some kind of abnormality of her passageways (mucous buildup or scarring of the openings) things might not have been functioning as expected. But if there was a primary problem with the eyes themselves then the increased pressure in her mouth from eating could have just caused the underlying problem with her eyes to bulge them outward without anything from her mouth actually getting into that area. There is a large sinus cavity under the eyeball where stuff can get stuck with infections, which is why they can be so hard to clear"

 

[Scottsquatch]

That's a good thread. I see what you're saying about the water following the path of least resistance and going out the nares instead of the eyes. I was sharing facts that I learned on the Chameleon Breeder's Podcast. Bill and the veterinarian seemed to agree chams can flush their eyes via the nasolacrimal duct, so I don't know what to think. Perhaps chams have an internal shut off valve?

 

[kinyonga]

I can't tell you for sure about that....but I do know Dayna (Ferritinmyshoes) is a good vet.

 

[Matt Vanilla Gorilla]

There is some good stuff on eye health in this thread!

https://www.chameleonforums.com/thr...nced-keepers-please-share-your-wisdom.152159/

 

[v3iledchameleon]

thank you all so much! i cam home from school yesterday and he was perfectly fine no bulge or anything but i will be keeping a close eye on him in the future!