LizardLurkin
Avid Member
- Your Chameleon
My guess is he is 2-3 months old, and he's been in my care since the 16th of this month. - Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
I have to handle/interact with him directly twice a day to administer ointment into his little eye. - Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Currently feeding dubia roaches and BSFL with occasional wax worms. The Dubia are fed bug burger or roach chow generally, but given some gutload cube an hour or two before adding the feeders into his cage. I want to say I try to add 6-8 roaches (so there's more movement) with 5-6 BSFL. He only started to recently eat more confidently as he's getting used to everything. Silkworms are on the way! - Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
The dubia (and waxworms) are dusted with Zoo Med Reptile Calcium without Vitamin D3 every meal, BSFL probably get some dust on them, but not directly as I read you didn't have to dust them. Currently I'm waiting for Zoo Med Reptivite Reptile Vitamins with D3 2 to arrive in the mail with bated breath, and will use this on his meal the day it arrives. - Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
I mist 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after the lights go on + off for two minutes each session. I have a dripper run onto a fat pothos leaf everyday for a few hours. I've never seen him drink but I hear they are shy drinkers. His urates are super white. - Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
It looks normal. Looks dry if it lands on the leaf under his basking branch, but then more moist if it lands anywhere else. Urates are white, and the rest a general brown color. Doesn't seem runny. I had him tested for parasites which came back negative, though I will keep an eye on this as I'm aware of false positives. - History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
He is from Petco, so there's no lineage information or anything like that. He was house in a typical display case with jungle vine, the dripper + water bowl combo, and a lil feisty female roommate. I will note that his eye already had this bump prior.
Cage Info:
- Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
2x2x4 reptibreeze screen cage with window insulation on the right, left, and back sides of the cage.
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
-Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 HO T5 UVB Lamp 22" L 24 Watts
-SunBlaster 24" Prism Lens 24W 6400K Full Spectrum LED Strip Light Indoor Greenhouse Plant Grow Lamp with Built-In Reflector & Mounting Clips
-Exo Terra Sun-Glo Neodymium A19 Lamp, 60-Watt
These are on for around 12 hours a day, and off the other 12 hours. - Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Temperatures in the basking zone sit around 76-84. I probably have to up the wattage on my lamp. As it gets lower, the cage drops into the lower 70s. I measure temps with two govee thermometer/hygrometers and a temperature gun. His basking branch is typically 9" below his lights, but does slip a few centimeters and here and there. - Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Humidity in the day hovers around 46-50%, give or take. At night I observe spikes of 78-82% around the basking branch, and at the bottom 80s-99% humidity. I'm unsure if I should be counting the basking area as the true measurement? It feels like cheating to consider the one tucked into the dracaena. Humidity is measured with two govee thermometer/hygrometers. - Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
2 pothos and 1 dracaena currently. I have two more plants (a creeping fig and a fluffy ruffles fern) on the way from josh's frogs. It looks a little bare right now admittedly, but hopefully the pothos grow wonderfully. - Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
The cage is in a bedroom, it is currently by a window and heating vent, but this is not the permanent position (I have the reptibreeze cage stand on the way but it won't be here until the 29th.) - Location - Where are you geographically located?
Alaska.
I got this little baby boy recently, he has no official name yet. I'm very curious about this swelling in the corner of his eye. I took him to a vet on Thursday, and was actually surprised by how much she and her nurse knew about chameleons, so there's that. They flushed his eye, making sure it wasn't debris, it wasn't that. They checked the inside of his mouth for signs of, I think, infection of the sinuses? or an abscess? I don't remember exactly. Whichever one where that is the procedure, they checked his mouth and didn't find anything unusual there. The bump seemed soft and squishy. He doesn't seem bothered by it getting touched (typical chameleon behavior aside) and it hasn't gotten any bigger since I've had him, but I worry anyway. She sent me home with an ointment just in case it's a bacterial infection, but it doesn't seem to be clearing up any yet.
Obviously, I'm super worried I am stressing him out and making things worse for him by how much I have to interact with him when he's new to the house (should I have waited for him to settle in before trying to figure out what was going on?)
The vet did mention that it could also just be a deformity from poor supplementation, and I am perfectly fine with this possibility so long as its not impactful to him. I know a lack of Vitamin A can do funny things to the eyes. So! I know I'm rambling, but I figured you may see this sort of thing a lot to maybe have an idea of what I may be dealing with here. I'd appreciate any insight and guidance.
I've attached a couple photos of his left eye, and also his enclosure.
I know but it’s the best way to describe it) antibiotics alone will not get rid of them. Let others chime in and see what they say, but I may get a second opinion. If beman or missskittles or someone more experienced comes along and have a different opinion, go with theirs. They are far more knowledgeable than me.
It’s hard when it comes to eye problems as there’s several different things it could be. I’m thinking maybe a keratin plug trapped in there. Usually they need a deep flush to remove. I would say to keep using the drops from the vet, make sure your humidity is well within range and maybe give a long misting for several minutes right before lights out. I’m assuming your night temps fall below at least 68 since you’re in AK.
see this is why I say let others chime in 
the vet probably has an abscess on her radar as a possibility if she said lancing it was the next step. My Cham had one. My vet did something very similar. Antibiotics first just to avoid less invasiveness if possible. Turned out that didn’t work so lancing was required. His was on his nose though. Follow Missskittles advice, she knows her stuff, and then see how he’s doing. Keep us updated for sure!!
