Carpet Cham One Eye Closed

JLP474

JLP474

Member
Cham was born in Sept, I picked him up the day before Halloween...Few weeks ago I noticed he would have one eye closed(left), not all the time, but a lot. No swelling, no crust or anything visible other just having it closed. He doesn't rub it either so it doesn't seem to be irritating him. If I go near to have a look he'll open it for a bit, look around, checking things out for a bit then closes it again. After some research it seems like it could be Vit A deficiency and/or too much UV. Originally my plan was for a panther, after talking to some ppl my lighting may have been a little too strong, last week I took some screen and double layered under the fixture to reduce it some. Also picked up some Vit A, punctured a hole and was able to get some in his lip...changed my cricket feed from only Fluker's Gut Load to chopped carrots and collards dusted with Fluker's Gut Load. Also by accident he got misted with over a gallon of water when I accidentally set my timer to 45 min instead of 45 sec so he def had a good shower lol. Check out the vid below, around the 2:15 mark can see he closes his left eye and intermittently pulls the whole eye inward then opens it again...anyone ever see this?

Carper Cham
Large Enclosure
36" T5 1x Arcadia 12%, 2x 6500 Day Bulbs, 1x Plant pro (entire fixture reduced with double layer screen last week)
1 Philips Plant bulb w/dimmer for basking(85°)
Mist King 3x daily distilled water
Crickets dusted w/Arcadia Earth Pro-A 2x/week

 
If I had to guess I would say Vit A. It can be common in carpets from time to time where they just need a little bit more in their system and then everything is back to normal. What Vit A did you purchase? I can send you a picture of the one I recommend if you would like. For an adult like him I would just give him one full capsule of liquid. You will have to open it up and either put in in a syringe or just get him to gap while holding him and squeeze it into his mouth. You should see an improvement in a day or two. If not, then it is something else but 9 times out of 10 it is just Vit A with lateralis.
 
I had an issue with my cham being unable to clean old sheds out of his eyes. I was very lucky, because I nearly lost him! Ended up getting an antibiotic ointment from my vet made for the eyes, and it was an INSTANT turn around!
 
Angelwolf said:
I had an issue with my cham being unable to clean old sheds out of his eyes. I was very lucky, because I nearly lost him! Ended up getting an antibiotic ointment from my vet made for the eyes, and it was an INSTANT turn around!
Click to expand...
Was the shed visible? Same symptoms as in the clip? Visually I'm not seeing anything.
 
NHenn said:
I will have to check what brand I use tomorrow and let you know. I assume they are similar but not positive
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Any tips to getting a carpet to open its mouth? He gets pissed with hissing when I try to corral him lol...once he does get into position and calms down he keeps his mouth shut lol...previously I was able to pull down the side of his bottom lip and get some Vit A n there, but prob not enough.
 
JLP474 said:
Any tips to getting a carpet to open its mouth? He gets pissed with hissing when I try to corral him lol...once he does get into position and calms down he keeps his mouth shut lol...previously I was able to pull down the side of his bottom lip and get some Vit A n there, but prob not enough.
Click to expand...

Here it is on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Carlson-Vitamin-Palmitate-15000-Softgels/dp/B003B3P4IQ?th=1

I have a different looking bottom but same brand and concentration.

As for administering it, you are going to have to grab him. He won't be happy but place your thumb and pointer right behind his jaw line and he should gap and try to bite anything near his mouth. Otherwise, it is so hard to tell how much he is getting and you won't want to give him too little or think he didn't get any and then give him more and more.
 
For anyone else following the thread, please don't got and give Vit A to any chameleon as it can be very dangerous. If this wasn't a Carpet chameleon I would have a different approach but with this species it tends to be common and is usually my first recommendation for them.
 
NHenn said:
Here it is on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Carlson-Vitamin-Palmitate-15000-Softgels/dp/B003B3P4IQ?th=1

I have a different looking bottom but same brand and concentration.

As for administering it, you are going to have to grab him. He won't be happy but place your thumb and pointer right behind his jaw line and he should gap and try to bite anything near his mouth. Otherwise, it is so hard to tell how much he is getting and you won't want to give him too little or think he didn't get any and then give him more and more.
Click to expand...

NHenn said:
For anyone else following the thread, please don't got and give Vit A to any chameleon as it can be very dangerous. If this wasn't a Carpet chameleon I would have a different approach but with this species it tends to be common and is usually my first recommendation for them.
Click to expand...
Appreciate the info and guidance...judging from the video I posted, when he closes his eye and randomly pulls it inward...does that point to Vit A deficiency? Also, looks like the Vit A you have is 15,000iu...mine is 10,000iu...mine should be fine?
 
Yes because he is moving around while holding his eye closed. Normally if it isn't an eye issue they will sit almost asleep with one or both eyes closed which usually means it has nothing to do with their eyes. In his case, he is awake and active so I'm thinking it is just a problem in that one eye. So first step is misting and shower to flush anything which you already did, next since you don't see anything obvious I say we try the vit A as that should solve it. If that doesn't, then it is vet time as it could be an infection which you will need medication for.
 
NHenn said:
Yes because he is moving around while holding his eye closed. Normally if it isn't an eye issue they will sit almost asleep with one or both eyes closed which usually means it has nothing to do with their eyes. In his case, he is awake and active so I'm thinking it is just a problem in that one eye. So first step is misting and shower to flush anything which you already did, next since you don't see anything obvious I say we try the vit A as that should solve it. If that doesn't, then it is vet time as it could be an infection which you will need medication for.
Click to expand...
Ok great...and the Vit A I have, the dosage is ok?

IMG_20170127_092403_zps0droqiyd.jpg
 
Yes that should work fine. It is a bit of a lower dosage so will be safer too which is good. Just give him all the liquid in one of the capsules.
 
Ok Vitamin A treatment was a success...but man does he hate it...little bugger is fast too lol...last week definitely wasn't enough, this time I was able to get a whole capsule into a syringe, held behind the jawline and got it all in...afterwards kept opening his mouth and using his tongue like "ugh get this nasty crap outta my mouth" lol. If this works, approx how long before start to see an improvement?

Here he is after his treatment




 
Good deal. Glad it worked out. Hopefully in a day or two he won't be closing his eyes at all. If not, then we need to consider something else is going on and go from there.
 
Great...So if this does work...What precautionary measures can I take to help boost Vit A? I've been gut loading crickets with a mixture of carrots and collared greens... Recommend a good suppliment besides the Arcadia Earth Pro I currently use? Or ditch that and use something different all together?
 
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