Chameleon with cloudy eyes

tallonebball

New Member
Hello all,
My 4 year old panther chameleon has some eye problem I can't seem to find on the internet, his eyes are cloudy yet there is no discharge or mucus. Its like he has some type of hard, clear substance in front of his eyes that are making it very hard for him to see.
Right now I am force feeding him because of his vision, he is however drinking on his own.
Ive been trying turtle eye drops but they don't seem to be very effective. Anybody have any ideas??
 
Would it be possible to get pictures? I know "eye" pictures are hard, but sometimes a picture conveys information that makes a big difference. You should probably fill out the "how to ask for help" form in the first thread in this forum. Just copy and paste, type in your responses in as much detail as possible.
 
Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - 4 year old Male Panther Chameleon
Handling - I don't handle all that much unless I have to
Feeding - Hes eating crickets/mealworms/waxworms about 3 times a week when he lets me force feed him
Supplements - Exo-Terra Multivitamin and spraying with Flukers Liquid Vitamin. Also now using Zomed turtle eyedrops
Watering - I use a dripper and I spray
Fecal Description - looks like it always has
History - he has has eye problems since I've had him and they keep going away for a long while then coming back

Cage Info:
Cage Type - He lives in a fake tree in our media room
Lighting - two lamps, one with a 100w sunglo and one with a 26 watt UVA/UVB
Temperature - under basking light can be about 80-90 degrees depending on how close he gets, the rest is around 72-74 degrees
Humidity - im not totally sure, its hard to tell but he gets sprayed once a day
Plants - fake tree, I have found he has eye allergies to almost all live plants
Placement - it is in indirect sunlight
Location - Virginia
 
Could it be possible he is just getting old? 4 years is just an approximation because I think he was between 7 month to a year old when I bought him.
Any help guys?
Its very hard for me to get picture because he doesn't open his eyes unless hes moving and he doesn't move all that much. I'll try to get a decent pic tomorrow though..
 
Just thinking out loud, but I wonder if they get cataracts like other animals? Does he seem to be in any discomfort?
 
Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - 4 year old Male Panther Chameleon
Handling - I don't handle all that much unless I have to
Feeding - Hes eating crickets/mealworms/waxworms about 3 times a week when he lets me force feed him
Supplements - Exo-Terra Multivitamin and spraying with Flukers Liquid Vitamin. Also now using Zomed turtle eyedrops
Watering - I use a dripper and I spray
Fecal Description - looks like it always has
History - he has has eye problems since I've had him and they keep going away for a long while then coming back

Cage Info:
Cage Type - He lives in a fake tree in our media room
Lighting - two lamps, one with a 100w sunglo and one with a 26 watt UVA/UVB
Temperature - under basking light can be about 80-90 degrees depending on how close he gets, the rest is around 72-74 degrees
Humidity - im not totally sure, its hard to tell but he gets sprayed once a day
Plants - fake tree, I have found he has eye allergies to almost all live plantsPlacement - it is in indirect sunlight
Location - Virginia

Has a vet diagnosed this or have you noticed a problem with his eyes when you put plants in his cage?

I am just curious if this could have been a problem for a while and the cloudy film is scar tissue.
 
um...if he's not moving or opening his eyes during the day you have a bigger problem than cataracts (not saying that's not happening, but eyes closed and not moving during the day, requiring forced feedings are all signs of trouble)

I think you need to take your chameleon to a vet.

When you say the poop "looks like it always does" what does that mean? Good chameleon poop has a large "brown grey" part which is the actual fecal matter and a hopefully whitish tag which is the pee...it goes by the name URATE here. It should be white or possibly cream...not yellow or orange (a tip that is yellow or orange isn't a panic).

A chameleon being allergic to live plants would be very unusual. How did you "find" that he was allergic?
 
His poop is exactly the description of "good" poop you gave
I just assume he is allergic because he would always get eye problems whenever I put any of the safe plants in with him, then when I put him in the fake tree the eye problems all went away for about 2 years until now...
Its not that he doesn't move or doesn't open his eyes, he moves just fine, his grip is strong, but I can tell he can't see very well which is why I think he doesn't move all as much as he used to. He actually opens his eyes only when he moves though and I can see some clear mass between his eye and eyelid which clearly obstructs his vision.
And no I haven't found a vet yet.
 
That's good news on the poop. I guess it's possible for a chameleon to be allergic to plants. Certainly, if it bothered his eyes you did the right thing by taking them out.

Have you tried rinsing his eyes? Use the "saline solution" that is sold for contact lenses and gently flush them out..

I really think a vet visit is order because it's possible there's an eye infection and medicine will be needed.
 
Well you see when the old plants were in there he would get those eye infections that I could cure by flushing out his eye. I always just used a cotton swab and freshwater though.
Now I have been trying to flush his eyes out with the turtle eye drops with no effect.
Should I try the saline solution or do you think this is definitely a vets territory?
How do I find a vet that takes chameleons?
 
Is it possible there was something on the plants or in the soil that caused his problem? Maybe insectisides? Did you wash and rinse the leaves and replant the plant before putting them in his enclosure. I'm not playing the blame game, as I think it's more important to deal with the current problem. A vet visit is probably your best idea, since imo it's impossible to diagnose without seeing him.
 
Well he lives in a fake tree now so the plants aren't the problem anyways this time.
But no I never washed any of the plants, I'll remember that next time.
I guess I'll try to find a vet and try the saline solution in the mean time, any one else with any advice? Is it possible hes getting old as well?
 
Four is not really that old. I would find a "good" chameleon vet and have him a good check over. At four it would be a good time for a check up and see what can be done for his eyes.
 
I dont know if this has anything to do with eyes but i would say that it doesnt stay humid enought since you only spary once a day, its not in a cage to help hold the humidity, and theres no live plants to help hold humidity
 
I have been worried about that to tell you the truth be hes not showing any signs of dehydration and he sheds just fine so I didn't think there was a problem
 
I have to agree with the humidity and with the vet. Once a day is not enough water. What uvb are you using exactly as some are known to cause eye issues. Are you supplementing with calcium at all?
 
Its a Repti-glo 10.0 UVB
So are live plants the best way to keep humidity? Because I don't see why a mesh cage would keep humidity any better than the tree if its getting pretty much the same air flow.
Yeah hes getting Repti-cal when I force feed.
Anybody with any tips on terramycin? I've seen that a bunch and I can easily get that. I'll also start looking for a vet. I love my guy and He's been great, I hate seeing him suffer.
Am I wrong in thinking most Panthers only live around 5 years? Thats what I always seem to see in books and on websites.
 
A humidifier would help to keep the humidity up.

I've seen a few panthers on here make it to 8. My daughter has one that's over 6.

You UVB light, is it a coil or tube? 10.0 is allot of UV, most keepers use 5.0 Reptisun tube style.
 
Im sorry I don't know the difference between coil and tube... Its in the form of those energy saver bulbs. Could he be getting too much UVA??
 
The "energy saver form" is a coiled UV tube....there have been issues with them causing eye problems.

Unless you have a mesh cage, that is a strong light. (mesh meaning soft cloth open weave).

Live plants do help hold humidity...it's because the water stays in the soil and the plants. Water just slides off fake plants. Some silk plants will hold water for awhile, but not as long as real.

If your animal really cannot be around live plants, I'm sure there are ways around that for the humidity issue.
 
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