Don’t know what’s wrong with him

Sabsue

New Member
Veiled, male, around 2-3 years old, have had for around 2 years

  • Handling - Every day
  • Feeding - gut-load crickets every few days I just dump about 10 in there and he eats what he wants
  • Supplements - Once a week I dust with repti calcium (I always accidentally pour too much in so the crickets get coated still)
  • Watering - I have a dropper that goes into a bowl. I have an auto mister that goes every 8 hours for 12 seconds. I haven’t seen him drink in a while.
  • Fecal Description - Brown and white/ yellow. Brown is shiny white/ yellow is more thick. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? No
  • History - He has a huge eye infection that I have been going to the vet for a year now. He is on antibiotics that are given daily hence why I handle him every day. He did have what seemed like seizures once about a year and a half ago. Stayed at the bottom of his cage and was dark brown and would barely move. Took him to the vet immediately and they gave fluids and told me to switch from Dubia roaches to butter worms because he was “constipated and dehydrated” he got picky and stopped eating eating them.
  • Cage Info:
  • Cage Type -Screen 24x24x48
  • Lighting - 24” 24 watt T5 HO Repti sun terrarium hood uvb light Around 7:30AM to 11PM depending on if I’m home I’ll turn off earlier.
  • Temperature - 90° at the top of the cage. Not sure the Lowest overnight temp or temp at the bottom of the cage. Measure using using a zoomed temp/ humidity gauge
  • Humidity - between 50 and 60
  • Plants - Fake plants only
  • Placement - in my bedroom. At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? Not sure probably around 40” where he stays towards the top
  • Location - Southern California
  • Current Problem - He isn’t eating. He breaths with his mouth open and almost hisses and puffs up and is breathing heavily and a lot. Looks like a little bit of mucus coming from his mouth. He’s very dark and dehydrated (his good eye is sunken in) and he looses his balance and falls from his perch. I am going to take him to the vet in the morning.
 

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OMG! That eye looks absolutely terrible! Unfortunately I can’t offer any feedback on that other than you should try another vet. I can review your husbandry and will put my feedback in red.
Veiled, male, around 2-3 years old, have had for around 2 years

  • Handling - Every day
  • Feeding - gut-load crickets every few days I just dump about 10 in there and he eats what he wants You should offer more variety than just crickets and he looks a bit thin, so I would say to feed him every other day the same amount. Providing feeder & gutload graphics for you. Also, you should add a small piece of carrot or something so any uneaten crickets don’t bite your cham.
  • Supplements - Once a week I dust with repti calcium (I always accidentally pour too much in so the crickets get coated still) This is not correct and needs to be fixed ASAP. You need to dust all feedings except one per week with a phosphorus free calcium without D3. The one weekly feeding you want to use calcium with D3 every other week and then do the same with a multivitamin. Incorrect supplementation is more than likely the cause of your current problem and may also have great impact on his eye too.
  • Watering - I have a dropper that goes into a bowl. I have an auto mister that goes every 8 hours for 12 seconds. I haven’t seen him drink in a while. It’s pretty common for chams to be secretive about drinking. However, 12 seconds is not nearly long enough to mist. You need to be misting for at least 2 minutes, 3 times daily. This not only stimulates him to drink, but also allows time to clean his eyes.
  • Fecal Description - Brown and white/ yellow. Brown is shiny white/ yellow is more thick. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? No The white part is his urine and called urate. The lighter/whiter it is, the better hydrated he is. It is always recommended to have a fecal check for parasites.
  • History - He has a huge eye infection that I have been going to the vet for a year now. He is on antibiotics that are given daily hence why I handle him every day. Again, I can’t offer much help other than to say that’s way too long for his eye to look so very bad. If it were me, I’d try another vet. Perhaps @kinyonga can offer some feedback about the eye. He did have what seemed like seizures once about a year and a half ago. Stayed at the bottom of his cage and was dark brown and would barely move. Took him to the vet immediately and they gave fluids and told me to switch from Dubia roaches to butter worms because he was “constipated and dehydrated” he got picky and stopped eating eating them. I really have to question the knowledge and experience your vet has with chameleons. Dubia are perhaps the best feeder to give. To rehydrate, hornworms are great as they are basically bags of water.
  • Cage Info:
  • Cage Type -Screen 24x24x48 good
  • Lighting - 24” 24 watt T5 HO Repti sun terrarium hood uvb light Around 7:30AM to 11PM depending on if I’m home I’ll turn off earlier. I suggest getting an auto timer to give 12 hours on/off for the lights. What is the age of your uvb bulb? Most lose effectiveness after 6 months and need to be replaced. Arcadia is good for a year.
  • Temperature - 90° at the top of the cage. Not sure the Lowest overnight temp or temp at the bottom of the cage. Measure using using a zoomed temp/ humidity gauge Ok
  • Humidity - between 50 and 60 This is a bit high. Humidity should be kept between 30-50% during the day and can get much higher at night when it’s cool.
  • Plants - Fake plants only Veileds nibble on their plants and have been known to eat fake leaves and get obstructed. Live plants are most definitely best and I suggest getting rid of the fake and putting in a pothos or two.
  • Placement - in my bedroom. At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? Not sure probably around 40” where he stays towards the top The higher, the better. Chams feel safest when they are looking down upon their world.
  • Location - Southern California
  • Current Problem - He isn’t eating. He breaths with his mouth open and almost hisses and puffs up and is breathing heavily and a lot. He’s very dark and dehydrated (his good eye is sunken in) and he looses his balance and falls from his perch. So it almost sounds as if you may have a couple of problems going on...possibly a respiratory infection and probably metabolic bone disease if he hasn’t been getting any calcium with D3. Is his saliva stringy or do you hear any popping when he breathes? How is his grip?
    You really need to take him to another vet who is more experienced with chameleons than the vet you’ve been going to. @jannb do you know of any good vets in Southern California?
EE61CE53-9398-4EAA-B3B1-1BDB2B6222E8.jpeg
1E2D7C7E-F69A-4055-AC86-3EA403F1827F.jpeg
 
I did switch vets when I realized my other one was not helpful at all (when he first got his eye infection he said it was normal which I knew was bs) so by the time I took him to see the new vet it was already large and I take him in to get it checked every few weeks. I use a solution to clean his eye out and there’s always puss no matter how often I clean it. Dr says it will most likely be a life long problem since it started almost on the top of his head as a little bump and has spread to what you see now. He says that since they have so many tiny crevices it’s almost impossible to get it all out and now it’s mostly scar tissue that has built up and that’s what majority of the front of the eye is. It’s hard. My biggest concern is his breathing. It sounds like a pop sometimes and also like he’s blowing bubbles or something. Just started happening today. Do you have a brand you like for the D3. I do change up his food and give horn worms every so often but like I said he’s picky and won’t touch things if I stick with something for too long. I have tried giving him roaches again and he won’t eat them. His grip when I hold him is very tight and his nails always dig into my fingers so I have to hold him with a towel.
 
I do need a new UVB light soon. It’s getting to the 6 month mark will have to check the box on exact date I got it but not quite there yet. (I set reminders on my phone)
 
OMG! That eye looks absolutely terrible! Unfortunately I can’t offer any feedback on that other than you should try another vet. I can review your husbandry and will put my feedback in red.
Veiled, male, around 2-3 years old, have had for around 2 years

  • Handling - Every day
  • Feeding - gut-load crickets every few days I just dump about 10 in there and he eats what he wants You should offer more variety than just crickets and he looks a bit thin, so I would say to feed him every other day the same amount. Providing feeder & gutload graphics for you. Also, you should add a small piece of carrot or something so any uneaten crickets don’t bite your cham.
  • Supplements - Once a week I dust with repti calcium (I always accidentally pour too much in so the crickets get coated still) This is not correct and needs to be fixed ASAP. You need to dust all feedings except one per week with a phosphorus free calcium without D3. The one weekly feeding you want to use calcium with D3 every other week and then do the same with a multivitamin. Incorrect supplementation is more than likely the cause of your current problem and may also have great impact on his eye too.
  • Watering - I have a dropper that goes into a bowl. I have an auto mister that goes every 8 hours for 12 seconds. I haven’t seen him drink in a while. It’s pretty common for chams to be secretive about drinking. However, 12 seconds is not nearly long enough to mist. You need to be misting for at least 2 minutes, 3 times daily. This not only stimulates him to drink, but also allows time to clean his eyes.
  • Fecal Description - Brown and white/ yellow. Brown is shiny white/ yellow is more thick. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? No The white part is his urine and called urate. The lighter/whiter it is, the better hydrated he is. It is always recommended to have a fecal check for parasites.
  • History - He has a huge eye infection that I have been going to the vet for a year now. He is on antibiotics that are given daily hence why I handle him every day. Again, I can’t offer much help other than to say that’s way too long for his eye to look so very bad. If it were me, I’d try another vet. Perhaps @kinyonga can offer some feedback about the eye. He did have what seemed like seizures once about a year and a half ago. Stayed at the bottom of his cage and was dark brown and would barely move. Took him to the vet immediately and they gave fluids and told me to switch from Dubia roaches to butter worms because he was “constipated and dehydrated” he got picky and stopped eating eating them. I really have to question the knowledge and experience your vet has with chameleons. Dubia are perhaps the best feeder to give. To rehydrate, hornworms are great as they are basically bags of water.
  • Cage Info:
  • Cage Type -Screen 24x24x48 good
  • Lighting - 24” 24 watt T5 HO Repti sun terrarium hood uvb light Around 7:30AM to 11PM depending on if I’m home I’ll turn off earlier. I suggest getting an auto timer to give 12 hours on/off for the lights. What is the age of your uvb bulb? Most lose effectiveness after 6 months and need to be replaced. Arcadia is good for a year.
  • Temperature - 90° at the top of the cage. Not sure the Lowest overnight temp or temp at the bottom of the cage. Measure using using a zoomed temp/ humidity gauge Ok
  • Humidity - between 50 and 60 This is a bit high. Humidity should be kept between 30-50% during the day and can get much higher at night when it’s cool.
  • Plants - Fake plants only Veileds nibble on their plants and have been known to eat fake leaves and get obstructed. Live plants are most definitely best and I suggest getting rid of the fake and putting in a pothos or two.
  • Placement - in my bedroom. At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? Not sure probably around 40” where he stays towards the top The higher, the better. Chams feel safest when they are looking down upon their world.
  • Location - Southern California
  • Current Problem - He isn’t eating. He breaths with his mouth open and almost hisses and puffs up and is breathing heavily and a lot. He’s very dark and dehydrated (his good eye is sunken in) and he looses his balance and falls from his perch. So it almost sounds as if you may have a couple of problems going on...possibly a respiratory infection and probably metabolic bone disease if he hasn’t been getting any calcium with D3. Is his saliva stringy or do you hear any popping when he breathes? How is his grip?
    You really need to take him to another vet who is more experienced with chameleons than the vet you’ve been going to. @jannb do you know of any good vets in Southern California?
View attachment 273580View attachment 273581
Oh and I just checked the calcium I use and it does have D3 in it
 

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I did switch vets when I realized my other one was not helpful at all (when he first got his eye infection he said it was normal which I knew was bs) so by the time I took him to see the new vet it was already large and I take him in to get it checked every few weeks. I use a solution to clean his eye out and there’s always puss no matter how often I clean it. Dr says it will most likely be a life long problem since it started almost on the top of his head as a little bump and has spread to what you see now. He says that since they have so many tiny crevices it’s almost impossible to get it all out and now it’s mostly scar tissue that has built up and that’s what majority of the front of the eye is. It’s hard. My biggest concern is his breathing. It sounds like a pop sometimes and also like he’s blowing bubbles or something. Just started happening today. Do you have a brand you like for the D3. I do change up his food and give horn worms every so often but like I said he’s picky and won’t touch things if I stick with something for too long. I have tried giving him roaches again and he won’t eat them. His grip when I hold him is very tight and his nails always dig into my fingers so I have to hold him with a towel.
That sounds like a respiratory infection and he’ll need to see a vet for antibiotics. Obviously the one he’s taking for his eye isn’t correct to treat the respiratory infection.
Did either vet go in and clean out the infection from the head bump? Unless it’s removed, chameleon pus doesn’t just go away like it does for us. I would think if that is going to be a chronic infection, it might possibly be best to just remove the eye, but I could very well be very wrong on that.
These are the supplements that I use.
E983D6B9-3A94-4906-82CA-5DFBD41FE706.jpeg
 
Yes every few weeks he goes in and opens it up and cleans out as much as he can. That’s why I also have the solution I use at home to try and get as much out as I can as well. It hurts him and I always feel so bad because he poops when I do it :’(. The pictures I took were all from tonight after I cleaned out his eye. Hence why there are little holes. The pictures of him at the bottom of the cage were after he had fallen. The first one is of him on his perch at the top of the cage. He fell onto his tree (soft branches). I Have talked to him about removing the eye but he advises against it as the eye isn’t the problem. Will ask him again tomorrow but he said it would cause more problems than less by removing the eye. Thank you for sending the pics! I will order some online. And I haven’t noticed him eat the fake plants at all. I check regularly to make sure he doesn’t. I did used to have a plant in there with him but he never climbed on it and it caused a bug And smell problem in my room. I also couldn’t keep it alive with just the lights and heat lamps in the cage and he never ate any of it. He’s very picky..... I did used to have dirt at the bottom of the cage but I think he was eating the dirt instead of the crickets while he was trying to catch them.. I feel so helpless and so horrible I can’t do anything else to help him other than change his vitamins food and take him to the vet. It has been non stop problem after problem that’s why I decided to ask you guys for help..
 
Dr. Tom Greek is the very best chameleon vet. I know you are in Southern California, so am I, so it may be a little drive, but it will be well worth it for your buddy's health. Dr. Greek will know EXACTLY what to do!
 

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Yes every few weeks he goes in and opens it up and cleans out as much as he can. That’s why I also have the solution I use at home to try and get as much out as I can as well. It hurts him and I always feel so bad because he poops when I do it :’(. The pictures I took were all from tonight after I cleaned out his eye. Hence why there are little holes. The pictures of him at the bottom of the cage were after he had fallen. The first one is of him on his perch at the top of the cage. He fell onto his tree (soft branches). I Have talked to him about removing the eye but he advises against it as the eye isn’t the problem. Will ask him again tomorrow but he said it would cause more problems than less by removing the eye. Thank you for sending the pics! I will order some online. And I haven’t noticed him eat the fake plants at all. I check regularly to make sure he doesn’t. I did used to have a plant in there with him but he never climbed on it and it caused a bug And smell problem in my room. I also couldn’t keep it alive with just the lights and heat lamps in the cage and he never ate any of it. He’s very picky..... I did used to have dirt at the bottom of the cage but I think he was eating the dirt instead of the crickets while he was trying to catch them.. I feel so helpless and so horrible I can’t do anything else to help him other than change his vitamins food and take him to the vet. It has been non stop problem after problem that’s why I decided to ask you guys for help..
Making the changes can help with his eye, even if just a little bit. That’s why members with a problem or concern are asked to fill out the help form and post pics. Everything can be related and sometimes those seemingly small changes can make all the difference.
As @AmandaS suggests, take a drive and go see Dr Greek. He is very well known and very knowledgeable about chameleons. He is perhaps in the top ranks.
 
OMG this poor baby. You have a vet that has not helped him the way he should have been. Of course he is losing his balance, they need both eyes to see he has absolutely no depth perception. He is sick and will die without proper Vet treatment. That eye is by no means normal or ok. To leave it that way is causing him suffering. That is a massive infection. His system is now compromised due to the eye infection. He needs a chameleon specialist like Dr. Greek.
 
OMG this poor baby. You have a vet that has not helped him the way he should have been. Of course he is losing his balance, they need both eyes to see he has absolutely no depth perception. He is sick and will die without proper Vet treatment. That eye is by no means normal or ok. To leave it that way is causing him suffering. That is a massive infection. His system is now compromised due to the eye infection. He needs a chameleon specialist like Dr. Greek.
I am taking him to Dr. Greek. Have been for a while now.
 
Making the changes can help with his eye, even if just a little bit. That’s why members with a problem or concern are asked to fill out the help form and post pics. Everything can be related and sometimes those seemingly small changes can make all the difference.
As @AmandaS suggests, take a drive and go see Dr Greek. He is very well known and very knowledgeable about chameleons. He is perhaps in the top ranks.
I already take him to dr. Greek. He is in my city actually. About a 15 min drive actually. He is closed on weekends now. Don’t know what to do...
 
One of the receipts I got last year. I do regularly take him I just don’t know where I put the receipts.
 

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  • You need to be misting for at least 2 minutes, 3 times daily. This not only stimulates him to drink, but also allows time to clean his eyes.
  • Humidity - between 50 and 60 This is a bit high. Humidity should be kept between 30-50% during the day and can get much higher at night when it’s cool.
2 minutes 3 times daily seems a bit much... I can't imagine having that much misting and staying below 50-60%. After a hand misting my cage gets to 68% and settles down around 45-55% after a couple hours.
 
Veiled, male, around 2-3 years old, have had for around 2 years

  • Handling - Every day
  • Feeding - gut-load crickets every few days I just dump about 10 in there and he eats what he wants
  • Supplements - Once a week I dust with repti calcium (I always accidentally pour too much in so the crickets get coated still)
  • Watering - I have a dropper that goes into a bowl. I have an auto mister that goes every 8 hours for 12 seconds. I haven’t seen him drink in a while.
  • Fecal Description - Brown and white/ yellow. Brown is shiny white/ yellow is more thick. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? No
  • History - He has a huge eye infection that I have been going to the vet for a year now. He is on antibiotics that are given daily hence why I handle him every day. He did have what seemed like seizures once about a year and a half ago. Stayed at the bottom of his cage and was dark brown and would barely move. Took him to the vet immediately and they gave fluids and told me to switch from Dubia roaches to butter worms because he was “constipated and dehydrated” he got picky and stopped eating eating them.
  • Cage Info:
  • Cage Type -Screen 24x24x48
  • Lighting - 24” 24 watt T5 HO Repti sun terrarium hood uvb light Around 7:30AM to 11PM depending on if I’m home I’ll turn off earlier.
  • Temperature - 90° at the top of the cage. Not sure the Lowest overnight temp or temp at the bottom of the cage. Measure using using a zoomed temp/ humidity gauge
  • Humidity - between 50 and 60
  • Plants - Fake plants only
  • Placement - in my bedroom. At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? Not sure probably around 40” where he stays towards the top
  • Location - Southern California
  • Current Problem - He isn’t eating. He breaths with his mouth open and almost hisses and puffs up and is breathing heavily and a lot. Looks like a little bit of mucus coming from his mouth. He’s very dark and dehydrated (his good eye is sunken in) and he looses his balance and falls from his perch. I am going to take him to the vet in the morning.

According to all of this it seem you might have Vitamin deficiency (Vitamin A to be specific)

-eyes infection
-neurological problems probable
-respiratory problems
-lack of vitamin A in the overall diet (only silkworm i think prodide natural Vitamin A sources in resonable qt)
-Dusting only with calcium (repcal multi contain only beta-caroten and this is not proven to be absorbed by the chameleons)

so far.. all the indices are in that direction to me, you should maybe consider adding little amount of preformed vitamin A to the diet. You can for now, go to the drugstore and buy vitamin A pills used for humain. give 1/2 of a pills every 2 week for the next 2 minths.

good luck with all that, few symptoms can be reversed, few can't only time will tell. you can consider talking to your vet about all this vit A hypothesis and i advice you to goole hypovitaminosis A in reptile you might find some of answer :)

Keep us uptaded, sorry for my english im french so if something is wiggly let me know :)

I strognly suggest you to feed your cricket with yolk - nice natural source ;)
 
A variety of bugs makes for a much happier chameleon. My Jackson loves wax worms, but after a few days his spirit to eat them lessens. He than will eat a moth with great zeal, but after a few moths... he won't even look at them. The same is with crickets and silk worms. Could you eat the same thing, for every meal, for every day and be happy, healthy, and vibrant?
 
.
2 minutes 3 times daily seems a bit much... I can't imagine having that much misting and staying below 50-60%. After a hand misting my cage gets to 68% and settles down around 45-55% after a couple hours.
It is not too much. It is recommended, but it is different for different locations. You may live in a more humid area??
 
He just had a bowel movement.. never seen it look like this before :/
 

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