Eye Issues

aguallo123

Member
Your Chameleon - Panther Chameleon, male, I'm not sure how old he is. He is about 8-9 inches long. I have had him for 5 days. I bought him from petco.

Handling - I handled him when I put him in his cage for about 5 minutes.

Feeding - Crickets for right now. He will eat about 3-4 crickets a day. The crickets are in a jar on the bottom of the cage if he wants to go down and get them but I throw a few into the cage for him to hunt. I am feeding the crickets orange slices and carrot slices along with Fluker’s cricket feed.

Supplements - I bought Rep-cal Calcium with vit. D3 and rep-cal herptivite multivitamin. I used the calcium yesterday on the crickets. I ordered the calcium without d3 and it should get here tomorrow.
Watering - I use a spray bottle on fine mist and I spray his whole enclosure until everything is dripping. I do this about 3-4 times a day. I have seen him drink on multiple occasions. I also have a reptifogger that condenses at the top of the cage and works as a dripper also.

Fecal Description - It comes out white and the hard poop comes out brown. He hasn't been tested for parasites. Poops once a day, sometimes twice.

History - His colors were more deep and intense at the petco .The first pic I posted was when he was in the petco (the pic with the rock wall background). When I went into the store the day before I bought him he rubbed his left eye on a vine but I decided that he was rubbing the shed off his eye because he looked like he had just shed his whole body. In the store he was always facing to the right so I couldn't really see his left eye but he looked fine.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - I bought the chameleon kit from petco and it came with a reptibreeze 16X16X30.

This is a temporary cage until I build his large permanent enclosure. I have been growing live plants for about a year for this little guy. I have an umbrella plant in the cage and a I am building a cage 6 feet tall X 3 feet wide X 2 feet deep. I have all the materials ready all i need is some power tools to cut the wood and put it all together. (I will be going to a family members house to do so and I will try to make a video of how I built it for you guys).

Lighting - I am using zoo med Daylight blue bulb 100W for general heat. I am using the light fixture that came with the kit which can hold two bulbs but I am just using it for the heat one since I have a separate fixture to hold my Zilla T8 uvb/uva bulb (18 inches, 15 watt).

8:30 am - 8:30pm

Temperature - We keep the temp in the house around 77*F during the day. Cage floor temp= 77*F. Basking spot = 88-90*F. Lowest overnight temps reach 68-69 *F. I have a probe thermometer. I don't have a night time heat lamp.
Humidity - The humidity levels are at ~65%. The live plants hold a lot of moisture in the soil.
Plants - I am currently using a live pathos in the cage and an umbrella plant where he spends his time drinking the water that builds up on it. I also have fake plants in there towards the bottom. I have a live ficus and outside his cage to help with humidity.

Placement - The cage is in my room on the floor. I t is out of range from any fans or air vents. We only use the fans at night when we sleep but I throw a bed sheet over the cage at night just to be sure he isn't getting to cold.

Location - San Antonio, TX.


Current Problem - Left eye staying closed most of the time and is a little smaller than right eye. He keeps rubbing his eye on things and it looks a little purple like he rubs it too much. Other than that he seems like a healthy boy. He eats regular and drinks regularly and poops normally.

I am taking him back to petco tomorrow and they will take him to their vet to have him looked at. I researched their vet and they are good with reptiles.
I want to see if anyone else has this problem.

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If his eye hurts he maybe holding it in closer to his head. Have you given him any long mistings so he can clean his eyes. He may have a stuck piece of shed in there or other foreign body. If he has scratched the surface of his eye the vet may have to give you eye meds to treat it.
His cage looks good and the decision to see the vet is a good one. Your cage looks nice and jungle like.(y) That should make him feel secure.
One addition to your husbandry would be to add leafy greens to your gut load for the crickets. Mustard greens are inexpensive and available at most grocery stores. In the resource page on food and nutrition there is a great list under the gut load heading. I make batches in the food processor and then freeze it so I always have a good variety on hand.
 
Your Chameleon - Panther Chameleon, male, I'm not sure how old he is. He is about 8-9 inches long. I have had him for 5 days. I bought him from petco.

Handling - I handled him when I put him in his cage for about 5 minutes.

Feeding - Crickets for right now. He will eat about 3-4 crickets a day. The crickets are in a jar on the bottom of the cage if he wants to go down and get them but I throw a few into the cage for him to hunt. I am feeding the crickets orange slices and carrot slices along with Fluker’s cricket feed.

Supplements - I bought Rep-cal Calcium with vit. D3 and rep-cal herptivite multivitamin. I used the calcium yesterday on the crickets. I ordered the calcium without d3 and it should get here tomorrow.
Watering - I use a spray bottle on fine mist and I spray his whole enclosure until everything is dripping. I do this about 3-4 times a day. I have seen him drink on multiple occasions. I also have a reptifogger that condenses at the top of the cage and works as a dripper also.

Fecal Description - It comes out white and the hard poop comes out brown. He hasn't been tested for parasites. Poops once a day, sometimes twice.

History - His colors were more deep and intense at the petco .The first pic I posted was when he was in the petco (the pic with the rock wall background). When I went into the store the day before I bought him he rubbed his left eye on a vine but I decided that he was rubbing the shed off his eye because he looked like he had just shed his whole body. In the store he was always facing to the right so I couldn't really see his left eye but he looked fine.


Cage Info:

Cage Type - I bought the chameleon kit from petco and it came with a reptibreeze 16X16X30.

This is a temporary cage until I build his large permanent enclosure. I have been growing live plants for about a year for this little guy. I have an umbrella plant in the cage and a I am building a cage 6 feet tall X 3 feet wide X 2 feet deep. I have all the materials ready all i need is some power tools to cut the wood and put it all together. (I will be going to a family members house to do so and I will try to make a video of how I built it for you guys).

Lighting - I am using zoo med Daylight blue bulb 100W for general heat. I am using the light fixture that came with the kit which can hold two bulbs but I am just using it for the heat one since I have a separate fixture to hold my Zilla T8 uvb/uva bulb (18 inches, 15 watt).

8:30 am - 8:30pm

Temperature - We keep the temp in the house around 77*F during the day. Cage floor temp= 77*F. Basking spot = 88-90*F. Lowest overnight temps reach 68-69 *F. I have a probe thermometer. I don't have a night time heat lamp.
Humidity - The humidity levels are at ~65%. The live plants hold a lot of moisture in the soil.
Plants - I am currently using a live pathos in the cage and an umbrella plant where he spends his time drinking the water that builds up on it. I also have fake plants in there towards the bottom. I have a live ficus and outside his cage to help with humidity.

Placement - The cage is in my room on the floor. I t is out of range from any fans or air vents. We only use the fans at night when we sleep but I throw a bed sheet over the cage at night just to be sure he isn't getting to cold.

Location - San Antonio, TX.


Current Problem - Left eye staying closed most of the time and is a little smaller than right eye. He keeps rubbing his eye on things and it looks a little purple like he rubs it too much. Other than that he seems like a healthy boy. He eats regular and drinks regularly and poops normally.

I am taking him back to petco tomorrow and they will take him to their vet to have him looked at. I researched their vet and they are good with reptiles.
I want to see if anyone else has this problem.

View attachment 210522 View attachment 210523
i got my chameleon from a reputable reptile store and i constantly have the same problem constantly and i havent found a cure. i think it is because of a lack of genetic diversity. it is very upsetting as my chameleon constantly suffers. some times going off food and fluctuating weight. its constant torment on the animal. I have tried everything. from special eye wash to showers. at this point i wouldnt be suprised if he dies from this condition it is so upsetting. if you do find anything please let me know.
curly
 
If his eye hurts he maybe holding it in closer to his head. Have you given him any long mistings so he can clean his eyes. He may have a stuck piece of shed in there or other foreign body. If he has scratched the surface of his eye the vet may have to give you eye meds to treat it.
His cage looks good and the decision to see the vet is a good one. Your cage looks nice and jungle like.(y) That should make him feel secure.
One addition to your husbandry would be to add leafy greens to your gut load for the crickets. Mustard greens are inexpensive and available at most grocery stores. In the resource page on food and nutrition there is a great list under the gut load heading. I make batches in the food processor and then freeze it so I always have a good variety on hand.
I've tried long misting and it seemed to help a little bit. He opens his eye when he sees food and needs to focus in to get it. I have a feeling its a piece of shed in his eye because he is constantly trying to clean it by doing that weird rolling thing with his eye. I'll have to try your processing method! Thanks
 
i got my chameleon from a reputable reptile store and i constantly have the same problem constantly and i havent found a cure. i think it is because of a lack of genetic diversity. it is very upsetting as my chameleon constantly suffers. some times going off food and fluctuating weight. its constant torment on the animal. I have tried everything. from special eye wash to showers. at this point i wouldnt be suprised if he dies from this condition it is so upsetting. if you do find anything please let me know.
curly
He seems really hardy and opens his eye when he sees a cricket with his other eye then he focuses on it. I will try as hard as I can to make sure I can care for him. He was on sale because petco had a 1/2 off deal on reptiles so I got him for $150.
 
Return him, buy from a breeder. I know it sounds cold but it’s for the best.
I have good hopes that he will be alright. He is very active and alert but his left eye is closed 75% of the time. When he is exploring his cage he keeps it open. He is a very good hunter. I have only had him for 5 days but Petco offers a 30 day return on him. I will see if his condition changes after the 30 days and if it doesn't I will take him back. Where is your recommended place to purchase panther chameleons or chameleons in general?
 
UPDATE: His eye is open now. I rarely see him keep it closed now, it must have just been something under his skin. The shape has enlarged to look like the other eye which is promising. I gave him a couple long spray sessions which might have helped a lot.
 
Make sure you are misting for atleast 2-3 minutes each time with one misting being longer. This will allow him time to clean his eye and drink. Sounds like he might have had something stuck in the eye turret.

Invest in a mist king system. Takes the hassle out of having to make sure you are around to mist and hydrate him.
 
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