filarial worms - before and after

[SSimsswiSS]

Here's a before and after picture of a Ankaramy female with a infested eye. I had the worms removed only after the worms appeared to hinder eyesight, due to the fragile location. A total of 8 worms where removed from eye socket. Note the stretched out look, now of skin around eye.

 

[OntarioLizardman]

really interesting, but that has to be so painful, thank god you got them out. was she wild caught?

 

[SSimsswiSS]

really interesting, but that has to be so painful, thank god you got them out. was she wild caught?

Yes, she's a WC from last year. She's due to laid, anyday now, and had just come up for digging this morning when I snapped this shot.

 

[BocaJan]

My goodness! Thank you for having them removed. I do believe her eye skin will shrink back down eventually.

 

[haleybobl]

Oh ick, I can't imagine how that had to feel. How exactly do they remove them?

 

[OntarioLizardman]

how did you get rid of those? pulling them out? what meds did u use for her? any anesthetics? this kinda stuff interest me lol. glad to hear that the skin will shrink back

 

[chamelisa]

These pictures are very intriguing. Parasites are so nasty.

 

[AncientCritters]

Oh WOW. Thats wild. I never thought about them getting the worms in the eye sockets. My WC girl has some on her side. She is doing fine though. SHe laid eggs about a month ago.

 

[reyesjoshuacruz]

Yes, they are present. The vet can do essentially nothing about it though. Filarials do not exist in the gut, but rather between skin layers, internal and external. You can incise one out when at the surface, leaving a small scar and stressing the animal, but there are more within just waiting. Using drugs to kill the filarials, as they are in the tissues, has proven to create more problems than it solves. These drugs are very hard on the chameleons, and the dead worms can cause secondary issues.

this just brings up questions on whether your out of the woods, or got lucky, or someone else was off?

???

 

[dodolah]

whoa!!
that's a very informative pic!

 

[CleanLineChameleons]

Yummmy...lol great pics steve. About being out of the woods...I have had my vet (Matt Wheelock on here) take quite a few worms out and after a year no signs of them reappearing. So, there may still be a chance but they are not life threatening and if they do reappear they can be removed as well.

-chris

 

[haleybobl]

Yummmy...lol great pics steve. About being out of the woods...I have had my vet (Matt Wheelock on here) take quite a few worms out and after a year no signs of them reappearing. So, there may still be a chance but they are not life threatening and if they do reappear they can be removed as well.

-chris

I have never had any experience with parasites with any or my reptiles. Is this generally just with Wild Caught?

 

[Chamgirl]

I own a WC Ankaramy panther and he had the minimum three worms in his side. I got them surgically removed at the vets, he had three operations. Three years on he is doing fine and no sign of any more filarial worms

 

[SSimsswiSS]

I own a WC Ankaramy panther and he had the minimum three worms in his side. I got them surgically removed at the vets, he had three operations. Three years on he is doing fine and no sign of any more filarial worms

Yes, their life (the worm) cycle involves transmission via Mosquito. So, breaking the cycle, is easy. Most of the time host and parasite can live together. Trying to treat with drugs can lead to toxic shock, as dead / decaying worms infect bloodsteam. So extraction is the perferred method of treatment.

 

[dondeb562]

wow that is pretty disturbing! poor thing. At least it was taken care of!!

 

[de cam]

Oh WOW. Thats wild. I never thought about them getting the worms in the eye sockets. My WC girl has some on her side. She is doing fine though. SHe laid eggs about a month ago.

That is WILD I had a panther 8 yrs ago that had a worm under the eye lid; it ate her eye! I had 2 feed her w/ a syringe & had 2 put her down after a ton of vet visits & antibiotics. It was nasty. Captive bread [its just not worth having something a little different]