Keeping eyes closed and looks possibly cloudy and all black

[katelynpc]

So I was unable to keep my chameleon at my apt so my mom took him for me for 6 months I got him back yesterday and my mom said for about a week his eye has been staying closed. She did her best but I know he got dehydrated at some points and she said she started guessing with his supplements so I was worried it was a husbandry issue but today I looked at his bad eye and it looks a lot weirder to me. I tried looking up reptile vets near me but there aren't really any that seem very good so any advice would help! The first pic is his new enclosure the next two are the good eye the last ones are of his bad eye. Thank you!

 

[jannb]

I'm sorry to hear about your little man but I'm glad that you got him back. Where do you live? I might be able to find you a chameleon vet. There's not allot of really experienced ones around and sometimes you have to drive a ways to get to one. If he were mine I'd get him looked at. For now you can try extra long warm mistings or even a shower to keep him hydrated and that might help the eye.

 

[katelynpc]

I live in Fayetteville Ga. I found a vet in Marrietta that sees reptiles and he has great experience, and amphibians are his specialty. I'm also nervous because I've seen where some chameleons have died due to stress at the vet. I was wondering if anyone has pics of a blind chameleon so I can compare. I'm just a really nervous mommy lol

 

[laurie]

Go ahead to the vet, if they have reptile experience then it is what I would do. let me know how it goes. I was visiting in Powder Springs about 3 weeks ago. HOT weather.

 

[jannb]

This is an excellent chameleon vet in the Atlanta area. A friend of mine has used him for years and years. Dr. Brad Wilson
The very best to you and your little man. I take my chams to the vet all the time for check ups and stuff. They actually like it.
http://www.theveterinaryclinic.net/Exotic-Page.html

 

[Bush baby]

Dehydration would show up in both eyes. It's probably due to supplementation issues.

 

[katelynpc]

I'm actually planning on taking him to Dr. Wilson on Thursday since that is my only day off I was wondering I know the exam fee is $62, but any idea how much other services will cost? I'm a little low on cash for now until my next paycheck and I spent a good bit of money getting him a more suitable enclosure.

 

[werecat]

The pictures of the bad eye are a little unclear to me. I know it's hard to photograph a tiny moving eye, but see if you can get a better shot. I will try to post pictures of my chameleon's bad eye for you to compare. Will post later tonight or tomorrow. As my cham went blind I noticed a change in the look of his eye with the iris darkening and the pupil remaining constricted. Now his eye is almost completely black with no visible iris. In my case the vet determined it to be a degenerative eye disease after no medication helped. It could really be anything though so seeing a vet is important. Hopefully it's treatable for your guy.

How is his aim when hunting? If he is blind or going blind in one eye you will notice him having problems hitting his target.

 

[werecat]

Btw, the eye meds my vet prescribed ran between $20-$35 each. Vitamin A shots were $15 each time (had them twice). Your vet may be different, but that was my experience in Southern CA.

 

[katelynpc]

I have notice his aim has been off lately. Last time I fed him he only shot his tongue out successfully twice. On the third bug he kept missing so I put the roach right up to his mouth so he took the rest right off my finger. Does your blind cham keep his eye open though? That's the only reason I'm not sure if he is blind because his eye seems to irritate him or be discomforting so he keeps it closed.

 

[werecat]

He would keep his eye closed much of the time. That's how we got clued in that there was a problem. Now that the eye is completely or near completely blind he keeps it open more.

Tried to post pics last night and got an error. Will try again tonight but gotta run right now.

 

[katelynpc]

Also I noticed last night and this morning he has been laying on his perch instead of standing on it. That's a very bad sign isn't it?

 

[werecat]

It's not a good sign although my guy lounges from time to time. Definitely get him in to the vet.

 

[werecat]

I see you use a red bulb for basking. Do you leave that on at night? If so, your cham needs complete dark. Also, a bulb that emits white light is better for basking and general health. You may want to try switching it out.

 

[katelynpc]

Ok I will switch it out. I originally was going to the vet on Friday, but my work is letting me leave early tomorrow. So I plan on taking him tomorrow afternoon. I really hope they can help me and that it's affordable since most of my last paycheck went to updating his enclosure :/

 

[kinyonga]

What specific supplements do you use? How often for each?
What are the cage temperatures? What do you feed/gutload the insects with? What UVB light do you use?

 

[katelynpc]

Well he was with my mom and she admitted that she kinda of gave up on them and just guessed, so that really concerns me. I do w/o d3 almost every feeding, with d3 twice a month, and multi twice a month. But I've been inc he multvitamin since I'm worried it might be a vitamin a issue. ambient at 81, hotspot at about 88-89. gutload with oranges. and I just bought him a new Reptisun 10.0

 

[kinyonga]

What brands are the supplements? I'm particularly interested in the vitamin A sources.

Your feed/gutloading of the insects needs improvement. You can feed/gutload the crickets, superworms, roaches, locusts with a wide assortment of greens such as collards, escarole, endive, dandelion greens, kale, etc and veggies such as carrots, sweet red pepper, squash, zucchini, sweet potato, etc.

 

[werecat]

Here are photos of the eye. They are actually 1 1/2 years old. The bad eye is much worse. It is almost completely black with no iris. The first picture shows just the bad eye. The second picture shows both. The left eye (his left) is the bad one. You can defiantly see a difference. I will try to get a photo of the eye now, but not sure when I'll have time.

It looks like there are some things you need to change as far as your husbandry/care. Supplements are very important as well as temps, UV, etc. The best thing to do is to answer the questions in the "how to ask for help" sticky on the health forum. This will give others a better idea of what is going on and what might need adjustment so that they can advise you properly.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

I wish you luck at the vet. Hopefully this is something you can turn around.

 

[katelynpc]

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - 2yr old, male,Panther . 1.5, but spent 6 months with my mom. I just got him back a few days ago.
Handling - Only about once a week at most
Feeding - Superworms, dubais, hornworm, wax worm, getting silks? 7-10 every other day, gut load with oranges going to add vegetables.
Supplements - w/o d3- sticky tonguebfarm minerall, with d3- exoterra multivitamin- exterra
Watering - Spray bottle for a couple of minutes twice a day, more if needed. also have a chameleon cantina, he does seem to drink
Fecal Description - stools are dark and normal, urate is normal as well. he had a fecal a year ago.
History - Has been with mom for 6 months

Cage Info:
Cage Type - 24 x24x48 screen
Lighting - Reptisun 10.0 uvb, white basking light
Temperature - ambient 81. hot spot 88-90. night time 75. There are many levels measured with a temp gun
Humidity - temp hygro combo. Humidity is 80's at first and drys out to 45%. Recently added moss to help keep it up.
Plants - Pothos, Umbrella
Placement - Cage is placed in spare bedroom, vent not on, stays quiet.
Location - GA



So we went to the vet today and he flushed out the eye and now has him on eye drops for conjunctivitis. And says that he is underweight and needs more calcium and he should improve from the eye issue soon and take a couple of months to get to proper weight.