my veiled chams eyes are swollen HELP!!!

[jed and chemain]

Can any one help me iv got a 4 year old male veiled. His eyes are swollen he wont open them and is rubbing his eyes on a log we have in the tank , he is not eating drinkin or moving he has been like this for about a 5 days now and im gettin very worried any information would help write back please thanks

 

[djfunkshowkid]

Several things could attribute to this issue. First off....do you have and how long have you been using CF UVB bulbs (the spiral kind). Second....do you have loose substrate? Do you have natural sticks/branches? Is it possible that the powder from suppliments could have gotten in its eyes?

However if you DO have CF UVB bulbs.....TAKE IT OUT NOWWWWWWWW. If you can't afford another light....it will have to go without it.....just take that thing out NOW and throw it away. Seriously.....Not Joking.

 

[jed and chemain]

we use a UVB 5.o exo terra strip light.
yes we use wood chippings for the floor from pet shop.
yes we have natural sticks and branches and what do you mean by powder suppliments write back thanks

 

[ronnie]

Hi i haven't been keeping Chams for very long but i know you should not be using substrate of any kind as this could lead to impaction if eaten by your cham...have you been ducting your feeders with any supplements e.g...cricket dust,calcium,nutrobal??

 

[jed and chemain]

hi ok the pet shop supplied us with every think we needed and they gave us that with it ill take it out right away and yes we use calcium dust but as we have only had him for 1 week we have only used it once for him.

 

[ronnie]

when i got my Cham she was sold with sand at the bottom of her vivarium and i thought that was the way to keep her(until i found this forum!)my fault really as i should have done more research before i got her!the guy who sold her to me was full of bull*"!? and gave me a load of false information....everything on how to keep her i have learned manly from this forum...i dought that without it i could have basically killed her within a month the way the last guy had her...everything from temps to lighting was wrong for her!....how's your chams eyes doing now?he's also a good age....4 did you say?

 

[kinyonga]

Not to do with the swollen eyes...but some good sites for you to look at since you are new to chameleons..
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://adcham.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/20060502...als.com/vet/index.php?show=8.Gout.Basics.html
http://chameleonnews.com/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

Also, since most/many of the feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorous, its recommended that you dust the insects at most feedings before feeding them to the chameleon with a phos.-free calcium powder.

A vitamin supplement with a beta carotene source of vitamin A can be used twice a month. Some people give their chameleons a little preformed vitamin A once in a while. Beta carotene will not build up in the system like preformed vitamin A will. Excess preformed vitamin A can prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD.

A phos.-free calcium/D3 powder can be used twice a month also. D3 from supplements can build up too...so don't overdo it.

Regarding the eyes...if you can't figure out what's doing it in the next few days, then I would recommend taking the chameleon to the vets.

 

[djfunkshowkid]

Wood chips from a pet store? If your talking about those cedar hampster chips....lol, sorry to say but take those out. You really shouldnt use anything as a substrate except for maybe some paper towels, or a removable/cleanable carpet.

I just read where you meantioned that he is in a tank....that is no good either. Chameleons will see their reflection in the glass and it will stress them out like crazy. You should either build him a new screened cage or buy one.

One thing that you will learn about pet shops, is that they are just after your money....they dont care rather your pet lives or dies after its guarontee. You should tell them what you need....not the other way around.

I would agree with the above, that if you can't figure out what the problem is, take him to a vet. He could have something stuck under his eyelid, or have a scratch on the eye itself. Obviously neither of these can be resolved at home...so a vet would be the only choice.

 

[ronnie]

Lots of people in the U.K keep their chams in glass tanks/vivariums successfully!

 

[kinyonga]

I've been keeping chameleons for over 25 years now...in glass cages with either screen lids or screen lids and doors. They don't get respiratory infections or get upset with their reflections either. My veileds live for over 6 years generally and fischers, dwarf jacksons, panthers, etc. etc. live to quite old ages too. Placing the lights to one side or to the back/front of the cage creates a chimney affect (or in other words, air flow). You do have to make sure that there is no water left standing on the floor of the cage...but a small hole in the floor of the cage will take care of that.