Just yesterday I bought a juvenile male veiled chameleon and when I brought him home he would only keep his left eye open. Every once in awhile he'll open both eyes but lately it's just been his left eye open. He also sits in his new cage with both of his eyes closed. Maybe he's just getting used to the lighting I have in his cage? I'm not sure. He didn't eat any crickets when I offered this morning but he ate 2 yesterday when I brought him home. When I take him out of his cage he is very active but still has only one eye open. When both of his eyes do open they look normal but I can't figure out why he wants to keep one closed. Has this happened to anyone? Should I take him to the vet right away or wait a few days to see how he does? My husband just got home from work and checked on our new veiled and he was sleeping. We have two young panther chams as well as a 1 year old female veiled and I just feel like his behavior is a little odd. Any advice would be great. Thanks!
New juvenile male veiled chameleon,possible eye issue?
- Thread starter Hroetman
- Start date
I took him to the vet because now he's keeping both of his eyes closed. The vet gave me eye drops to give him to get rid of any infection that might be in his eye (hoping some of the drops will seep through the crease of his eye) but it's hard to get the eye drops in his eye with his eyes so tightly closed. He hasn't eaten in 2 days. The vet also said that this problem came from the petsmart we got him at. I'm just worried because he obviously can't eat without his eyes open. I have a Reptisun 5.0 UVB, a basking bulb and a croton plant and an umbrella plant in his enclosure. We have 3 other chameleons and I haven't had any issues regarding their health except for my female veiled getting a small case of a URI that we quickly got rid of so having an eye issue is new to me as a chameleon parent. Thanks so much for your reply!
It could also be a vitamin A deficiency, especially since he is from petsmart because I doubt they have a very good supplement schedule. See post #6 in the thread below for information on how to treat this:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/cham-keeps-closing-one-his-eyes-66576/
My veiled originally came from Petco and had this problem, and that solution cleared it right up.
By the way, if it is within 15 days of when you bought him, you should be able to get the pet store to pay the vet bills. Although I've heard its harder if you come to them after the fact.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/cham-keeps-closing-one-his-eyes-66576/
My veiled originally came from Petco and had this problem, and that solution cleared it right up.
By the way, if it is within 15 days of when you bought him, you should be able to get the pet store to pay the vet bills. Although I've heard its harder if you come to them after the fact.
Awesome! I will try this. Thank you!
We did what you suggested and both if his eyes are now open and working very well. Thank you so much!!
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