Petco Veiled.

[JonnyB22]

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Veiled, I believe male, I'm guess 5-6 Months. He has been with me for 2 days
Handling - Once to put him in his new home
Feeding - Crickets for now. 5 for now until he starts eating, I put them in before work. Gutloading with Flukers Cricket Quencher (will be getting fresh veggies tomorrow.)
Supplements - Repcal Calcium with Vit. D- Haven't started yet but once a month Repcal Herptavite once a week
Watering - I use the little dripper, I mist 30-45 seconds 3-4 times a day, I havent seen him eat or drink
Fecal Description - He hasn't had a bowel movement yet, and he has not been tested for parasites.
History - He was a Petco cham that needed to be saved, need I say more.

Cage Info:
Cage Type -16x16x20 Zoo-Med all mesh terrarium
Lighting - Repti-Glo 5.0 UVB 15w 18" linear bulb, Zilla 50w basking bulb, 6am-6pm
Temperature - Basking spot is 81F and the floor is 70F. Nighttime temps are 70F. I'm using a $500 Digital laser thermometer/Hygrometer
Humidity - 65%L-95%H, Using the Zoo-Med Repti-Fogger, laser thermometer/Hygrometer
Plants - I am using fake plants from Petco
Placement - It is located in my living room, about 4 feet off the ground. Its only my girlfriend and I and we are hardly home.
Location - Grand Junction, Colorado. In the high desert.

Current Problem -
Well here is the story, I Have used to have one chameleon awhile ago and one day he just died with no signs of being ill. Back to the present. I was in Petco yesterday getting crickets for my tree frogs and I saw a little green veiled cham staring into my eyes. I know that chams from large chain stores like this are usually sick and not doing too well when you take them home. Knowing this I still decided to purchase him along with all the necessities of living, thinking I could make his life a little better. So I bring him home and set his housing up and put him in his new home. I then notice that he hasn't opened his eyes since I pulled him out of the box. He was also pointing straight up into the air and gasping for air with like a high pitched squeak. So I gave him his space for a little bit and he has just been hanging upside down under his UV bulb. He has been awake off and on all morning seeming lethargic. He has just recently became active, but his eyes have still been closed and he has been itching his eyes on leaves and the terrarium walls. I'm not sure if I am just overreacting about him or if he has a serious problem.

 

[azn567]

Although many people feel the need to "rescue" animals in bad conditions in major chain stores, this does not solve the problem. It only gives more incentive for the retailers to bring in more chameleons. The good thing about petco/petsmart is that they offer guarantees on animals within a certain time period. In the future I would avoid buying a chaemelon from them though. I was at a petsmart today and they had an adult female jackson chameleon in a cage that was only about twice her size in length and width dimensions. I mentioned it to the worker there but they didnt seem to care too much.

 

[dom1959]

do some extra mistings and hope for the best.
def give some space for it to relax...

 

[midcoastchameleon]

His pointing his snout to the sky and weezing is a sure sign of a respiratory infection. Baytril along with other medications may be needed to help. Watch out for mucus in the mouth. I would suggest contacting a herp vet in the area to help assist with your chammy. Good luck and hopefully this helps. Its unfortunate the care some chain stores provide for our arboreal friends.

I also wanted to add- Sometimes increasing the temps, overall and basking can help with the RI. Its kinda like baking the infection out of the cham. Of course..this doesn't mean increase the temps significantly. As you dont want to literally Bake your chammy. I just know its been known to help. Increased temps and definite use of meds

 

[PhiffZooted]

I got mine at petco I think I was lucky that they just got him but he doing fine and is healthy showing good poops and the white is good no dehydration he bout 5 months he seems fine but they def don't know what there doing at petco

 

[JonnyB22]

Well I haven't seen any mucus in his mouth and that all stopped after I put him in his cage. He does hold his breath for a long time then take really big breaths. I haven't seen him do any weird gasping as of today.

 

[midcoastchameleon]

Well I haven't seen any mucus in his mouth and that all stopped after I put him in his cage. He does hold his breath for a long time then take really big breaths. I haven't seen him do any weird gasping as of today.

Sometimes Mucus isn't present in a RI, but his symptoms scream RI. Im confused as to what you mean by "holding his breath"? Chameleons im sure can hold there breath for short spurts, but chameleons primarily breath via there Nostrils. A chameleon very rarely will actually breath from the mouth. A chameleon usually only opens there mouth to- Eat, Drink, or threaten a opposing predator or chameleon. They also yawn from time to time. Is he breathing from his mouth?

 

[JonnyB22]

Well its more of a yawn I would say, I can't see him breathing at all but I'm assuming he is or he wouldn't be walking around.

 

[midcoastchameleon]

Well its more of a yawn I would say, I can't see him breathing at all but I'm assuming he is or he wouldn't be walking around.

Ok, well i would monitor it very close, if he is showing signs of "yawning" a lot, it once again, is a sign of a RI. I always hate being that guy on the forum saying all this negative diagnoses stuff but i am familiar with the symptoms and treatments of the classic RI. I think it is great what you have done trying to help the chammy, its honorable of you. Just remember, sickly chams do need alot of TLC and in most cases it is best to have them visit the vet when they are showing signs of being ill. I know you have said you previously had a cham that basically passed unexpected. But in most cases, chameleons can hide the illness or issues for a good period of time, and by the time they begin to show the signs of being ill, they are well along in the stages of being sick/ill and usually require medical attention from a experienced herp vet. I bet other will chime in on the forum here and hopefully you and your chammy will be on your way to a happy healthy life Post some pictures so we can get a better look at his physical appearance. Everything helps and i think it is great you knew to use the "How to ask for help" form, it really helps with online diagnoses of our arboreal friends

 

[SaintJimmy]

The noise is definitely a sign of URI and you should see a vet/take the member's advice.

This is not something you can just ignore or "give him more space".

 

[JonnyB22]

It seems like he doesn't even have eyeballs in there.

This is his setup I have going

 

[PhiffZooted]

I'm yawn atleast twice aday that bad

 

[Kate]

Are you using plain calcium at every feed along with reptical with d3 and your multivit?

 

[ChameleonMom]

Wow, he's a real cutie pie! He looks in general good health but there is something obviously going on with his eyes AND, if he's breathing through his mouth, it very well could indicate an RI.

My advice would be to get him to a vet ASAP, even if you don't have a reptile vet in your area, any vet can prescribe Baytril - the 'go to' drug for RI's in chams. Also yes, creating a warmer environment can help an RI but will not eradicate it completely. When my girl had her first (of two RI's) my vetf also told me to keep an infrared light on at night (the only time a light should be on at night is during illness) and I found it did help.

One thing I would highly suggest is that you get rid of the substrate on the bottom of baby's cage. It is NOT needed - ever, and can contribute to an RI. If you need it for humidity, remove it anyways and buy some live plants to help with the humidity. Good luck - he's beautiful!