Possible foot infection

[docmacbj]

Chameleon Info:
• Your Chameleon - Veiled, Male Almost 2 years
• Handling - Only when cleaning cage or examing.
• Feeding - He eats Hornworms, Silkworms Crickets Superworms and butterworms
• Supplements - Ca, Ca w/D3 and multivitamin
• Watering - Monsoon 400 45 secs 5 times a day
• Fecal Description - solis and formed, a small amount or orange lately but mostly white
• History - NONE
Cage Info:
• Cage Type - Screen 24x24x48 Exoterra HD
• Lighting - Reptsun 5.0 18inch, 60wt basking light
• Temperature - 80 to 85 C during day and 68 to 70 at night
• Humidity -40 to 60 %
• Plants - Schflerra and golden pthos
• Placement - On a 35 inch stand away from windows
• Location - Maryland


Ive had my buddy Smeegz for almost 2 years now and everything has been good, no health issues. He weighs about 180 grams. The other day while soaking his foot i broke the golden rule and pulled a little bit of skin off which caused some bleeding. Please dont scold me I know I F'ed up. Anyways 2 days later and I noticed that foot as some sort of infection due to some drainge that is brown/dark in color coating his foot. He is using it fine. Im taking him to the Vet at 4 30 today and was wondering what is the long term care for a foot infection like. As in bandaging, cleaning, giving meds and other things along this line. I would like to have an idea of what Im getting into. Please understand I am going to take care of him I just wanna get a headstart so I can plan accordingly. thanks in advance. Brian

 

[Carlton]

The other day while soaking his foot i broke the golden rule and pulled a little bit of skin off which caused some bleeding. Please dont scold me I know I F'ed up. Anyways 2 days later and I noticed that foot as some sort of infection due to some drainge that is brown/dark in color coating his foot. He is using it fine. Im taking him to the Vet at 4 30 today and was wondering what is the long term care for a foot infection like. As in bandaging, cleaning, giving meds and other things along this line. I would like to have an idea of what Im getting into. Please understand I am going to take care of him I just wanna get a headstart so I can plan accordingly. thanks in advance. Brian

Was this on the palm (the underside that he grips with)? So you were soaking his foot to loosen the old piece of shed? And then you pulled off the skin. Nothing horrible about that. What you may have done was expose an infection that was already forming under the stuck shed. It may have been a good thing because it cleared it out. There is a condition called ulcerative pododermatitis that can be tough to treat, but we don't know this from the description. At the minimum, I would expect the vet will give you a topical antiseptic such as Polysporin to coat the injury site. If his foot doesn't swell, discolor, or lose its function that may be all that is necessary. But keep an eye on it because if it does spread he may need a systemic antibiotic to get it under control. Keep his perches very very clean...if you haven't scrubbed them lately do it now.

 

[docmacbj]

reply

the puss build up was more on the top of the foot not the bottom of his foot . Im soaking it now in a 50/50 h20/ peroxide solution before we go to the vet. I guess it could be that but there was a little blood the day i pulled it so I feel responsible. Ive done it before when hes had a soak before no problem. Anyways Im leaving for the vet. Since there is no real swelling Im hoping its early enough that he will respond quickly. I need to keep him from climbing the screen on his cage. Any suggestions ?

 

[carol5208]

I would like to add something here as I have been dealing with a foot injury for months and months. Been to the vet 4 times. The biggest problem u are gonna have is keeping him from not using the foot. As far as topical med I have found it beneficial to put on right before they fall asleep. I tried bandaging the foot but the sore became soggy looking and vet said to leave unwrapped. I hope your Cham heals quickly. I also gave antibiotic I injected silkworms with. Good luck with everything!

 

[Carlton]

the puss build up was more on the top of the foot not the bottom of his foot . Im soaking it now in a 50/50 h20/ peroxide solution before we go to the vet. I guess it could be that but there was a little blood the day i pulled it so I feel responsible. Ive done it before when hes had a soak before no problem. Anyways Im leaving for the vet. Since there is no real swelling Im hoping its early enough that he will respond quickly. I need to keep him from climbing the screen on his cage. Any suggestions ?

Did he lose the nail on the toe where the infection was? Is the toe swollen?

I've had some luck keeping chams from climbing the screen by creating an alternative climbing pathway on the insides of the cage screen. You can use larger plastic or nylon fishnet (look for scoop nets at sporting good stores), get a length of woven polypropilene bird netting from orchard supplies or pheasant farms (many suppliers are on line), or even get a length of fishnet (don't get cotton or hemp because it will rot) off of ebay (there's lots usually). You could also get some coated metal mesh used for rabbit hutches, plastic security netting from Home Depot, or make your own net using macrame knotting. All sorts of ideas. Some reasons chams climb their screens is because their cage is too small or the few cage plants don't provide access to all parts of their territory. Add many more branches and plants so they don't have much reason to climb the screen.

 

[docmacbj]

Vet Visit

So the Vet I saw seemed very comfratable saying this was only a minor infection at best and that doing soaks and applying Neosporin would probaly be all that is needed. He seemed comfortable with this because I recognized the problem very early and felt sure that I would nurse my little guy well. Since there is no swelling and only some discolaration and drainage he felt like antibiotics could do more harm then good right now because of there side effects on chameleons. Im going to trust him for now. We used a fine tip sharpie to mark the borders of the area so I can tell if it spreads at all. He suggested a Chlorahexadene dillution to soak his foot in and applying the neosporin 2 times a day. I let him go to bed tonight and then applied the Neosporin to the area and the little guy didnt wake up. I kept waiting for him to awake and bite me. Is that normal ?

Also, does anyone have preference or proof that any of the solutions work better for a soak ? ie Hydrogen peroxide, Iodine tincture, chlorahexadene ?

 

[thephotoprincess]

I've found chlorahexadene to be extremely useful with infections. I also use vetericyn hydrogel as a topical wound treatment rather than neosporin. It is available online as well as at farm/feed stores.

 

[Angelostass]

I always tie my champs foot with some bandage so that he never gets infection. once he had got infection on his foot. Went to the vet and he advised me to use chlorahexadene solution which found to be very useful his foot infection.


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The doctors note are readily available at web and can be easily downloaded and used.

 

[carol5208]

Is chlorahexadene over the counter?

 

[thephotoprincess]

Is chlorahexadene over the counter?

Yes. it's available online, also check farm/feed stores.

 

[carol5208]

Yes. it's available online, also check farm/feed stores.

ok thank you for the info!!!

 

[docmacbj]

Recovery yeah !

So after 2 weeks of soaks in the chlorahexedene and applying neosporin and bactine a few times a day my little guys foot seems all healed up. There is still discoloration and from reading others post Im guessing this may be permanent. I actually think the two of us got a little closer through this. He no longer tries to kill me when I reach in the cage for anything. I never really handeld him much before this and still probaly wont because it has to be super stressful for him. I wouldnt want a giant lizard to pick me up and carry me around. Anyways this experiance taught me that you cant let things get bad. I noticed the infection right away and got him help before it got bad, which prevented massive vet bills or a dead cham. Please people monitor your cham closely and get them looked at by a qualified vet when needed.Thanks for the help !