Possible Respiratory Infection and Unknown White growth on Casque

[TommyB]

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - She is a 3 year old female veiled chameleon. I have had her for about 2 months.
• Handling - I hand feed her one or two a waxworms a day as a treat. Otherwise I remove her from her cage once a week for cleaning
• Feeding - I am feeding her a dozen medium crickets every other day with waxworms as treats.
• Supplements - I use Rep-Cal Calcium without phosphorous or D3 every feeding. Every 2 weeks I use Herptivite and Repti Calcium with D3.
• Watering - I have a Reptifogger that is always running, a cup that I turned into a dripper that I fill around 3 times a day, and a misting system. However I am concerned that the misting system may be why she has started acting strange. I have seen her drinking.
• Fecal Description - Urates are pretty close to white and from what I've seen on other forums it looks fine.
• History - N/A

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - I have an all screen Reptibreeze that is 16" x 16" x 30"
• Lighting - I am using a Reptisun 5.0 mini compact and 75W Repti Basking Spot Lamp. They are run on a timer from 6am to 8pm.
• Temperature - The basking spot is around low to mid 80s and at night it drops to upper 60s / low 70s. To measure this I am using a ZooMed digital hygrometer/thermometer combo.
• Humidity - My humidity levels are around 50%. The Zoomed combo meter is used to measure this.
• Plants - No live plants as of yet. Was planning on buying one soon but then she started acting strange so I wanted to reduce the possibility of stress.
• Placement - It is in my bedroom, against the side of the room. There is a window AC unit somewhat near the cage but I made sure the vent is pointed in the opposite direction of the cage. The top of the cage is 50" off the floor.
• Location - I live in Iowa

Current Problem - About three days ago I noticed she was yawning but thought nothing of it. Two days ago after the lights turned off I saw she was sitting with her nose to the air, a sign of a respiratory infection. I read somewhere that making the mist water or humidifier water warm may make them more comfortable so I started putting warm water in the humidifier. I come back from class today and notice she has this strange white stuff all over her casque which was not there when she was asleep last night. Attached are pictures of her, the cage setup, and the white stuff. She used to be a bright green color but now she has turned darker too.

I looked online to find a herp vet just in case but I can't find one where I live.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[JacksJill]

Go ahead and buy her a plant and a laying bin if you don't have one.
She's shedding on her casque.
She was likely yawning to stretch the itchy skin.

 

[TommyB]

Thank you for the advice. I already have the laying bin made, just waiting on a new drainage tray that can support the weight.

Should I still be concerned about her sticking her nose in the air like that?

 

[JacksJill]

I would keep an eye on her for that but I suspect it had to do with the shed coming on. If she has a resp. infection you will see strings of thick saliva when she opens her mouth and can hear a popping or crackling sound when she breaths.

 

[TommyB]

Gotcha.

Thanks again, this is my first chameleon so it's all new to me.

 

[JacksJill]

Happy to help. I've had my share of worries.

 

[kinyonga]

Has she laid eggs before? If she's eggbound then she could be having difficulty and that's why she's holding her nose up. Does she open her mouth at all when she does it? She should have the laying bin in her cage at all times...it doesn't take long for them to be past the point where they can lay the eggs.

 

[TommyB]

Not that I am aware of. I asked the previous owner and they said she never has.

No, she does not have her mouth open when she does that.

I'm waiting to put the laying box back in until a new drainage tray comes in the mail.

 

[JacksJill]

If she shows any signs of restlessness or looking around on the bottom of the cage don't wait to put the bin back in.

 

[TommyB]

Ok will do. Last time I had the bin in there it became filled with water, do you have any advice on how to avoid that?

 

[JacksJill]

Poke some small holes in the bottom and/or screen it from the direct spray of the mister.

 

[kinyonga]

Take some corrugated plastic and make a tent like "roof" over the bin leaving an ooening for the chameleon to get in under the roof.

 

[TommyB]

Thanks for the advice guy. I appreciate it.

One last question:

So from what I read there are certain signs a cham is close to laying eggs (colors, darkening on branches, increase in weight, searching the bottom of the cage, stops eating but keeps drinking water, etc.)

I've caught my cham looking at the bottom of the cage, but, never in the laying bin I made. I believe that I can see the outline of an egg or two too. She still eats as much as I give her though. She has also recently went from always being a bright green to a muted brown unless sleeping. I have made sure multiple branches go to it to make sure she has easy access. She still eats as much as I give her though.

tldr; how can I tell if she is about to lay eggs. I am worried she won't go for the laying bin I made for her. The color change concerns me because I am not sure what I should do to remedy that.

 

[kinyonga]

If you constantly overfeed her she will likeky produce a big clutch rather than a smaller one.
Is the egg container in the cage now! How long was it out of the cage since you've had her?

Restlessness...roaming the cage looking for a place to lay eggs...drinking more...signs of wanting to lay eggs.
If she starts sitting low in the cage, sleeps during the day, phantom lays then get her to a vet since those are signs of eggbinding.

 

[TommyB]

Yes it is. I put it in about a month ago and it has been there every day except for two when I put in a drainage tray.

What do you mean by sit low in the cage? As in further from the light or lying on her stomach rather than standing?

Unfortunately there are no herp vets in my area, I checked, so I'm all alone on this.

 

[kinyonga]

@TommyB said..."
What do you mean by sit low in the cage? As in further from the light or lying on her stomach rather than standing?" ...lower down in the cage instead of near the top.