Puffy/Swollen Veil on Veiled Chameleon?

[aang]

Hello! I've had my little girl for over a year now, she's a gorgeous little Veiled Chameleon. My friend, who breeds all kind of reptiles, gave her to me when she was only an inch or two, and now she's as big as my hand. She's never had any health problems, and is big and healthy. I'll attach a photo that sort of shows it.
Anyways, she's been staying with my boyfriend for six months or so now, and he knows how to care for reptiles so she's in good hands. I went to visit her today when I came into town, and I noticed that her casque seems to be swollen and puffy. I looked everywhere I could think of - on google, on various chameleon sites - but I can't seem to find anything that mentions a swollen casque; I've only seen things about swollen eyes. Has anyone else had this problem? I have no idea what could be wrong.
Any help would be fantastic, thank you!

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - veiled, female, 1.5 years. I've had her since she was hatched, pretty much <3
Handling - two to three times a week for around 20 minutes.
Feeding - crickets and mealworms. gut loaded with carrots, cucumbers, potatoes and are dusted in calcium once a week. i feed her once a day, and 5-10 worms/crickets.
Supplements - exo terra multivitamin and calcium.
Watering - i spray her cage down 2-3 times a day, one in the morning, afternoon, and night. i spray her face until i see her drinking lol, or drip water into her mouth until she'll lose interest and stop drinking. i put her in the shower for ten minutes once a month, room temperature water and i make sure it isn't spraying directly on her.
Fecal Description - big brown poopies with the regular white urine.
History - no :[ she was a little breeder herp.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - glass exo terra, two door opens at the front. there are ventilation strips at the front, and the top has a screen. 18 x 18 x 24, or something.
Lighting - hooded black dome 75 W night lamp in the winter, and a 75W day light, as well as UVB basking light in the day - nothing at night because its too hot here. goes on at 9 AM and goes off at 9 PM
Temperature - 85/86 in the day, and 80/79 at night. i have a digital thermometer that tells humidity level as well as temperature.
Humidity - i keep it from 50-60% humidity, and I spray it multiple times a day, including the bark on the ground so it will absorb it. also, i have some zilla humidifying aloe spray. some tropical mist crap that is supposed to prevent dry skin.
Plants - no.
Placement - inside a wardrobe used for a tv, with hanging lights.
Location - FLORIDA

help me help my baby :[

 

[jojackson]

Sorry Aang, your sprint community images aren't working.

 

[aang]

that work? :]

 

[ChameleonNerd]

it looks like it is becoming a mature casque from those pictures. i am not sure from that picture quality though a nice picture of the front view would be helpful for determination

 

[jojackson]

Hi Aang, I see them now.
I think you might be feeding her just a little too much, your temperatures are about 5 deg f
higher than most keep females, hence she'll have a bigger appetite.
Has she ever laid eggs? Do you have a deep tub of soil for her to lay eggs, even if you dont suspect she is gravid? They can produce infertile eggs without a male. Im not saying its gravid, does it display sexual maturity or receptive colors?
Have you felt the casque firmly? can you describe how it feels? Soft and puffy, or solid and firm?

A little skerrick of info I found, May Not Relate To Your Lizard ,not sure if fliud retention causing swelling (edema) can effect the casque, according to this guy it can.
It was related to Vit A overdose from supplimentation with nutrabal apparently.

An edema is not necessary fatal and in fact if the vit A content is reduced the fluid will be pulled back into the body. Chams that are over supplemented often get a slight edema it can also happen on the casque...just lay off the supplements for a while and she should be fine. Female yemens are very resiliant.

Nutrobal is a good supplemnt but should not be used that often. Best bet is to gutload your live food really well and only dust with nutrobal once a week along with a pure vit powder. I don't use any supplements for my lot apart from a 2:1 calcium powder. The gutloading does a much better job.

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/lizards/96594-edema-veiled-cham.html#post1371458

Whoa! look at this!!

I have a veiled chameleon that has had a healthy life for the last three years. On Thursday, his casque became swollen. He acts fine and is still eating and drinking for me. I took him to the vet on Friday, and I am awaiting lab results. Has anyone ever experienced anything of this sort? Thank you.

Without seeing a picture it is hard to tell .
I personally believe that the veileds can use the casque as a fat stores and water as well.
My 6 year old has had this for some time and that is what I have observed with older males.
This is what the casque on my male looks like.

http://repticzone.com/forums/Chameleons/messages/330272.html

 

[Dez]

It was always my understanding that chameleons store fat in their head pads. So a puffy head would indicate an overweight chameleon...? and vise verse a sunken in head pads meaning underweight

I am not really sure if there would be another cause..?

 

[aang]

ignore her sleepy eyes, i woke her up XD
also she looks fugly from this angle lol.

she's never laid eggs, and i have a tub of soil in there for her mixed with mulch, but tomorrow im going to get her a bigger pot and put sand in it (i read thats better for her.)
the casque is squishy and soft and kinda weird, lol.
she's never aggressive or display any sort of mating weird things.
the only time shes relatively aggressive is when i startle her, and even then she just tries to run off, she never gets defensive or anything.
how could i lower the temp without getting new bulbs?

 

[ChameleonNerd]

i'm out of my league on this one, but yes, Captain Obvious will say it does in fact look enlarged and she does not appear to have receptive colors yet

 

[aang]

i'm out of my league on this one, but yes, Captain Obvious will say it does in fact look enlarged and she does not appear to have receptive colors yet

well she was sleeping so her colors were a bit lighter than normal.

 

[jojackson]

well she was sleeping so her colors were a bit lighter than normal.

No thats quite normal, their chromataphores (cells with color) relax when they sleep.

how could i lower the temp without getting new bulbs?

Raise the bulb higher above the cage.

 

[ChameleonNerd]

yes, but most, if not all female veiled's will show receptive colors while sleeping - to my knowledge at least. does she have blues or golds coming in yet?

 

[aang]

Raise the bulb higher above the cage.

i can try! thank you!
anything about her casque you can think of? :/
im worried about the puffiness of it.

 

[jojackson]

If it doesn't feel like its inflated (edema) then just cut back the food a little.
If it feels like there is fluid in it, maybe see a vet.

 

[melric]

Could something like this be possible?
https://www.chameleonforums.com/fat-pads-removed-gizzy-yukky-pic-53564/

 

[jojackson]

I suppose its possible, A reptile vet, or more specifically a chameleon vet will know.
Cutting the diet some will lessen the chance of fat buildup.

We discussed the diet etc and he is sure it was nothing related to her diet, but over feeding waxworm, wax moths any thing high in fat or wax can cause this if fed in large quantities or over a period of time.

 

[aang]

@jojackson

those pictures and links you sent were very helpful, thank you!
her casque isn't hard, its squishy and soft. when i run my finger along it, it sinks in a bit, and doesnt cause her pain because she doesn't flinch or try to run or hiss or anything...
im assuming its the whole supplement thingy, so ill cut back on those for a while until they go away and see how that works..

does that sound like a decent idea?

 

[jojackson]

You could do that and see how you go, I would feed a little less but gutload the insects you do feed with a healthy variety of fresh leafy greens and other veg & fruit, for the best nutritional condition of the insects when you feed them to the lizard. This will ensure they contain a wide variety of essential vitamins and minerals.
So long as you are aware that some insects have a calcium phosphorous ratio that isnt so desireable . A desireable ration would be 2:1 Some insects you feed should still be dusted, both with calcium and D3.
Also be certain your lizard is able to metabolise suppliments and nutrition from food, by ensuring your UVB emitting light source is working well.
Replace after 6 months or so. Natural Sunshine whenever possible is better still.

 

[aang]

not to be a pain but can you give me an example of what to gutload the insects with?
and what sort of insects are healthiest for her?
im really worried :[
i've had reptiles, and they've been so healthy the vets were impressed when i took them in.
she's just my first chameleon i've had, and although i know how to take care of her relatively well, this is the first major hiccup lol

 

[jojackson]

You can gutload with almost anything you can buy at your greengrocers. chinese veg like buk choy etc etc are fantastic, kale, watercress, sprouts, bee pollen, a variety of fruits aswell.
Avoid spinach and brocili, as these can bind up calcium in your lizards body, making it unable to metabolize it.
Variety is best. Lettuce mostly has low nutritional content, mostly water.
Im folk will give you heaps of other ideas for gutloading ingredients.
As for insects, If you can find a variety of different insect types bred commercially near you,
then the biggest variety possible is best. Crickets are a common staple but its really best to 'mix it up'.

 

[aang]

i used to feed her a lot of fruit flies when she was a baby since i figured that was closest to their natural diet, but they were expensive so i switched to mealworms and crickets. she loves them and hunts them down, its great lol.
other than that, nobody around me sells anything other than that - the only stores i have are petco and petland, and they only sell crickets and mealworms for reptiles.
but thank you so much! im going to cut back her supplement and food for a few days and see how that goes. ill gutload differently too.
if she gets better ill post pictures, if not, ill probably be back whining :]