respitory infection

[Benton1576]

hi,

I have 2 young ambilobe panther chameleons, male and female, who have both got a respitory infection. I have taken them to the vets and been perscribed baytril. I was wondering if anyone else has had a chameleon that was treated for this. Do they make a full recovery? My chameleons are very stressed at the moment showing really dark colours, especially the female who is only 3 months old. Is this common when treating them with Baytril as i have only noticed this since starting the treatment yesterday?

i would really like to know what causes respitory infections. I have been keeping the humidity around 50-60% and temps mid 80's during the day and lower 70's at night with basking temp in high 80's to low 90's. i feel i have done everything correctly but just cant work out how they got this infection.

any help is appreciated.
Thank you.

 

[pssh]

It is common for them to be a bit stressed from giving them the medicine. I would be too if I was a chameleon! Make sure to give them extra water as bayteil is hard on their kidneys.

I would lower the females basking temp to 80-83 and if the male is a baby too then lower it as well.Also try to keep the ambient room temp around 70-75.

 

[CNorton]

Hi Benton,

I've got a female Giant Monkey-tailed Fischer that has a URI too. Sometimes if there isn't enough air movement and there is water that doesn't evaporate and sits...chameleons can get URIs. I wouldn't beat yourself up over it, just look for why the water doesn't dry out between mistings.

I am treating my female with Baytril as well. MAKE SURE you don't overdose her. I don't know how long you've been keeping chams but if you get a feeling that the cham is not doing well, skip a treatment and let the cham get plenty of water and food. I know many keepers that treat every other day. Do they have a lot of stringy saliva? If they do, you might swab it out before giving the Baytril.

Your temps look good but make sure they have drippers going all day. When I hold the cham to get the drop of Baytril in, I also drop water into the mouth. That way you KNOW that there is some hydration. One thing that I think has made all the difference is I put a humidifier on at night.

Please PM me if you have more questions and I hope they both pull thru!!

 

[Carlton]

i would really like to know what causes respitory infections. I have been keeping the humidity around 50-60% and temps mid 80's during the day and lower 70's at night with basking temp in high 80's to low 90's. i feel i have done everything correctly but just cant work out how they got this infection.

any help is appreciated.
Thank you.

Respiratory infections can be caused by high levels of bacteria in the cage too. Even if the humidity level is OK, stagnant air that doesn't circulate can bring on an infection if the cage isn't kept really clean. It is also possible one or both of them happened to have very low grade infections for quite a while. They could have infected each other. Are they housed together? Separate them. Stress depresses their immune systems and makes them more likely to get sick.

 

[jenie]

how do you know it has a respiratory inffection? i have a 2 year old yemen male and he has a swollen casque and seems to be gaping alot and isnt eating much can you help?

 

[Carlton]

A swollen casque isn't a symptom of respiratory problems. Has he possibly burned himself? A picture would be great in addition to the "how to ask for help" questions.

 

[chamden]

a few bits ive recently done for my website that may help.

In the early stages of respiratory infection symptoms can be quite subtle, but they are easily detected with a keen eye. The first thing you may notice is your animal extending the gular pouch (the area around the throat) and opening its mouth slightly, you may also hear a short, sharp hiss that accompanies this.
This behaviour will probably be seen along with gaping, even in the cooler areas of the enclosure. After these initial signs, if treatment isn’t started the infection will then progress to the more severe symptoms like bubbling at the mouth and nose.

The first thing you need to do when any chameleon has respiratory issues is raise the temperature to the maximum acceptable levels for that particular species. For panther chameleons it is a good idea to elevate the top of the enclosure to around 90-95F. Also try and keep the night time temperature around 70-75F.

If symptoms are detected early then is usually very easy to clear up with a broad spectrum antibiotic prescribed by a reptile veterinarian. There are also mucolytic powders than can be prescribed to help clear mucus from the chameleon’s mouth thus helping it to breath. New alternative treatments for U.R.I involve nebulization, this is where the chameleon is placed into a small chamber, and the tiny nebulized drug particles are directed into the chamber via a tube and inhaled by the chameleon. These treatments are being used with great success in other countries but are not generally practiced on chameleons yet here in the UK.

With the correct treatment and environmental changes it is possible to clear up respiratory infection in 4-10 days as long as the animal is otherwise healthy and does not have any other underlying issues.

 

[kinyonga]

Do you have the them near a window?
Are they both in the same cage?

 

[Benton1576]

thanks for all your help. i did notice that around a week ago they started to extend their throats and hiss, thats when i started to keep a close eye on them. As soon as i noticed excess saliva i took them to a reccommended reptile vetinarien who agreed that they had a URI. they are both housed together by the way. He is 6 months old and she is nearly 4 months. i am a clean freak so their enclosure is kept to the highest level of cleansliness. when the vet perscribed the Baytril she gave me 2 syringes of it mixed with water. i think to be on the safe side ill give them a dose every other day just to be sure i dont damage their kidneys. These are not just pets, theyre part of my family so i want the best for them just the same as anyone would with their children, i cant help feeling guilty for them getting ill although i do think that the german temperatures could be partly to blame, its been as low as -12 here although i do keep my house warm. perhaps when ive opened the door some cold air has got in their tank which by the way is a custom designed glass tank wich allows air circulation.

 

[kinyonga]

Again...is the cage near a window??

As soon as they are sexually mature, they will be mating regardless of whether they are full grown or not if you leave them in the same cage.

 

[graydon]

Again...is the cage near a window??

As soon as they are sexually mature, they will be mating regardless of whether they are full grown or not if you leave them in the same cage.

Sorry to interject but my cham is recovering from URI and he is next to a window. Does that have anything to do with it?

 

[pssh]

I would consider separating them now, as the female will become mature very soon and it is not a good idea to breed a female that young and small. Plus you can more easily control the females basking temp in her own cage and try to prevent or prolong egg laying so she lives longer.

 

[Dave Weldon]

Howdy,

Stress induced illnesses are always a possibility with chameleons. One might keep an enclosure immaculate yet still end-up having the chameleon come down with some sort of respiratory infection (upper being sinus down to lung and lower being lung – pneumonia) . You'll often read about various illnesses occurring where temperature, humidity, food, supplementation etc. don't seem to be the problem yet later discover that the chameleon was in the same enclosure or next to another enclosure with another chameleon setting in motion a stressful environment. Troubles may arise after long term exposure leading the keeper to not tie the two situations together. It sometimes comes down to a process of elimination. You'll want to tune-up the temps, hydration, foods, supps, enclosure location (including height) , plants, enclosure size, cleanliness, traffic etc. If troubles are still happening then at least you have eliminated the obvious.

 

[kinyonga]

You said..."Sorry to interject but my cham is recovering from URI and he is next to a window. Does that have anything to do with it?"...if you live in a cold climate it can be a problem having the cage near the window. Not only do you leave the chameleon open to URI's but also fungal infections.