Stark's vet appointment

[Theveiled]

Heyeveryone!
Stark had a vet appointment today so I decided to tell everyone how it went. The vet was very impressed with how Stark acted. She said my husbandry was perfect. He was calm and let them do everything they needed to do to him. They said he looked great. But of course he did not poop before or at the vet. But as soon as we got home he pooped. So now my dad is taking a sample back (it's by his work) for a fecal check. I'll update then. I was just so happy it went well.
Thanks for reading and helping me with Stark. Without this forum his appointment would not have gone so well!

 

[Theveiled]

Oh I forgot, he weighed 94.5 grams

 

[Theveiled]

So Stark has pin worms and coccidia. Great. Im taking him back to the vet tomorrow for meds.

 

[KapitalJ]

Worms and Parasites give me the Willies!!
Hope the meds do well and your cham is better soon!

 

[jajeanpierre]

So Stark has pin worms and coccidia. Great. Im taking him back to the vet tomorrow for meds.

If you are going to worm, be very very cautious about doing it. Do only one at a time and give him plenty of time to recover from worming with one medication before you start with another. Don't use Albon--I think that's the name of it--for coccidia. There are better, safer drugs, I think the name if Ponazuril. I immediately stop if the animal seems to decline at all, then let them recover (weeks) and start again. I'm dealing with wild caughts, so your chameleon might not be as fragile when medicating as mine are. Just take a deep breath and realize they have been the host to parasites since the dawn of time and it is not a crisis.

In general, though, a heavy parasite load is often an indicator that stress is a problem with your husbandry. Really put some thought into that and be honest with yourself about how you are keeping him.

 

[Theveiled]

If you are going to worm, be very very cautious about doing it. Do only one at a time and give him plenty of time to recover from worming with one medication before you start with another. Don't use Albon--I think that's the name of it--for coccidia. There are better, safer drugs, I think the name if Ponazuril. I immediately stop if the animal seems to decline at all, then let them recover (weeks) and start again. I'm dealing with wild caughts, so your chameleon might not be as fragile when medicating as mine are. Just take a deep breath and realize they have been the host to parasites since the dawn of time and it is not a crisis.

In general, though, a heavy parasite load is often an indicator that stress is a problem with your husbandry. Really put some thought into that and be honest with yourself about how you are keeping him.

If confused what to do now. The vet told me the results over the phone. They did not tell me what medication they were going to use. My mom hates the thoughts of pinworms in the house and I have heard coccidia can be deadly by stopping their eating. He does not eat as much as I think he should. When I go I will mention what you said and see what they think. I'm just really worried now. I have already lost one panther because of a bad breeder choice at an expo and am not ready to loose Stark.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Pin worms aren't going to get in the house. I don't even know if they could be transferred to humans--most parasites are very specific about whom their host is.

Sometimes vets prescribe a drug for coccidia (I think it is called Albon) which is quite hard on them. Do one worming treatment completely and then do the other. I think your vet will prescribe Panacur for the round worms. Something like three to five days in a row, wait 10 days, repeat three to five days in a row, wait another ten days and repeat. That's a pretty safe drug but still be very careful. The drug for coccidia is a little harsher and coccidia is really hard to get rid of in the cage.

Sometimes they stop eating when being treated, so I would try to make sure he has his favorite foods. Flying insects are usually very attractive. So are bright green bugs.

What kind of a chameleon is he? At 94g, he sounds pretty grown up for most species. As they slow down their growth, they also don't eat as much so his eating less may be perfectly normal and good.

I'm sorry you lost your panther. What happened?

 

[carol5208]

Yes, ask for Ponazuril for the Coccidia. It worked wonders for my guy. The one that is pictured in my avatar made a full recovery. He did not lose his appetite either on it. Mind you, he was 6 grams when I found out he had the parasite. It was a real chore getting the meds in him, but the stuff does work. Also make sure you take the whole cage apart and disinfect with peroxide and water. You need to get the heavy duty stuff that you get at the beauty supply house. I cannot remember the concentration of peroxide. Search for threads on here or maybe someone else will chime in. I had to do 3 rounds of treatment to get rid of the Cociddia. The parasites shed eggs so your chameleon can get reinfected. I did like 4 days on 3 off, 4 days on 3 off etc. I also got fecals done in between to make sure the count was going down, until it was completely gone.

 

[Theveiled]

Pin worms aren't going to get in the house. I don't even know if they could be transferred to humans--most parasites are very specific about whom their host is.

Sometimes vets prescribe a drug for coccidia (I think it is called Albon) which is quite hard on them. Do one worming treatment completely and then do the other. I think your vet will prescribe Panacur for the round worms. Something like three to five days in a row, wait 10 days, repeat three to five days in a row, wait another ten days and repeat. That's a pretty safe drug but still be very careful. The drug for coccidia is a little harsher and coccidia is really hard to get rid of in the cage.

Sometimes they stop eating when being treated, so I would try to make sure he has his favorite foods. Flying insects are usually very attractive. So are bright green bugs.

What kind of a chameleon is he? At 94g, he sounds pretty grown up for most species. As they slow down their growth, they also don't eat as much so his eating less may be perfectly normal and good.

I'm sorry you lost your panther. What happened?

Stark is a veiled. I bought a baby panther from an expo. The company I bought him from had a guarantee so I trusted them. I had his setup perfect. I knew somthing was wrong though. He would not eat and started to close his eyes. He was not dehydrated or anything. I had him for 12 days. The company said that they would give me the money or another chameleon. They still haven't and it will be a year in June. I dont really care about the refund anymore but their reviews are getting worse and worse. Many people are being ripped off when their animal dies and cant get their money back. We contacted repticon about it and they got verry frustrated with the company.

 

[Theveiled]

Yes, ask for Ponazuril for the Coccidia. It worked wonders for my guy. The one that is pictured in my avatar made a full recovery. He did not lose his appetite either on it. Mind you, he was 6 grams when I found out he had the parasite. It was a real chore getting the meds in him, but the stuff does work. Also make sure you take the whole cage apart and disinfect with peroxide and water. You need to get the heavy duty stuff that you get at the beauty supply house. I cannot remember the concentration of peroxide. Search for threads on here or maybe someone else will chime in. I had to do 3 rounds of treatment to get rid of the Cociddia. The parasites shed eggs so your chameleon can get reinfected. I did like 4 days on 3 off, 4 days on 3 off etc. I also got fecals done in between to make sure the count was going down, until it was completely gone.

I did get ponazuril. The vet is a all exotic vet and said the 2 medicines they gave me have never had side effects (knock on wood). The one medicine is every 48 hours for 3 doses and the other is every 14 days for 3 doses. I trust them and they said the medicines are perfectly safe for him.

 

[Theveiled]

I disinfected with a 10% bleach solution and the vet said to clean it out every week until he is done with his meds. I made sure I rinsed the plants, vines and all the other things in his cage really well with water after I put them in the bleach.

 

[jajeanpierre]

I'm not sure bleach is very effective way to kill coccidia. I would get everything out of his cage and put in plastic plants. Throw out any live plants. Get enough plastic plants for two cages. Every treatment, clean the cage really well and take all the fake plants out and replace them with a fresh bunch of fake plants and perches. Run the used plants and branches through the dishwasher. Keep doing this every treatment. and every week until one or two weeks after your last treatment. You are trying to break the cycle of him being reinfected. Keep your floor bare and meticulously clean. Spot clean every single time you see a stool. Keep your hands clean so you don't transfer the parasites anywhere.

Hope that helps.

 

[Theveiled]

Ok I will try. Thank you for all your help!