Steve takes a bath and other pics

[Sarahcwilson]

Steve had to take a bath (he has a parasite and it is part of the daily routine for a while). He's a good swimmer. I washed dishes while he swam around.

 

[Sarahcwilson]

Let me out?

He blows his belly up with air when he's in the water. It makes him float a little.

 

[Kieonii]

Super cute

 

[Sarahcwilson]

When's my cage ready?

I put him on a climbing area while I sanitized his cage thoroughly. Daddy babysat.

 

[Reganold]

is he the guy you take back and forth from school?

 

[Sarahcwilson]

Is that a worm?

He spied a silk worm I put near him.

 

[Sarahcwilson]

Peekin'

Reg,

Yeah, he's my boy. He's a traveler. He's been doing great. I have a little carrier I use for him and he just naps and then crawls right out. I try to keep him low stress since he travels. If I ever see it taking a toll, I'll have grandma watch him during the day.

 

[Sarahcwilson]

One more

He's suspicious...

I haven't figured out how to post more than one pic in a post.

 

[Sarahcwilson]

Thanks Kieonni! I think so!

 

[PenelopeLove]

hehe! too cute!!

 

[carol5208]

He has quite the personality! I am curious though as to why you are submerging him in the water for parasites. I have never heard of such a treatment. Can you explain why your vet told you to do such a thing??

 

[Sarahcwilson]

Carol,

Yes, no problem. My vet is having me give him a tepid water bath to rinse his skin daily in case he has spores on him. He has a parasite so I am giving him medicine, sanitized his cage with a special solution, am lining his enclosure with paper towels and immediately removing feces, and am giving him "baths" that includes letting him walk around in water for 30 min. with a little drop of soap in it. Then I rinse him off. The water only goes up to about his shoulders. He just swims because he's trying to get out, which I guess is good because it might be more effective if he moves around in the water. Does that sound weird? I am a new chameleon owner, but I trust my vet. He is board certified to care for exotic reptiles and has owned many healthy panthers. I hope I explained why he recommended it. Does it seem like it might be a problem?

Thanks for looking.

 

[Chameleonic]

Well that sounds pretty convincing to me, but am I a vet? nice pictures Sarah

 

[dom1959]

he doesn't seem to mind the bath,
did he turn stress colors at first?

 

[carol5208]

Sarah, I don't know if it is right or wrong. I just never heard of that before. Does he have external parasites? Meaning you can see them under he skin rather than finding them in his feces. Maybe that would explain the reason then. We have two vets on here. One is Dr O who breeds chameleons and another named Ferritinmyshoes. You could pm either one of them and ask them if this is ok to do. I am not sure about about submerging him in soapy water like that. You can locate them by clicking on Community above, then member list. You might get a quicker response from Ferrit (her name is Dayna) as she seems to frequent the forums more often. He sure is a cute little guy!

 

[maxttu]

Great pics of a cute lil fella. I'm also curious about the "bath"? I'll be following this to see if Dayna or anyone else chimes in.

 

[jannb]

Your little man is such a cutie! I have had many chameleons with various parasites but have never had a vet recommend a bath. What kind of parasites did Steve have and the name of the med you got for treatment?

 

[dmscats]

How do u know if a chameleon has a parasite?

 

[carol5208]

How do u know if a chameleon has a parasite?

if they are external you may see them underneath the skin. If they are internal you may find them moving in the feces(worms). A chameleon can have parasites but not show them physically like in their poop. So some signs to look for are loss of appetite, runny and smelly feces, lethargy, closing their eyes, etc. you can take a fresh fecal sample to your vet and they can check for you. Sometimes they will have parasites and exhibit no symptoms at all.

 

[Sarahcwilson]

Hi guys!

Dom, he doesn't show any stress colors but he does swim a bit trying to climb out. But he seems okay.

Carol, thanks for your help. He has internal parasites but I read the notes over and the vet wants the bath so he doesn't get reinfected by any spores or ova that might have gotten onto his skin. I'll check with ferrit here on the forum though.

My boy has Hexamita and is taking Metronidazole. So far, he's taken two doses just fine. He's only bit the syringe!

I found out he had a parasite after taking him into the veterinarian and getting a fecal parasite analysis. I took him in because he has wheezed a bit and just to get a general checkup since I'm new to chameleons.

Anyway, bath #2 today and he did fine. He's quite a swimmer! I'll let you know what Ferrit says.