Yemen Chameleon have swollen eye ( Possible Infection)

[endora]

Hi everyone,

I was on vacation when this occured, my sister would come and feed and give him water, however she never checked out really much around him, as she's not big fan of chameleons or any lizzards.
However he has a bit swollen eye, basicly his eye is completely shut, we've got vet here, but he never had case with Chameleons, mostly dogs, cause this is germany, and people love here dogs.
So can i for example put needle in swollen part to let it drain? or there should be some other precaution that would need to be done, such as antibiotic, and if so where can i order one.

I'll leave pictures of his eye from multiple sides, so anyone with similar expirience or maybe some vet could give me a bit of explanation of whats going an.

 

[Beman]

That looks like a pretty severe infection. I would not attempt to do anything yourself. Especially since it is the eye and you could cause serious damage. See if your vet can pull info on treatment on this. Sometimes they can reach out to other vets.
I do not know how it is there but here in the states we can not just order antibiotics. Only a vet can. Not all antibiotics work for the same things. This again is where you need a vet.

 

[endora]

That looks like a pretty severe infection. I would not attempt to do anything yourself. Especially since it is the eye and you could cause serious damage. See if your vet can pull info on treatment on this. Sometimes they can reach out to other vets.
I do not know how it is there but here in the states we can not just order antibiotics. Only a vet can. Not all antibiotics work for the same things. This again is where you need a vet.

I was there, however they assisted me to check over internet which veterinan is specialized for lizards i was like wtf. Since i know Germans here love only dogs and cats, their love for that animals is like how much humans love their kids.
So its kind of frustrating. I thought maybe i could stuck just a bit needle to remove that swollen eye, as it looks like it only grows.. it might explode on its own... however idk I've googled, and most ppl suggest Vet. understandable, however i am pretty sure some people expirienced and already know what was needed to be done by Vet.

 

[elizaann2]

Poor baby that looks painful. I personally would not do anything myself in fear that further damage would be caused by the eye. @Beman gave some great feedback.

 

[endora]

Poor baby that looks painful. I personally would not do anything myself in fear that further damage would be caused by the eye. @Beman gave some great feedback.

I have feeling if i stick down needle just a bit, just to cut through skin, that liquid from eye would come out i might be wrong, but something needs to be done, since Vet here sucks so bad.

 

[Beman]

It is not something I would recommend... You could hit something and cause bleeding, damage the eye, etc. And then your still left not having antibiotics to treat the actual infection.

You could try a long misting session with room temp water.

 

[endora]

It is not something I would recommend... You could hit something and cause bleeding, damage the eye, etc. And then your still left not having antibiotics to treat the actual infection.

You could try a long misting session with room temp water.

Understand your thinking however bellow eye is a bit thicker, by that i mean it looks more watery i dont know how diffrent to explain it, for that reason i thought i can probably do it without any dmg, ofc infection still would be there, but his eye would not be as swollen i have feeling every day its more and more.. i put mistin now constantly... but i doubt its helping...

 

[MissSkittles]

Theoretically, even if the bump is pus from infection, chameleon pus is thick like cottage cheese and it wouldn’t just start draining out like an abscess on a human.

 

[endora]

Theoretically, even if the bump is pus from infection, chameleon pus is thick like cottage cheese and it wouldn’t just start draining out like an abscess on a human.

Yup noticed as i tried it, i've used a cloth, and needle. and sidely pinched, however nothing came out...

 

[MissSkittles]

Yup noticed as i tried it, i've used a cloth, and needle. and sidely pinched, however nothing came out...

Please stop trying to ‘fix’ your chameleon’s eye on your own. There are so very many possible causes of eye problems and only a veterinarian is able to diagnose and treat. Even then…some of the very best veterinarians with excellent chameleon experience don’t know everything. Besides causing unnecessary pain to your chameleon, you could very well be making what could be a simple problem so much worse.

 

[endora]

Please stop trying to ‘fix’ your chameleon’s eye on your own. There are so very many possible causes of eye problems and only a veterinarian is able to diagnose and treat. Even then…some of the very best veterinarians with excellent chameleon experience don’t know everything. Besides causing unnecessary pain to your chameleon, you could very well be making what could be a simple problem so much worse.

Alright, but i am confused as i see lots of you here are very old members, and i am sure lots of you already saw issues like this, since doctors are not either really over humans, i bet most of you are more knowledgable then some doctors actually.
I wont be trying to solve his eye anymore, as i tried what i wanted, however i've noticed that liquid wont come out from his eye more then that would just dmg his eye, however i've cleaned a bit his eye and i've noticed that he can see when i put my hand close to his eye.

 

[MissSkittles]

The list of things that could cause his problem is even beyond best guesses. The problem might not even be directly the eye, but sinuses or something else. There are some simple things that an experienced keeper might recognize and be able to treat…eye problems is not one of those things.

 

[nightanole]

I have feeling if i stick down needle just a bit, just to cut through skin, that liquid from eye would come out i might be wrong, but something needs to be done, since Vet here sucks so bad.

Been there, done that. The eye just fills back up after a few hours.

Im just a rando on the interwebs, but i find if you stop all suppliments for 30 days, a lot of eye and edema problems go away. So personally if i didnt have access to to a good vet, i would switch him to just calcium (no D3) and no vitamins, for 30 days.

Also i would at least clean the eye opening twice a day with normal eye drops and a cotton swab. If he can heal it on his own, you still need to keep the eye open so tears etc can continue to flow. If it seals shut and cant drain, then you will have even more issues.

 

[endora]

Been there, done that. The eye just fills back up after a few hours.

Im just a rando on the interwebs, but i find if you stop all suppliments for 30 days, a lot of eye and edema problems go away. So personally if i didnt have access to to a good vet, i would switch him to just calcium (no D3) and no vitamins, for 30 days.

Also i would at least clean the eye opening twice a day with normal eye drops and a cotton swab. If he can heal it on his own, you still need to keep the eye open so tears etc can continue to flow. If it seals shut and cant drain, then you will have even more issues.

Had to try i dont know.

Well i clean his eye with water, also i take those things with which we clear ears, and then on one side i put water and go gently over eye, and on another i clean rest. He kind of can look again i think atleast, because i notice that he moves away when i put hand over his eye, blind eye i mean ... which is i guess good ...

 

[nightanole]

Had to try i dont know.

Well i clean his eye with water, also i take those things with which we clear ears, and then on one side i put water and go gently over eye, and on another i clean rest. He kind of can look again i think atleast, because i notice that he moves away when i put hand over his eye, blind eye i mean ... which is i guess good ...

I would not use "water". Use people eye drops, the solution you soak contact lenses in, or saline solution. But yea use the cotton ear cleaners.