Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Santo -- my 2 year old C. bicinctores -- has sticky eyelids. He spends a fair chunk of the day with his eyes shut and finds a place in the terrarium where he gets heat but not in the hot spot.

I can coax his eyes open by subjecting him to some handling and "hey you'd better open your eyes and look where you are"-type stimuli, but usually it's just a crack and it's fleeting. I'm also able to carefully extract eye goop in the mornings with a clean, dampened paintbrush (very detailed tip).

We're having an Indian Summer here in San Diego, and I'm able to put him (in a nylon-mesh Reptarium) out in the sun for a while each day. After a bit of real sun he gets pretty rowdy and manages to open his eyes (usually). His vision appears to be fine, once his eyes are opened, of course.

He's not displaying any other signs of problems. Just "allergy eyes." Is this something I need to be overly concerned about? Is there anything I can do to get Santo back up to snuff?

I forgot to mention Santo's eyelids have been sticky for the past 2 weeks, with some days being less-sticky than others.

He shares his enclosure with a female of the same age, Sasha. She is not afflicted.

Any kind of issue with eyes or runny nose is a cause for concern. It could be limited to his eyes, but it could also be linked to a full blown RI. Do you have a good vet that you can take him to? Both issues will become very serious if you don't address them quickly. I urge you to take him to a vet ASAP.

What kind of UVB bulb are you using? I ask because some uvb bulbs have been linked to a certain knd of eye issue. Also, wheat are your temps and how are you measuring them?

Two lamps: ZooMed 160w with UVB and an ExoTerra 100w spot. I'm using a laser-pointing tempgun to check temps. Santo & Sasha are usually about 99°F-110°F in the terrarium and a usually bit warmer when outside (temperatures vary depending on time of day). I don't put them outside unless it's at least 75°F with direct sunlight.

There are a couple vets who specialize in exotic pets in the area, so I'll call around. I've lost a young leopard lizard to RI a couple years ago and I certainly don't want that to happen again.

Thanks for the feedback. Any other input would be great, i.e. what type(s) of treatment is usually involved, and time-turnaround for a collared on the mend.

Are you keeping the WHOLE tank in the 95-110 range? You should only be keeping the basking SURFACE that hot. The hot SIDE of the tank should be no higher than upper 80s to low 90s, then there should be a cool side in the low 80s, upper 70s. Two bulbs with wattage that high seems like way too much! I have 75 gal and larger enclosures in an unheated sun room that is COOL right now and it would be way too much for them.

I am not familiar with that particular bulb. Is it a Solar glo? Does it specifically say that it produces UVB? Some of the MVBs are producing dangerous levels of radiation, so I only recommend the following, because they have been tested all over the world, and are safe at safe distances, usually at least 19 inches from the lizard:
Megaray Mercury Vapor Bulb www.reptileuv.com
T Rex Active UV MVB any reptile supply outlet
Solar Glo UVB MVB Any supply outlet, has higher premature burnout rate, but is a pretty good bulb otherwise.

Then there is the florescent bulbs.

I would say make sure you are providing a good temp gradient, make sure that there isn't an extreme temp difference when you put them outside, and get him to a vet. Finally, double check that bulb that you are using for UVB, and please keep us posted!

Yeah, I should've painted a better picture. The two bulbs are over about 2/3 of the 40 gallon enclosure, with the hot spots (surface-wise) usually hitting 96°F-105°F, but the other areas are in the mid- to high-80°s F. Also, I make sure there are shady spots under the basking rocks, where Santo & Sasha go for a cool-down and at night. They're really good at thermoregulating, although nowadays (i.e. since getting sticky eyelids) Santo is keeping off the hottest spots and staying in the mid-range areas (~90°F).

The larger bulb is a ZooMed 160w PowerSun UV mercury vapor flood lamp with UVA/UVB. I don't have the box for the smaller bulb but it's a 100w Exo-Terra bulb (printed on it), likely full-spectrum.

For the sake of minimizing stress on Santo, I've moved Sasha into her own enclosure, which is a 30 gallon with a 120w PowerSun UV mercury vapor flood lamp with UVA/UVB. Temperature ranges are the same as the larger terrarium.

Thanks! If antibiotics become necessary, do you know if they'd be oral or injected? I had to inject the young leopard lizard I mentioned before, and it was a horrible experience for both of us. =:^(

Hon, a friend of mine lost a baby beardie a few months ago because of a power sun MVB. She has a pending complaint with the company right now. It was defective and was emitting enough radiation to make the baby sick. Check that bulb REALLLY well and make sure that there are NO black spots or floaters inside the bulb, no cracks, no irregularities in the cover, etc. I would not trust those bulbs after what happened to her. This kind of thing can happen with any MVB I guess, but those are worse. Personally, I would shut it off and get a megaray. Remember, not all MVBs are created equal, and I think Megarays SHIPPED are as cheap as a powersun, and are tested to be safe at 19 inches from the basking surface. I use only MVBs and trust that they are best, but some are just not good.

Let us know if you need an anti B, and we can help you get through it. I would plan to provide some kind of probiotics along with it to prevent side effects, but you can easily do that with either a small amount of soy yogurt or with one of the several probiotic products available out there.

I checked both ZooMed bulbs for problems and they're fine, and the temp gradient is OK as well (it's a taller enclosure; Sasha is barely able to get to the screen if she jumps from a basking rock). I'll go ahead and try Megaray, though -- just to be on the safe side.

Santo is seeing a herp-specialist vet tonight, and I'll report his findings. Thanks for your help; I'm sure to have more questions/concerns as the days go on.

I just can't imagine a 40 gal tank being able to handle all of that heat! I use a 100 watt Megaray ONLY on my 40s, and that provides a good basking spot in the 100-115 range, and a good temp gradient down to the mid 70s. For the uros, I add a 40 watt household bulb to bring the basking temps up a little, but the 160watt bulbs are too much because they raise the ambient temps too high. Are you sure you need the 160, much less an additional 100 watt bulb? Is that 100 watt an energy saver, coil type?

OK went to the vet -- the doctor is a specialist in c. bicinctores and g. wislizenii (!). Santo was prescribed an ointment for his eyes (2x daily, just a minute dab) and antibiotic injections (1x every three days, 10 injections or fewer if he looks back to normal sooner). Not respiratory illness, so far. He also has a light case of BMD which should go away with new heat/diet regimen. And neither he nor Sasha will be brumating this year.

Doc also figures his enclosure needs more heat, which is puzzling because it already has a 160w and a 100w blasting in there 8-9 hours a day. But he says more like 12-14 hours a day and hotter lamps. Even an underpad for when they sleep. I trust him, he's raised generations of c. bicinctores for like 30 years so he's got the know-how... but geez it sounds like these lil' guys are gonna bake.

The mealworm shortage is a blessing in disguise. It's going to be weird not feeding either of them mealworms any more. They absolutely LOVE them but the doc says they're pretty junky compared to silkworms. Both collareds are pretty finicky so I expect some resistance to new foods. I've been supplanting their diet with neighborhood fence lizards and side-blotched lizards. I know they love grasshoppers but San Diego doesn't really have many (Sasha and Santo are ambivalent toward crickets).

Thanks for the help and advice. Thought I'd share my experiences with others who might be needing some info.