Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have had my chameleon for about 2 1/2 years now and it has always been healthy. It lives in a tank (which I know is not ideal, but it's what I have) that is 4 feet tall, by 3 feet wide and 3 feet deep. He has a brand new UV light and a 100 watt basking light. I feed him a mixture of superworms, crickets and silkworm that have all been gut-loaded and dusted.

About two weeks ago I noticed it wasn't eating or moving as much and that his eye was a bit puffy, so I brought him to the vet. They said he had an infection behind his eye and gave him a Baytril injection, with instructions to bring him back if there was no improvement. There was not. He went back and stayed for a week where he was given intramuscular injections of Baytril daily.

I got him back on Saturday and woke up this morning (Monday) to him sitting on the floor of his cage. He was trying to eat crickets but each time he flicked out his tongue he fell over. He also has a puff under his neck which the vet said might be retained water. I took him back to the vet but they have no idea what is wrong. I have already spent over $400 thus far and as a student I'm running out of money.

Right now he is looking very sad, sitting low on his branch and I am very worried.

Sorry for they novel, but does anyone have any suggestions?

Be forewarned - you are probably going to get a lot of negative repsonses to this post re: your enclosure. For the $$$ you spent at the vet you could have had a custom made cage with all the amenities.

Your "It lives in a tank (which I know is not ideal, but it's what I have) is not going to cut it on this forum. The fact that you knew this but chose to house him this way anyway is just irresponsible.

I don't want to alienate you from seeking help and I will say you did take him to the vet (many people even don't even do that) but you need to get him out of that tank right away. Frankly I am surprised he has lived this long. What species cham? What else did you change? If you want any help from the folks here you are going to need to state the following:
**species
**what and how often supplementation (the puffy area at the neck could be edema -see recent posts about it)
** what else is in the cage? (plants, etc.)
** how do you hydrate him?

there will be more questions and like I said be prepared for some not-so-nice posts - and get him into proper housing. Yesterday!

lele

>>I have had my chameleon for about 2 1/2 years now and it has always been healthy. It lives in a tank (which I know is not ideal, but it's what I have) that is 4 feet tall, by 3 feet wide and 3 feet deep. He has a brand new UV light and a 100 watt basking light. I feed him a mixture of superworms, crickets and silkworm that have all been gut-loaded and dusted.
>>
>>About two weeks ago I noticed it wasn't eating or moving as much and that his eye was a bit puffy, so I brought him to the vet. They said he had an infection behind his eye and gave him a Baytril injection, with instructions to bring him back if there was no improvement. There was not. He went back and stayed for a week where he was given intramuscular injections of Baytril daily.
>>
>>I got him back on Saturday and woke up this morning (Monday) to him sitting on the floor of his cage. He was trying to eat crickets but each time he flicked out his tongue he fell over. He also has a puff under his neck which the vet said might be retained water. I took him back to the vet but they have no idea what is wrong. I have already spent over $400 thus far and as a student I'm running out of money.
>>
>>Right now he is looking very sad, sitting low on his branch and I am very worried.
>>
>>Sorry for they novel, but does anyone have any suggestions?

umm, lele he said it was a veiled in the title!!!!

yeah, why do u have a chameleon in a tank???????

that is probably the worst thing you could do.......

why are u killing a beautiful animal??? please do not ever buy a chameleon again unless you agree to house he/she correctly!!!

oops! funny, as I was replying I kept thinking he said veiled but I couldn't find it in his post - DUH!

>>umm, lele he said it was a veiled in the title!!!!
>>
>>yeah, why do u have a chameleon in a tank???????
>>
>>that is probably the worst thing you could do.......
>>
>>why are u killing a beautiful animal??? please do not ever buy a chameleon again unless you agree to house he/she correctly!!!

N/P
-----
Tyler Stewart
Las Vegas NV

Hold on folks, step back. This cham is 2.5 years old and is not showing typical respiratory or temp problems that are classically due to tank living. Many keepers in Europe keep chams successfully in tanks, but they tend to do it with a high level of technology (such as fans, air exchangers, careful monitoring and programmed temp controls) than US keepers. I am NOT saying I would keep a cham in a tank as it is very tricky to do. Cages work for me and I feel they are best. I just wanted to remind everyone that this cham is not necessarily sick because it is in a tank, and that sometimes it can be done if it is done carefully. The fan he uses will help avoid many tank-related problems. This cham sounds like it has a resistant infection or possibly an abscess(was any sensitivity culturing done?). You may be seeing kidney damage from Baytril which may show as edema around the neck. They might check for kidney function too. It can happen if the cham gets even slightly dehydrated during treatment and also if the injections were given further back on the body than the cham's shoulders (medications given too close to the renal vein/arteries go straight to kidneys and can damage them). I would also look at supplementation. As chams age they are less efficient at absorbing micronutrients so I would also suggest a better gutload/dust routine. There are some great products and nutritional info on www.herpnutrition.com including some supports for herps on medications. Dr. Donoghue is very helpful and could suggest more supportive care.

Hey sorry to hear about the bad news. First thing you want to do is make sure he is getting enough water and food. I would try to lightly spray water into his mouth as to not stress him. there is a liquid food I used to feed my sick panther when she would not eat. I got it at the vet, and it comes in a can. you feed the chameleon with a very blunt syringe.

If you must keep him in a tank, make sure that its clean. Bacteria tends to build up in a tank easier. hope this helps.

A Tank will tend to hold in moisture which can breed bacteria and Veilds do not do well in overly humid conditions.
The swelling or puffiness under the throat is retained water and could be a bad sign caused by organ failure, or it could be from over supplementation.
Is the vet you took him to a reptile specialist? You have to be careful with antibiotic injections and chameleons. The vet has to know what he is doing or it could cause Kidney or Liver damage.
I would try to get him into another cage. Can you build things? You can get materials to build a good cage at a Home Depot for about $30 - $50 depending on what you decide to go with.
At this point your best bet on helping his organs to function is to keep him very hydrated.
Check out www.icomm.ca/dragon/hydrate.htm
I would hydrate for a day or two before feeding him by hand. Feeding before you get him hydrated can damage his organs further.
If you give him water with a syringe put it way back in his throat so he doesn't aspirate. His breething tube is at the floor of his mouth pretty far forward and right under the tongue. If you put in too much at a time he can breathe it into his lungs. Try putting drops on his snout and see if he will voluntarily drink it first.
Sonia

The chameleon is a veiled, which was written in the title. Well I know that a tank isn't great but he has been fine thus far. I have a small fan over the top of one corner which circulates the air. He has a plant in it called a schefflera which I was told was non-toxic. I have a water drip and I mist him every day. He has been drinking just fine, so that doesn't seem to be the problem. The dust I use is Herpcare cricket dust.

The vet sent me home with five more Baytril injections to use myself. I'm in a vet tech program and have worked as a vet assistant before so giving needles isn't new to me. Should I continue with the shots or is it just making things worse. The vet is supposed to be a reptile specialist but I live in a smaller city and he said he didn't know much about chamleons.

Right now I've spent all my extra cash on vet bills, I even have to cut-off my cable because I have so little money left, so a new cage is impossible for another couple of weeks.

www.mythicalchameleons.com/vetcases.htm

Have you looked into getting a reptarium? These are much cheaper than custom screen cages, and if you are good at eBay, you can probabbly get one at a really good price.