Reptile & Amphibian Forums

my 4.5 month old cham keeps having occular discharge, i use sterilt saline contact cleaner and it whips it right out but comes back in 4-5 days. WTF?

All my care info in in my signature, thanks

Jay

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"Master Shake" CARE & SETUP INFORMATION
4 Month Old Ambanja Panther Chameleon < Male >

Ocala Florida

--24 x 24 x 48 -- All screen Enclosure
--Pesticide-Free 3' Potted Ficus Tree.
--RepCal with D-3 Twice a Week
--Mineral Twice a Week
--16" UVB 5.0 Bulb (Waiting on a 10.0)
--Zoo-Med PowerSun UV 100watt
--Mr. Moisture Stystem - 3 Times a Day with Distilled Water
--Digital Timer On Lights 6:00AM - 7:30PM
--Digital Thermometer/Humidity Indicator
--55%-65% Humidity
--78*-87* Room Temp.
--95* Basking Temp.
--Eating 3/4" Crickets and Large Houseflys
--Gets to go out in his outdoor enclosure often to enjoy some Florida sun =)

XxKRYMZxX @aol.com - Im always willing to chat about Chameleons

I've had this problem before with a young cham. The vet stopped by and checked on him but found no problem, other than he was developing eye plugs every other day. The key to getting him better is to remove the eye plugs as they build up, and keep him hydrated. We kept his eyes moist so he could remove the plugs on his own, and eventually it got better. We stopped using the eye drops and simply used purified water. The drops did not seem to help much. It took a few months, but he's fine now.

Vincent

One eye, both eyes? Sounds like you are merely treating the symptoms, not alleviating the cause (ie you're cleaning away the discharge, but not getting rid of what is *causing* the discharge). Your cham could have a small bit of something foreign in his turret that is irriatating his eyelids, or he could have an infection that is recurring, or maybe something else entirely. Whatever the problem, it is obviously ongoing and not getting any better, please seek the help of a cham-friendly vet to help diagnose the problem. And do so before whatever the irritation is advances to the point the eye globe is affected, as in the case of a rescue I recently took in that had chronic eye problems that "wouldn't go away" for her prevous owner, now the infection has advanced to the point where the only solution is to remove the entire eye. I have an appointment this Tuesday for surgery on my little cyclops cham, a whole risky operation that may not have even been necessary if the eye infection had been dealt with when the "eye problems" first appeared, weeks ago. My point is, try to seek treatment while the problem is still "treatable" and has not reached an end-stage situation.

Good luck,
~Kerry

If anyone is interested, I will take pictures of the enucleation (eye removal) surgery on my cham. I will be probably 10% anesthetist and 90% hovering, pestering, picture-taking owner!

i think i mentioned in my post that i took it to a vet which they said he was fine. and that the discharge was common in young chams, mostlikely because they tend to shed more often at a young age. I took it to a vet and they didnt find anything wrong, what else can i do? i mean the last thing i was is a cyclpos cham =(.. but i have another appointment on the 11th for another deworming treatment. so maybe ill bring up something then.. since this problem started it has gotten less occasional as time went by... thanks so much for your response..

Jay

-----
"Master Shake" CARE & SETUP INFORMATION
4 Month Old Ambanja Panther Chameleon < Male >

Ocala Florida

--24 x 24 x 48 -- All screen Enclosure
--Pesticide-Free 3' Potted Ficus Tree.
--RepCal with D-3 Twice a Week
--Mineral Twice a Week
--16" UVB 5.0 Bulb (Waiting on a 10.0)
--Zoo-Med PowerSun UV 100watt
--Mr. Moisture Stystem - 3 Times a Day with Distilled Water
--Digital Timer On Lights 6:00AM - 7:30PM
--Digital Thermometer/Humidity Indicator
--55%-65% Humidity
--78*-87* Room Temp.
--95* Basking Temp.
--Eating 3/4" Crickets and Large Houseflys
--Gets to go out in his outdoor enclosure often to enjoy some Florida sun =)

XxKRYMZxX @aol.com - Im always willing to chat about Chameleons

i had the same problem...i used plain water most of the time. i would just remove the eye pulg which might take some rubbing on your part and a little discomfort for the cham but as soon as the plug was gone i would give him a drop or two of water in the eye and put him back in the cage and he was fine.

it took a while but he is back to normal now and is eating more than ever

so just keep the cage humidity up and see if he will flush out the eye with water and keep him eating