Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok my veiled chameleon is about 7 inches from head to tip of tail. he scratches his right on a branch alot. his right eye is closed mostly all day. he has been like this since i got him a week ago. now he seems to open his mouth real wide and take a deep breath (i think?) i have taken eveyones advise but showering did not help and i dont know of a vet in st. louis missouri. does he have a disease? what can i do? he is eating well and his poop is not bad?!?! help anyone!!!!!!!!

you can email me at:

wetwillymxw@hotmail.com

-chris

You will need a vet, so start looking. There is a list of herp vets by region on the help pages at the head of this forum. Sounds like a respiratory infection (the gulping and gaping). The eye may or may not be a related symptom. Chams shut an eye for a lot of reasons. Gulping, puffing out the throat, heavy breathing etc. are signs of respiratory problems, and the list can't help you there. A vet will need to diagnose the bacteria causing the infection and choose the correct antibiotic to treat it.

Chris,

Sadly, none of us can do this for you. You really need to take the cham to a vet - try starting with this list:

Dennis Cloud
Rock Road Animal Hospital
9418 St Charles Rock Rd
St Louis 63114
(314) 429-6666

Bruce Kurka
Chippewa Animal Hospital
3850 Chippewa
St Louis 63116
(314) 772-0292

Dawn Ruben
Animal Emergency Clinic
9937 Big Bend Rd
St Louis 63122
(314) 822-7214

Webster Groves Animal Hospital
7979 Big Bend Blvd
St Louis 63119
(314) 968-4310

Jay King, DVM
Watson Road Veterinary Clinic
3725 Watson Road
Saint Louis, MO 63109
(314) 644-1544

Dr. Ellen S. Dierenfeld
4736 Gatesbury Dr
Saint Louis, MO 63128
(314) 845-1794

I am sure one of those vets can help.
Good luck,

Hey Chris,

Yup, as I said in all of my other posts, for the millionth time, it is probably a URI. Definitly bring him to a vet asap; Reptayls has helped you out a lot there. If you just bought him last week, you should try asking the person you bought him from for a refund.

Also, I just was reading your other post. You need to leave him in ALOT more than 5 mins. The longer you leave him in, the better. I leave them in for 6 hours sometimes. But in your circumstances, with a cham that small, I would leave him in for an hour or two. Make the water luke-warm.

Also, I did not mean to perscibe you baytril!!! It might not be what he needs. In my opinion it is, BUT I AM NOT A VET, AND I DO NOT HAVE A VETERINARY LICENSE!!! You have to bring him to the vet. Call the vets and make sure that they can see chameleons first. A cham that small will not do too well with baytril, but you don't have many options. If you don't give him medication, chances are, it won't go away by itself. See what the vet says.

Ank-Inc.
Adam.

Can we clarify one thing in this discussion? When he posted earlier about this cham the only symptom was closing an eye. At that time there was NO OTHER SIGN of a respiratory infection, and treating for one was not called for. There could have been other reasons for the eye problem including immune system overload from stress, dehydration and nutritional problems. Most often closing eyes has to do with dehydration. Now, there is a respiratory symptom so yes, he should take the cham to the vet and diagnose the infection and treat it. We just don't want to mislead other keepers into thinking that closing an eye automatically means URI. None of us has seen his cham in person, so we can only guess at any other symptoms that might be present.

Yes Carlton, you are right. Closing eyes doesn't nesearily mean it is a URI. It could have been a number of things... But, he is a first time keeper, and with the details he described to me, from the begginning I knew it was most likely a URI, or dehydration. I did mention parasites too, but that is least likely. But, I did have a VERY strong feeling that there was nothing in his eye. I also had a feeling that it wasn't dehydration. While it is common with beginners, I just had a feeling that in this case it wasn't. I don't know why. He was saying that he was misting him extra, and he did put him in the shower and such. But, we still aren't even positive that he has URI!!! He can be gaping because it is too hot in his cage, and because of the temp, be dehydrated. But, I doubt it is this. Either way, Chris needs to bring him to the vet, and in the mean time ask the seller to give him a refund.

Ank-Inc.
Adam.