Chameleon Smells Skunky

[DMPanther]

I have a 8 -year-old male Ambanja panther chameleon who recently started to smell skunky. Wondering if anyone else has ever noticed something similar.

I feed him roaches that emit a skunky smell when disturbed. And the smell seems to be stronger near the base of his tail. Could it be the digested roach inside him?

My chameleon never had an offensive odor before.

Here are the stats:
I've had him since he was 1.5" small. (8 years ago). He's in a screen cage, one large pothos- which I've seen him eat a bit of lately- something he never did for years. Fake jungle vines, some cork bark, and a wooden stand that all this strategically stuff sits on. I mist him for a few minutes every morning. Then Habba Mist sprays once ever hour for a minute while the lights and heat are on. 2 Reptisun 5.0 bulbs and 2 daylight fluorescent bulbs. (need new Reptisuns, as they were changed in July) Temps during the day are kept around 80-85 F- possibly warmer near his lights. Cool down at night to 65 or 70 F.
I feed mostly roaches and recently meal worms. He doesn't eat much these days and he isn't very active. So, I feed him approx. twice a week. I rarely dust food with RepCal, as his feeders are pretty well gut loaded.

Another thing of note:
He has been battling an eye problem for about a year and a half. He's been to to the vet and tested for a few bacteria in the eye. I've administered antibiotic drops, shots, and more drops and more shots to no realy avail. So, as long as I mist him well in the mornings, his eye seems to be ok, not great. Gets watery, sometimes crusty, sometimes gooey that I gently clear with Q-Tip. My vet can't really help any more with this. She thinks it could be a mechanical problem with his eye - and trouble clearing debris or closing it. She gave him Vit A shots for two weeks and I gave him a drop of Vit A on a roach, but am concerned about overdosing on that.

One other thing, I have noticed a tiny bug (like a miniature fruit fly or gnat) running along his body. It moves so fast and is so small I can't catch it.

I think he is just getting old. What do you think?

Thanks for your thoughts on this!

Dena

 

[jannb]

I think he had lived a very long live. I would insist my vet do a fecal to see if he has parasites. If it were my chameleon I would take him to a different vet for a 2nd. opinion. There should be something that you can do for his eye. You also need to make sure that you are keeping his cage extremely clean.

 

[lucky]

is he pooping normally?

 

[DMPanther]

there aren't many vets in my area who have chameleon experience. I'm in CT.

How would you describe "normal" poops?

Thanks!
Dena

 

[lucky]

not runny, not off colored, no worms in it. has good white urate with the brown feces.

 

[ciafardo 4]

The gnat you saw is likely a phorid fly . As for him i would just keep him as happy as possible 8 years is a long time i wouldn't be spending any money on a vet at this point unless he was clearly suffering.

 

[beeze]

The gnat you saw is likely a phorid fly . As for him i would just keep him as happy as possible 8 years is a long time i wouldn't be spending any money on a vet at this point unless he was clearly suffering.

I totally disagree. When a chameleon (as with ANY animal) gets older it will need more vet care, not less or none. Regular vet check up should be more often and problems should be taken care of faster in an older animal.

 

[jesses]

I have to agree with ciafardo... I mean, if funds are not a problem, proceeding to get as much vet care as needed with a geriatric animal is great. BUT if that animal is not eating, drinking, defecating/urinating... basically all the necessities to live, it is really not worth it.

 

[sandrachameleon]

I think he had lived a very long live. I would insist my vet do a fecal to see if he has parasites. If it were my chameleon I would take him to a different vet for a 2nd. opinion. There should be something that you can do for his eye. You also need to make sure that you are keeping his cage extremely clean.

Ditto

A different vet for the eye, and have a fecal test done (does his poop smell also)?

I doubt it is a result of his food intake, but its pretty easy to rule that out - feed him different things for a couple weeks.

 

[jannb]

I have to agree with ciafardo... I mean, if funds are not a problem, proceeding to get as much vet care as needed with a geriatric animal is great. BUT if that animal is not eating, drinking, defecating/urinating... basically all the necessities to live, it is really not worth it.

His cham does not seems that bad and even if it does get that bad, then he should still see a vet to have it humanely put down so that it would not suffer. I've had several pets that only went for regular check-ups until older and then started having medical problems with more vet visits. My vet recommends they come twice as often for regular check-ups once they reach a certain age.

 

[Carlton]

I had an older wc verrucosus who also had a chronic eye problem that sounds very similar. He wasn't sick overall but was slowing down, was eating and drinking fairly normally, but one eye tended to bother him. Antibiotic ointments didn't have any effect. The eye wasn't swollen or discolored. My vet checked it with a scope and found increased vascularization (which can be a sign of an older healed injury). I wasn't sure if his vision in that eye was good, but he compensated well with the other. I found I could keep him comfortable by cleaning the eye with sterile saline contact lense rinse (stings less than water) if it gummed up and misting well helped from day to day. We never did pinpoint the original problem.

 

[ciafardo 4]

I totally disagree. When a chameleon (as with ANY animal) gets older it will need more vet care, not less or none. Regular vet check up should be more often and problems should be taken care of faster in an older animal.

Yes fine if money is no problem at all for you then by all means spend spend spend but if times are tight like with most people i wouldn't recomend rackin up vet bills on an 8 year old panther.

 

[serenitystarlite]

I would never recommend to not pursue vet treatment, but I have worked in a vet's office before where I saw people spend thousands of dollars on very old dogs and cats that had no chance of getting better. All I will say is that losing a pet is hard enough but dealing with a high vet bill after your pet has passed on is even harder, because it's a constant reminder until you pay it off. It was very sad to see someone walk out with a dead pet and a $3000+ bill. One specific case I remember was a lady who spent thousands of dollars on an 18 year old golden lab who had cancer. Her high balance at the end was only part of what she had already spent on the dog. It was very sad.

I would at least have the chameleon checked out again and do everything you can to keep him comfortable. Only you can decide when enough is enough if you're treating an older animal. Good luck with your little guy!

 

[jannb]

I would never recommend to not pursue vet treatment, but I have worked in a vet's office before where I saw people spend thousands of dollars on very old dogs and cats that had no chance of getting better. All I will say is that losing a pet is hard enough but dealing with a high vet bill after your pet has passed on is even harder, because it's a constant reminder until you pay it off. It was very sad to see someone walk out with a dead pet and a $3000+ bill. One specific case I remember was a lady who spent thousands of dollars on an 18 year old golden lab who had cancer. Her high balance at the end was only part of what she had already spent on the dog. It was very sad.

I would at least have the chameleon checked out again and do everything you can to keep him comfortable. Only you can decide when enough is enough if you're treating an older animal. Good luck with your little guy!

I have spent thousands on my pets plenty of times.......chemo, ultra sounds, cat scans, surgeries and so much more and by no means are we rich but we do have charge cards.....my husband works in the service dept. at a car dealership and I work 3 months a year for H&R Block. I will never regret trying to provide for my pets needs right to the end. They are part of our family and that's the least I can do for them. I hope when I get to be 80 that my kids will do the same for me.

 

[ciafardo 4]

I have spent thousands on my pets plenty of times.......chemo, ultra sounds, cat scans, surgeries and so much more and by no means are we rich but we do have charge cards.....my husband works in the service dept. at a car dealership and I work 3 months a year for H&R Block. I will never regret trying to provide for my pets needs right to the end. They are part of our family and that's the least I can do for them. I hope when I get to be 80 that my kids will do the same for me.

Are you serious , ARE YOU SERIOUS ??? Now we're going to put ourselves in debt over a reptile that is commonly bred on a large scale! It has lived 8 years everybody needs to stop!!It's has a life expectancy in the wild of 2 years 4-5 in captivity i cannot believe you're suggesting he ring up his credit cards for this PEOPLE THESE ARE REPTILES THEY ARE NOT CHILDREN AS I HAVE HEARD SO MANY TIMES ON THIS FORUM.
Nothing personal .

 

[jannb]

Are you serious , ARE YOU SERIOUS ??? Now we're going to put ourselves in debt over a reptile that is commonly bred on a large scale! It has lived 8 years everybody needs to stop!!It's has a life expectancy in the wild of 2 years 4-5 in captivity i cannot believe you're suggesting he ring up his credit cards for this PEOPLE THESE ARE REPTILES THEY ARE NOT CHILDREN AS I HAVE HEARD SO MANY TIMES ON THIS FORUM.
Nothing personal .

Maybe it's only a reptile to you but my chams are part of my family.....just like my dog. No other dog or cham could ever take their place.

 

[Cainschams]

Only you can decide when enough is enough if you're treating an older animal. Good luck with your little guy!

Exactly!!!! I agree with the rest of your post also.

It is hard to tell really what shape this animal is in. As was pointed out he does not sound to be in terrible shape however it is very old. Honestly it would be a tough decision to keep toting him back and forth to the vet, treat for parasites (if it has any), keep poking at its eye. The eye has been a minor problem for 1.5 years and many tests were done as was stated. I think Carlton's situation might have a better answer then to keep treating. These are chameleons which are way different than dogs. It is much more stressful to keep "poking and prodding" and transferring this animal to and from the vet at this point, IMHO.

Jann, of course most of us would spend tons of money on a loved pet with no thoughts about it. However, as was stated, there comes a time when you have to call it quits and realize that the animal is not getting better, only being tortured. Its a tough call but it has to be made sometime

To the OP, its obvious you gave your chameleon a great, LONG life. Whether you choose to keep taking him to the vet or just keep him comfortable until his time, your decision should be well respected.

 

[jannb]

Jared, I realize there is a time when you have to quit. Vets have told me before the best think I can now do for them is to let them go and I've had to do that before too, plenty of times.

 

[serenitystarlite]

Jared, I realize there is a time when you have to quit. Vets have told me before the best think I can now do for them is to let them go and I've had to do that before too, plenty of times.

This was my point. There's nothing wrong with providing vet care for your older pets, as long as you know what your limits are and when it's time to let go. When I mentioned the sad case of the golden retriever, this was an old dog with cancer that wasn't going to recover and the lady still chose to spend thousands of dollars on surgeries and treatments. I felt very sad that she was left with such a high bill.

It wasn't so much "don't spend money on vet bills" as it was "spend what you think is right for your specific situation."

 

[DMPanther]

Wow, thank you all for your interest in this topic.

I am surprised to hear how unusually old you think my cham is. I guess I did something right!

"Blue" (that's what I call him) is in pretty good shape. Comfortable enough, as much as one can imagine a lizard would be. I do care a lot for him and will be sad when he passes. The issues really aren't about money. I am fortunate at this time to have funds to cover reasonable vet bills.

The last poop had a significant watery portion along with the brown, gelatinous and white crusty parts. Perhaps he didn't digest the cockroach well. I think the roach I gave him was a bit large for him. And as I said, I suspect it was the stink of the roach that I'm smelling emitted from his rear-end. I never smelled that coming from him before.

Because of his eye problem, his vision is poor in one eye and I have to hand feed him. He overcompensates his aim towards the bad eye. So, I strategically stick the bug on his tongue or slip it in-between his jaws when he thinks he caught something. He then eats it as if he caught it himself!

Yup, I'm his nurse!

He is sedentary these days. He drinks, eats and poops.

Thanks for all your thoughts. I will keep a close eye on him, change up his diet and see if that helps. If not, back to the vet for a fecal test.

Best,
Dena