Eye Medications for Cham's

[michaels2408]

I have started a new thread because the eye medication that our DVM prescribed has caused our juvenile cham to develop gular edema. Warning bells went off with this particular vet because he not only forced us to wait over an hour past our appointment time with no explanation or attempt at apology, but told us point blank within ten seconds of entering the room that chams make terrible pets, are riddled with parasites, and in his experience never last past a year. Vlad, (our 4 month old Amilobe male) was still in his vet box at this point.

The medication prescribed to us was Neomyicin and Polymyxin B Sulfates and Dexamethasone Ophthalmic solution. I cannot find anywhere on the net where this mixture is used on reptiles. It is not FDA approved for animals, but is commonly used for dogs, cats, and horses. I find instead, that reptiles are getting the Neomyicin and Polymyxin B Sulfates and Gramicidin Ophthalmic solution.

So my question is, has anyone that reads this ever had a vet dose their cham with the version of ophthalmic solution with the Dexamthasone, which is a steroid?

 

[tkilgour]

I am not a vet. However, in my experience CB chameleons make great pets and many of my males live to 7 + years parasite free and healthy. Typical eye meds are tobramycin, terramycin, and sometimes anti biotics like Baytril. What your vet told you was very alarming. I would consider finding another vet or telling him / her to join the chameleon forum.

 

[ataraxia]

IF you dont mind posting pics of the chameleon and the eye or eyes with problems. I would also like to see what care parameters you are giving this young guy. Please fill out the how to ask for help form.

 

[michaels2408]

More info

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - Ambilobe Panther Chameloen, purchased from Ed & Liddy at Kammer. He is one of Line Drive's baby boys.

Handling - 2-3 times a week for no longer than 2-3 minutes at a time. He will take crickets from the hand without any fear. Handling has increased with meds and eye cleanings. He is less sociable now and hardly ever takes crickets from the hand.

Feeding - 1/4 -1/2" crickets from Carolina Crickets.com They are being fed Repashy bug burger, and being dusted with Repashy Superfoods calcium plus. He was eating 10-15 crickets a day. Now he is down to 4-5 crickets.

Supplements - Repashy Superfoods Calcium Plus

Watering - Using a Exo Terra Monsoon. It is set to come on 1 hour after the lights kick on and mists for 30 seconds every 2 hours. I also have a dripper setup to slowly drip water onto the fake foliage. If we spray water right in front of him, he will drink immediately.

Fecal Description - solid black with a white urate. Since he has developed what appears to be gular edema, the white urate is much larger than it was previously. He is negative for parasites.

History - We have had him for almost 5 weeks. He had an eye issue and the vet prescribed neomycin polymyxin b sulfate dexamethasone 3 time a day in each eye.


Cage Type - Zoo Med 16x16x30. Screen. Had a bigger cage, but he seemed to have trouble hunting, so we moved him into a smaller one.

Lighting - Zoo Med 75watt basking, Exo Terra Repti Glo 5.0 UVB

Temperature - 90-95 F 6 inches under the basking lamp. 80-70 F throughout different places in the cage. UVA and UVB are on for 12 hours, then moonlight is on for 12 hours.

Humidity - Using Monsoon to spray 30 sec every two hours. Plus dripper slowly drips into foliage. Spraying starts 1 hour after lights come on, and stops 1 hour before lights go off and moonlight comes on. Humidity stays between 55-80 throughout the day and in various spots of his cage.

Plants - All fake plants provided by Kammers.

Placement - Cage is in our bedroom. We do not use the ceiling fan. vents are on the other side of the room. We are careful not to turn on bedroom lights once his night has started.

Location - Savannah, GA.