Female veiled not doing so well

[ChameleonNerd]

Hi all, It's been quite a while since I have posted on here. My female veiled is named Carla and she is about 5 1/2 years old.

Her living situation:
Cage - 18x18x36 screen
Light - 18" reptisun
Basking spot - 78-85
Ambient temp - 70
Fake plants
Placed in room without draft
Urates are white
Poop is normal

Religiously for the past 5 years she has been in my care she has been fed 6-7 crickets every third day, with an occasional superworm in between feeding days. She also occasionally receives red bell pepper.

The problems:
She has laid eggs 3 times, all trophic clutches of 45-55. For the better part of a year, she has had egg belly, but refuses to lay them and isn't even showing any egg laying behavior. That being said, she is still dropping the occasional slug.
Fast forward to about two weeks ago, she refused to eat her crickets. I offered a superworm, and she took it after some hesitation. She has only had a couple crickets since them, and in the last week has eaten nothing but a few superworms (two of which she had today).
A couple hours ago (only about a half hour before lights out) she was under her basking lamp with both eyes closed. A reasonable cause for concern.

I am worried because of the disinterest in food, as well as because of her eyes being closed under the heat lamp (mind you though, it was very close to lights out for her). Anybody have any thoughts or experience with egg binding? Any thoughts, ideas, or questions are welcomed. Thank you

The attached outdoor picture is from 6/21, and the sleeping picture (showing off her egg belly) is from 5/27

 

[jannb]

I'd recommend a vet visit with a vet that has chameleon experience. She needs an x-ray to see if the eggs are formed and if it's going to be possiable for her to lay them. You said slugs, all of the eggs might be slugs that she is unable to lay and she might need surgery to remove them. If you've had her for more than five years then I'm sure she's special to you and you wouldn't want anything to happen to her that you could prevent. My advise to you is don't wait until she's weak. If she gets weak it will be harder for her to make it through surgery.

 

[ataraxia]

Jann is right on. Looks like your girl is egg heavy, possibly bound. With this particular situation. Time is not on your side, a vet needs to been see as soon as you can.