foaming at the mouth

[Forest Gump]

My veiled chameleon was drinking water and then I noticed he was gagging up spit and foam, having a hard time getting it out, like a night of puking when there is nothing left to puke up but bile, etc.

I changed his water. I changed his charcoal filter pad out, and heavily washed the new replacement one and used bottled spring water instead of the tap water this time.

Anyone else may have heard of this or have an idea what happened? I think maybe bit of soap was inside the charcoal filter pad, so after I washed everything and put it back together it must have got some dawn dish soap in his water, not a lot... but any is too much. He seems fine now. Took him to the shower for some steam time and rinsed his mouth out.

Any recommendations/advice?

Thanks/

Veiled chameleon, 9 months old, male. Jacksonville Florida, very open enclosure in corner of game room with a live plant, cat palm - lots of natural sunlight and trips outside too, diet of crickets, super worms, and wax worms. He is a very active cham. I take him out to the trees in let him climb as far as he can for a few hours each day when it is sunny and not cold. He is very tame and has a good calm behavior. He is drinking out of a cham cantina - it is sold on amazon I believe, small pump powered and charcoal filtered water circulation.

 

[JacksJill]

I know of two things that might make that happen. One is a respiratory or sinus infection. The other is parasites. I'm sure there are other possible causes. I would keep a close eye on him and consider a vet appointment if he has any other symptoms.
Is he making a popping sound when he breathes?

 

[Amateur Chameleon]

Do you use a uvb light or even mist the area?

 

[NHenn]

Sounds like an upper respiratory infection. I would pay attention to see if he is puffing out his throat, making popping or wheezing sounds when breathing or more foam in the mouth.If you see any of these items I would get him to the vet right away as he will need medication and URI's can progress very quickly and can be fatal.

 

[OldChamKeeper]

I don't usually stick my nose into Veiled threads but a friend noticed you have a free range set up and knew of my experience in dealing with those.

Your set up is not optimal just to put that out there. You're trying to use your bedroom as a habitat. Now I've done just that, let me say from experience that a well made free range is not comfortable for the human living there if you decide to be a roommate. That said, if the room is comfortable for the human, then the room is not comfortable for that species.

A healthy cham will decline slowly in such conditions. They will sometimes "roam" and while the owner feels this is natural or even encourages it, what is possibly happening is that the animal is searching for the conditions needed to be healthy.

Do you offer any type of unfiltered UV light? Light coming through glass doesn't provide what the animal needs. Also your temperatures could be fluctuating wildly in a bedroom, that would cause a URI. Sunlight or UVB light helps with many things, their immune system being one such. So the combination of issues with that set up could easily contribute to a slow decline in health.

How to fix: Get him a good size cage (24x24x48) and set that up with a proper UVB light (repti-sun 5.0) and a 50wt spotlight for basking. Leave him in the cage when your not home. Let him roam a little during the week. What you are doing is keeping him in the optimal conditions the majority of the time your own him and letting him out when you're home for your enjoyment. An RI can sometimes be treated if caught quickly by simply providing the animal the needed environment. Advanced cases need some meds in addition to the corrected environment. Good luck

<back to my cave>

 

[starryskiezz]

I definitely think it could be a respiratory infection and agree with @JacksJill and @NHenn!! I would listen for popping wheezing, but I would absolutely take him to a vet specializing in small animals/reptiles.

That being said, I also agree with @OldChamKeeper about your chameleon's living space! He definitely needs a terrarium with UVB and a basking light, if anything to maintain his humidity (ie he needs about 70% humidity, which is pretty damp). Otherwise he definitely will decline. Otherwise I love the set up of your room! I'd let him spend time in his terrarium when you're gone and definitely let him roam for an hour or two.

 

[kinyonga]

One comment on your set-up...the chameleon can climb the light cords and burn himself on the light bulb or the hood if he decides to climb on it.

 

[Theveiled]

I would also recommend getting rid of the waterfall and investing in a high quality misting system. They are a whole lot better for chams