New member new owner worried about wheezing baby veiled

[MaxsAnimals]

• Your Chameleon – Veiled Chameleon, female, maybe 4months? Not sure the age, young…just got her 7 days ago at Petco
• Handling – First day she was handle a few times for about 5 to 10 minutes since then about once or twice in the past week for about 10 minutes.
• Feeding - I have been feeding her a few small crickets every other day and have a bowl of tiny meal worms always available. Sprinkled the crickets with calcium plus powder. Havent seen her eat any crickets but I also don’t see the crickets in there either…unless they are hiding. Same with the meal worms. Don’t see them in the bowl but maybe they crawled out? I have seen her eat one time, she ate a meal worm.
• Supplements – dusted crickets with calcium
• Watering – I have never seen her drink. Spray with a mister about 3 to 5 times a day. Spray on plants and sides of glass to ensure there are droplets for her.
• Fecal Description – Not really sure what her droppings look like? I think I have seen at least one that looks like the ones in the normal pictures…I originally thought it was one of the meal worms dead and bloated but now I think it was feces. I am looking around now and there are a lot of small dark rock/pellet looking things and small white pieces that may be the “urine”

Cage Info:
• Cage Type – Zilla Tropical Vertical Kit. 12x12x18 it is glass with a screen top
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? Atnight she has a 40W zoomed redlight, during the day she has a 10 UVB zoomed reptisun and a 25W day blue mini halogen.
• Temperature – The temp during the day at the top is around 75-85 occasionally 90 at night it goes down to 65-70. Bottom of the cage is below 68. Use a Zilla dual guage humidity temperature for top and a strip thermometer for bottom.
• Humidity - We mist several times a day so the humidity goes between 40% to 70%
use the dual zilla guage
• Plants – no real plants just a few fake ones on the bottom and top of cage
• Placement Top of cage is about 4’ above the floor. It is in a little to moderate traffic area, next to our bearded dragon, there is a divider between them because the dragon was getting excited.
• Location – Indianapolis
•
Current Problem - A few days after we got her I started noticing that she was wheezing and making a chirping sound occasionally. It kind of looked like she was choking. I looked online and got the idea that it could just be her cooling herself off and have been keeping an eye on her and making sure her environment was as accurate as possible. But she is doing the behavior more often and I am really concerned about respiratory infection.

I have a video of the behavior if that helps. I will try to post a link to youtube and attach some pictures.

She is somewhat active but not as active as she was in the pet store.
Of course now it is Saturday night and I won't be able to get to a vet until Monday to get an antibiotic if that is what she needs.

Just wanted some reassurance if I am overreacting or some other advice if I am doing anything wrong. I am so sad and worried. We have only had her 7days and I have tried to do all the things I was told to do for her. I just think she is so sweet and I hate to think I did something to cause her pain. Thanks for any help.
Now it is a few hours since I first started getting this post information together (after one of the posters directed me to use this format) and now her left eye is closed! That’s not good is it? I have removed her coiled UVB since it was suggested they might cause eye problems. Oh this sucks

http://youtu.be/EZOMsOJwVVM
http://youtu.be/APHdik-7Nh4

 

[distortionz]

Spray spray sprray. That cham looks seriously dehydrated. Can see the ribs and the jaw doesn't seem to line up correctly. Sunken in eyes definitely dehydrated. This could be a variety of different things I would guess respiratory/mbd. Get a larger enclosure that is too small preferably screen that small of a glass enclosure is asking for respiratory issues. Need some screen for better airflow plus I'm sure it's pretty hard to regulate temp in a glass cage that small. Get rid of the night light chameleons don't need them all your doing is probably keeping her awake. Chances are it's not something you did you probably got her from petco with this setting in. I wouldn't recommend buying chameleons from them ever I've seen them keep 3-6 month old veileds in like 2.5 gallon aquariums.Gutload the food and keep dusting. Another thing you have a reptisun 10.0 on a cage way to small for it.. she needs the uvb but you need to go back to the store and get a reptisun 5.0... hope that helps and hope you get her better

 

[MaxsAnimals]

Thanks

Thanks! I just sprayed a little bit ago and she was drinking like crazy which I thought was a good sign. I will continue to do that and no more red light. I have seen some suggestions for dehydration to put them in a half and half water and pediylte bath for about 10 minutes...do you think that is a good idea?

 

[distortionz]

I've never done that.. and I wouldn't recommend it in the state she's in.. she's probably pretty stressed and I'm not sure dunking her in water will help that. but if you have a plant you can put in the shower. let her sit on the plant and aim the shower head at the Wall where it sprays the the warm mist off the Wall on to the plant. Do that for about a half hour. But make sure you get the new uvb bulb

 

[repdog]

I would also start looking at vets in your area. If this gets worse you are going to want to take her asap. Guessing it wouldn't hurt to find one and set up an app. for about a week. Get a clean bill of health anyways. But yes never buy from Petco. Or plan on vets visits right from the start. You shouldn't have anything on the bottom of the cage. I think most of the other stuff has been covered.

 

[MaxsAnimals]

Nothing on the bottom?? So here should not be coconut fiber bedding covering the floor of the cage? Oh my, I had a lot of bad information I guess
Thanks so much for your help. I already have the number of two exotic animal vets in my area, so I will probably call on Monday and set up an appointment. I just hope she makes it that long. I hate seeing her gasp for air like that!

 

[distortionz]

I missed the part about the substrate.. which it shouldn't have anything to do with this. But yeah you don't want that in the cage. I had a veiled about 15 years ago suffer a prolapse after accidentally ingesting some substrate while hunting crickets. Learned my lesson. Plus a bare floor makes for easier clean up. And yeah like repdog said I would definitely try to contact a vet

 

[repdog]

Great so you already have step one taken care or at least my step one. Vet first, then cage set up, then reptile. Yes never trust the people at Petco. They have no clue on how to care for reptiles. Even dogs at times I hear information that is just insane.

Go to the care resources no the left side of any of the pages. Read on the set up and care info. If you can for the best lights once you have a larger cage in place most of us use the ones from lightyourreptiles.com go can find it listed under sponsors. He is great at getting you set up. I believe there is a thread as well about the company that was started about a month or so ago.