Panther Chameleon sleeping a lot/rubbing eyes

[Dawson13]

Hello! I have had my Panther chameleon for about 6 1/2 months since he was only 1 month old and the size of my finger tip! He has been going strong and i have previously had 2 Veiled chameleons and I’ve had every single reptile/animal you can buy! So I have a lot of knowledge around animals and know proper care and what not and how they need to be housed and cared for. My Panther chameleon’s name is Chad and lately I’ve been getting worried about his eyes, its been Going on for a little while now and sometimes it seems like he’s doing better and some days he doesn’t seem to happy. He almost is always “sleeping” during the day when his lights are on and it seems as if something is hurting his eyes. I’ve had a thread about his lighting before and changed his uvb to a 5.0 and his heating lamp to a normal colored heating lamp ( I had a red color before that was a mistake). He seems healthy and pretty happy other than his eyes, he’s been getting his colors in more and he’s always very colorful rarely ever dark at all and he does move around kinda a lot just mostly sits in or close to his basking spot and closes his eyes. I have noticed he isn’t sleeping he is still very alert, hence if I get close to his cage or something moves his eyes open immediately to check what’s going on. He also HATES being misted or if any water hits him especially his eyes and I’ve noticed it when my automatic sprayer goes off sometimes I have to block the mist from hitting him because he starts to kinda freak out and tries to run away with his eyes closed. I see him drinking water everyday and he drinks a lot of it, his humidity is 65-75% during the day and 80-95% at night and his temperature is 68-74°. I live in Colorado so it hasn’t been nice out for a couple months and I read something that, that could be why he’s sleeping more because they can sense if its a Nice day out or not. I’m not too worried as of now because he seems very healthy besides his eyes and he eats 7-10 crickets everyday almost. I use zoo med reptivite without D3 almost every feeding and I’ve kinda been neglecting using my repti calcium with D3 because I talked to the breeder I got my Cham from when his eye problem first started and he said he needs vitamin A so I started using the one with vitamin A and no D3 and nothings worked! I have a feeling this could be why because he hasn’t been getting enough D3 and I haven’t been using the repti calcium but I used it today and would just like someone with more knowledge to tell me what’s going on, I’ll attach pictures of everything in a post below since this post is already HUGE! Thank you so much for reading and let me know what you guys think!!!

 

[ERKleRose]

Do you have an experienced chameleon vet you can take both chams pictured to ASAP (your female looks particularly bad)? They're overdosed on multivitamins and underdosed on calcium. The compact coil UVB bulbs you're using could be the issue, too. You need to get a T5 High Output linear light fixture the length of the enclosure with either a Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 or Arcadia 6% T5HO linear UVB bulb of the matching size. What are their basking temps, and do you fog during the day? Your humidity is high, as well. Could you fill out this form in as much detail as possible, please?

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

 

[kinyonga]

Welcome to the forum!

You need to get him to a vet ASAP...like now....sorry to say that.

 

[Dawson13]

Do you have an experienced chameleon vet you can take both chams pictured to ASAP (your female looks particularly bad)? They're overdosed on multivitamins and underdosed on calcium. The compact coil UVB bulbs you're using could be the issue, too. You need to get a T5 High Output linear light fixture the length of the enclosure with either a Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 or Arcadia 6% T5HO linear UVB bulb of the matching size. What are their basking temps, and do you fog during the day? Your humidity is high, as well. Could you fill out this form in as much detail as possible, please?

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

•Blue Bar Panther Chameleon, Male, 7 1/2 months old. Been in my care for 5 1/2 of those months!
• He is rarely ever handled, maybe once every month or so but I know you cannot handle them a lot when they’re young so I stayed away from that.
• I feed him everyday, normally crickets and wax worms he will refuse to eat horn worms so those are out of the picture. I gut load them with zoo med with D3 and without D3 every other feeding.
• I have an automatic mister that the breeder I got him from told me to set at every hour for 60 seconds to make sure he is always hydrated and yes he drinks water everyday.
• Poop looks normal nothing to concerning, they are all the same color and size (dark grey/ with a bit of yellow)
• He’s been doing this for maybe a month or two now. Doesn’t seem like he’s suffering or anything. Nothing else has happened that worries me.
• I have an XL reptibreeze 24x24x36 it is screen/mesh!
• I use reptisun lighting or zoomed lighting 5.0 uvb I have two different ones I will attract pictures below! Lights go off at 9pm and come on at 9AM.
• Temperature for basking spot is 80° Whole cage is 65° and bottom of cage is 50° and very humid at the bottom cause the dirt is soaked from the water. I got these temps from my new thermometer with humidity and temp levels.
•Humidity is at 70-78% pretty much all day because there is a reptifogger that is on all day everyday I turn it off at around 7-8pm an hour before his lights turn off. Humidity at night is 50-60%
• I am no longer using real plants, his old cage was glass and was a terrarium but he didn’t like the glass cause he didn’t have to many things to climb on so he would stay put in one spot all day. That changed the second he was in a screen cage. My mistake on that.
•The cage is located next to a window that gets full sun for maybe 1-2 hours during the day. I’m in the basement so its coming Through a windowell. I don’t let the sun hit the cage the curtains always block it and there is a vent about 6-7 feet from the cage on the ceiling but doesn’t hit the cage or even get close to it (air wise) and the cage is the highest thing in my room. I’m a little taller than it but nothing else is. Im not usually home or in my room so its not High traffic but on weekends I do hangout with friends and my room gets a little more people than usual but not close to the cage and I always make sure to keep checking on him and he’s never been bothered by other people.

 

[Dawson13]

Do you have an experienced chameleon vet you can take both chams pictured to ASAP (your female looks particularly bad)? They're overdosed on multivitamins and underdosed on calcium. The compact coil UVB bulbs you're using could be the issue, too. You need to get a T5 High Output linear light fixture the length of the enclosure with either a Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 or Arcadia 6% T5HO linear UVB bulb of the matching size. What are their basking temps, and do you fog during the day? Your humidity is high, as well. Could you fill out this form in as much detail as possible, please?

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

I attached pictures of the lighting I was using before. His eyes seemed to bother him a lot more when I used this light and since I have taken it off its been Better. I would say that was about 2 months ago. Should I use this light instead of the light I currently have? The pictures attached is NOT what I have been using

 

[Dawson13]

Welcome to the forum!

You need to get him to a vet ASAP...like now....sorry to say that.

Thank you!!
There is no vet open close to me right now and I have called the only vet that I know that does reptiles and chameleons specifically and they were not able to get me in for a month and a half... can’t wait that long:/

 

[ERKleRose]

Sadly, husbandry needs to wait. Do you have any 24 hr emergency exotic animal hospitals within a few hours of you? They need medical treatment ASAP!

 

[Dawson13]

Do you have an experienced chameleon vet you can take both chams pictured to ASAP (your female looks particularly bad)? They're overdosed on multivitamins and underdosed on calcium. The compact coil UVB bulbs you're using could be the issue, too. You need to get a T5 High Output linear light fixture the length of the enclosure with either a Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 or Arcadia 6% T5HO linear UVB bulb of the matching size. What are their basking temps, and do you fog during the day? Your humidity is high, as well. Could you fill out this form in as much detail as possible, please?

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

I noticed I left out two things! I’m sorry

• I’m located in Denver Colorado
• problem I’m concerned about is he rubs his eyes on branches or with his back legs and he does this thing where it looks like he’s cleaning them and it looks like there’s a big bubble in his eyes only for a split second I could never catch it on camera but after he sorta cleans his eyes they seem better. Just worried about his eyesight and how he sleeps so much during the day

 

[kinyonga]

The photo that starts with the letters FBABF...when was that taken? That's him, right?

 

[Dawson13]

The photo that starts with the letters FBABF...when was that taken? That's him, right?

The photo that starts with FBABF (The picture that he looks pink and like a female in) was taken 2 months ago when it started and when I was using the 18” 5.0 UVB recommended by someone on this thread

 

[ERKleRose]

How far away was his T5 light away from his basking branch?

 

[Dawson13]

I seem to have confused you guys on my situation.... I only have 1 chameleon right now... he is 7 1/2 months and he is a blue bar. These are pictures of what he looks like right now at this very second!

 

[Dawson13]

How far away was his T5 light away from his basking branch?

Honestly when I had that light on it was pretty close to his basking spot. The cage he was in was only 12x12x24 so wasn’t very far

 

[kinyonga]

I wasn't confused about you only having one chameleon....just which photo was the latest one.
I thought the pale photo of him was the latest...and that's why I said ASAP to the vet.
I would still take him to the vet.

 

[Dawson13]

I seem to have confused you guys on my situation.... I only have 1 chameleon right now... he is 7 1/2 months and he is a blue bar. These are pictures of what he looks like right now at this very second!

@ERKleRose THE FIRST PICTURE IS WHAT I WAS TELLING YOU!!!! I caught it on camera of him doing the eye thingy trying to clean it and it looking like a bubble for a split second. I just took those of him

 

[Dawson13]

I wasn't confused about you only having one chameleon....just which photo was the latest one.
I thought the pale photo of him was the latest...and that's why I said ASAP to the vet.
I would still take him to the vet.

I see, my apologies I should’ve specified that I was going to put an old picture in that’s my fault. I’m trying to take him to the vet asap

 

[ERKleRose]

While you need vet treatment first, I can still go over your husbandry. My feedback will be in red.

Blue Bar Panther Chameleon, Male, 7 1/2 months old. Been in my care for 5 1/2 of those months!
• He is rarely ever handled, maybe once every month or so but I know you cannot handle them a lot when they’re young so I stayed away from that.
• I feed him everyday, normally crickets and wax worms he will refuse to eat horn worms so those are out of the picture. I gut load them with zoo med with D3 and without D3 every other feeding. Waxworms should only be fed as treats, not a staple. What size and how many crickets do you feed him a day? Supplements are not gutload. You need to gutload the bugs properly. I've attached both feeder and gutload charts below. For supplements, you need to use calcium without D3 every feeding except once per week, when you'll alternate between a calcium with D3 and a multivitamin without D3 (like Reptivite without D3), so each is given once every two weeks. Granted, that is a normal supplement schedule but not what you need to do. Could you write what your supplement schedule is again, please?
• I have an automatic mister that the breeder I got him from told me to set at every hour for 60 seconds to make sure he is always hydrated and yes he drinks water everyday. He needs to get misted at least two times per day (around lights on and lights off) for a minimum of 2-5+ minutes each time.
• Poop looks normal nothing to concerning, they are all the same color and size (dark grey/ with a bit of yellow)
• He’s been doing this for maybe a month or two now. Doesn’t seem like he’s suffering or anything. Nothing else has happened that worries me. Has he been taken to the vet for this or a fecal check or anything?
• I have an XL reptibreeze 24x24x36 it is screen/mesh!
• I use reptisun lighting or zoomed lighting 5.0 uvb I have two different ones I will attract pictures below! Lights go off at 9pm and come on at 9AM. The T5 HO needs to be 6 inches from the top of his back when he's on his basking branch. How far away is his heat bulb from his basking branch?
• Temperature for basking spot is 80° Whole cage is 65° and bottom of cage is 50° and very humid at the bottom cause the dirt is soaked from the water. I got these temps from my new thermometer with humidity and temp levels. Once you fix his humidity, his basking temp can be closer/at 85*F. Unless you have a bioactive enclosure, there should be nothing in the bottom of the cage, only a bare bottom with a drainage system outside the cage!
•Humidity is at 70-78% pretty much all day because there is a reptifogger that is on all day everyday I turn it off at around 7-8pm an hour before his lights turn off. Humidity at night is 50-60% That is way too high! Daytime humidity should be around 50-65%! And the fogger should only be used during the coldest part of the night! How and how often do you clean the fogger and tubing?
• I am no longer using real plants, his old cage was glass and was a terrarium but he didn’t like the glass cause he didn’t have to many things to climb on so he would stay put in one spot all day. That changed the second he was in a screen cage. My mistake on that.
•The cage is located next to a window that gets full sun for maybe 1-2 hours during the day. I’m in the basement so its coming Through a windowell. I don’t let the sun hit the cage the curtains always block it and there is a vent about 6-7 feet from the cage on the ceiling but doesn’t hit the cage or even get close to it (air wise) and the cage is the highest thing in my room. I’m a little taller than it but nothing else is. Im not usually home or in my room so its not High traffic but on weekends I do hangout with friends and my room gets a little more people than usual but not close to the cage and I always make sure to keep checking on him and he’s never been bothered by other people.

@ERKleRose THE FIRST PICTURE IS WHAT I WAS TELLING YOU!!!! I caught it on camera of him doing the eye thingy trying to clean it and it looking like a bubble for a split second. I just took those of him

That's him trying to clean his eyes

 

[ERKleRose]

Sorry, here's the charts!

 

[kinyonga]

You said...". I gut load them with zoo med with D3 and without D3 every other feeding"...do ou really mean gutload? What is in the supplements in the way if vitamin A?

 

[Dawson13]

Sorry, here's the charts!

Thank you!!