Please help :( Pedro is sick!

[symphonica]

Because the typical pet store employee knows NOTHING about chameleon care! Most of them assume they need the same setup as a terrestrial desert lizard. Completely wrong, and that's the main reason new keepers end up finding this forum. Heat at night not only keeps him awake, but adds to the dry cage problem as well.

Exactly. It's very difficult to find a combination of knowledgeable + caring when their motivation is money and profit. Their only job is to keep them alive until they get money for them. Once they've been turned into money, they don't give a hoot what ends up happening to them. This is why it's important to purchase from a reputable breeder who is knowledgeable and cares about the chams as living animals, not as money. Because pet stores don't properly care for them, you run the high risk of getting one that's already sick to begin with. And they'll feed you bull doodoo if it means getting you to spend more money with them.

 

[mikey32235]

wow! thanks for all the info! he seems to be doing better today, both his eyes are fully open, I'm going to adjust the mister to increase the timing and how long it mists for. also i will gut load my crickets better. the humidity now is about 75.

 

[symphonica]

Glad to hear he's making improvement and that you are also making the effort to improve his care. They need you.

 

[mikey32235]

fosure I'm trying, this morning both his eyes are open, he can see all the crickets but he didn't do anything yet.

 

[zsazsa85]

MelissaB pointed out the pink (probably from the red light) bumb on your cham's head! What is that?

 

[camimom]

I think he has an abcess forming on his face.

The slight bump, which can be seen in sevearl of the photos, appears to be the beginning of one.

You will require a vet to fix this, as it is not something that can be cared for at home.

 

[mikey32235]

what is that? acbess?

 

[Carlton]

what is that? acbess?

An abscess forms when there's an infection. It is sort of like a large pimple, but the material inside isn't liquid as it would be in a mammal. The infected material in a reptile is more like cheese. The abscess could have formed from a blocked or infected sinus. It will need to be opened up, cleaned out, and the cham put on a course of antibiotics to get rid of the infection.

 

[mikey32235]

i misted him last night for about 30 minutes, then i had to leave for a job. when icame home he was sleeping and all the lights were off. This morning both eyes were open and he was under the heat lamp. eyes still looked a tad sunken so i will mist him again when I'm home. probably for the next couple of days because it seems like it is helping him. as for the eating… i had to hand feed him. crickets are gut loaded, i had to open his mouth a bit and put the cricket in there. This was all before the 30 minute mist. i hope he gets better

also i think i need to change the UVB bulb, what level of uvb do i need to get?

 

[symphonica]

It depends on what you're using for a fixture, but the best would be a ReptiSun 5.0 T8 or T5HO, which are the tubes, not the coils. ZooMed ReptiSun is better that the Exo Terra ReptiGlo.

 

[mikey32235]

well right now i have a bulb fixture, its a coil bulb. what should i get?

 

[MelissaB]

If you're using the coil type bulb, I'd go with the ZooMed Reptisun 5.0 . I've used them before without any issues.

 

[mikey32235]

just picked one up, hopefully this makes a difference over time with his colour and eyes. he seems a little bit 'less green' than normal to be honest, I've had him for about 10 months, I've never changed the UVB bulb i know its bad but to be honest they never told me that i had to change it until i did some readings here!

 

[symphonica]

Yeah, every 6 months for the generic ones. The top of the line ones like Arcadia can go a year.

 

[mikey32235]

okay so im SO CONFUSED!!!
i changed his UVB bulb, been giving him showers for 30 minutes (except the past two days). this morning both eyes are open. he's moving around ALOT…
but still:

1. hes not eating
2. he 'yawns' ALOT
3. sometimes he will leave his mouth open
4. when he goes to the bathroom his poop is basically water and white stuff.

what the F*CK is going on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[MelissaB]

The white is his pee, it's called urates. White is good, means he's hydrated. The yawning a lot could be caused by a respiratory infection. I think you should take him to the vet so he can get looked at, and possibly get antibiotics.

 

[mikey32235]

finally some good news, theres no vet near me that will look at reptiles, is there anyone here online that has advice on what i should do? is there anything i can get online to feed him to help?

 

[MelissaB]

I have no experience with trying to treat a respiratory infection without antibiotics. Quick question, how hot is it in your cage? They will open their mouth a lot if they're hot, to try to regulate their temp. When his mouth is open, are there any bubbles, or excessive saliva? Any noises, clicking, gurgling?

Also, white urates are good, but the watery isn't so good. Could be diarrhea or just from not eating.

 

[CarlC]

Where are you located? Someone will chime in with a vet that might be able to help. Even a vet that doesn't have experience with chameleons can make calls to ones that are and get their advice.

Carl

 

[mikey32235]

trust me I've called all the vets around and they told me the closest one is kingston, 3 hours away from me