Senegal Rescue/Weird orange growths

[HHLL38]

My girlfriend works at the local pet store and they sell WC Senegals.

A shipment came in today with this poor bastard on board. The manager said we could take it home, seeing as I'm the only individual in the area who has any idea how to take care of chameleons.

Any ideas as to what those orange growths are?

Also, anyone know of any Herpetologist in/near upstate NY?

I've called and asked all of the local major animal care centers and no one seems to know of anyone anywhere.

So far i've gotten it to drink and it is not at all people shy. Getting it a legitimate enclosure tomorrow, but really am at a loss as to what to do about these weird growths.

 

[HHLL38]

Here is another angle, the growths are fairly hard and stick out at least an inch.

 

[Lovereps]

Sorry but I haven't a clue about the orange growths and could only guess that they are viral, parasitic or fungal in origin--and those may all be wrong.
Maybe one of the forum members who are vets, Ferretinmyshoes or Dr O, or members who have seen this before will see your post and respond.

As for vets, maybe these links will help or someone in your area knows of a good vet.
Reptile clubs are a good and often overlooked resource.
Here is the ARAV list on NY vets:
http://www.arav.org/find-a-vet/#NewYork

Additional vet locating resources:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/veterinarian-resources-67/

Please let us know what they turn out to be.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

Sorry but I haven't a clue about the orange growths and could only guess that they are viral, parasitic or fungal in origin--and those may all be wrong.

Those are great differentials! Parasites under the skin are not uncommon in fresh imports, and they can cause a local inflammatory reaction to create growths. Fungal or bacterial infections/granulomas are both definitely possible. Viral is possible, though less likely imo. Something like cancer cannot be ruled out though. Without knowing what they are I don't know how they will affect the cham or potentially how contagious they are so make sure you practice extremely good quarantine practices to prevent spread to your other chams if you have them! A good reptile vet is the next step to figuring out what they are.

 

[HHLL38]

Looks like the nearest place listed on ARAV is Rochester, which is two hours one way.

They also don't list that they've got an actual Herpetologist, is it some kind of dying profession or something? Can't seem to find one anywhere.

As of tonight, it's still alive and I got it to drink pretty heavily.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

Not a dying profession, a baby one! There used to be no reptile vets so as the years go on more vets are interested in reptiles and more comfortable and qualified in treating them. It's a slow growth though, so in time there will be more reptile vets in more locations. Some vets in your area may not be listed on the website (they have to be paying members to appear there) so I would call around tomorrow to vets that see exotics and see if they have a vet comfortable with reptiles, and even better chameleons specifically.

 

[HHLL38]

Still alive this morning and seemingly doing well. Signs of sufficient hydration and a significant activity level increase.

Last night I went out and got it a small Zoo Med terrarium that is size appropriate now, although it is glass and that's only because my LPS doesn't carry screen cages regularly. He's also got the ReptiFogger, which i've become quite impressed with and it's keeping the humidity in the %60-70. Will be getting another next week for my Jackson's after watching JDog's video. Also got an automatic mister, but seeing as there's water everywhere it hardly seems necessary.

If i'm not mistaken the growths appear to have shrunk in size overnight. Perhaps my mind is playing tricks on me, but the diameter at least has appeared to go down; which would suggest fungal or bacterial. Will be making calls to places slightly farther away about the herpetologist situation. It's a shame I don't want to go back to college, Herpetologist is starting to seem like an alright career choice.

 

[Lovereps]

I'm glad to see that Ferretinmyshoes saw your post and has replied.
It's always nice when a forum member vet takes some time out of their busy schedule to answer online questions.
Looking online at the Reptile Channel website, I see there is a veterinary practice about 35 minutes from you in Voorheesville which treats exotics. 1 vet (Dr Michael McCarthy) is a member of ARAV and another (Dr Kristen Hellreich) is said to have worked with exotics experts in veterinary college.
Maybe they're worth a look or further googling.
http://www.thevillageanimalclinic.com/index.html

There may be others on this list who are good candidates
http://www.reptilechannel.com/reptile-health/vet-listing.aspx

The second link in the first post has some other good places to look.

The ZooMed terrarium is probably easier to clean and sterilize.
Glad that you're kind enough to have taken on helping this critter.


Hope this helps.

 

[HHLL38]

Forgot to mention it earlier, I've got an appt. with the vet mentioned above at 11.

Very excited to get a better idea of what's going on with this little guy!

Thanks so much to everyone, don't know what I'd do without the forums.

Will post an update post-visit tomorrow.

 

[ReptileLove18]

been following this thread and im glad to hear that you got an appointment!! definitely let us know how it goes

 

[dom1959]

good job by you!
thanks for helping this creature when it needed it!
also some props to the store for recognizing u could help!
please keep us updated & we love pics!

 

[Rush2112]

Those are great differentials! Parasites under the skin are not uncommon in fresh imports, and they can cause a local inflammatory reaction to create growths. Fungal or bacterial infections/granulomas are both definitely possible. Viral is possible, though less likely imo. Something like cancer cannot be ruled out though. Without knowing what they are I don't know how they will affect the cham or potentially how contagious they are so make sure you practice extremely good quarantine practices to prevent spread to your other chams if you have them! A good reptile vet is the next step to figuring out what they are.

I've nothing to add to this but i HAVE to say. I am so impressed with the knowledge and advice from experience folks on this forum freely share. Great stuff and I hope your cham gets healthy soon.

 

[HHLL38]

Alright, so after a vet visit and a biopsy I have my unfortunately unsurprising answer.

What are those weird growths?

*shrug* Possible bacterial infection.

The vet was knowledgeable, punctual and helpful. He did a biopsy on one of the little legions and the results were less than helpful. He said a majority of the microbes he found were normal skin flora, however there one or two things a little out of place, but nothing that would suggest or cause these weird growths. His theory is that the cham had some cuts and sores as most WC critters do and due to poor environment and nutrition those sores became infected.

I have a topical antibiotic, Thermazene that I am to apply directly to the sores daily for two weeks.

However, upon further inspection of the little guy, he does have quite a swollen tongue. Have yet to get him to eat although he did open his mouth, which is a good sign.

He has really grown on me in the last 24 hours. He's got great personality for such a hurt little guy and I really hope he makes it out okay.

The vet thinks that with the topical antibiotic and proper husbandry he'll be on the road to recovery! Also, fairly certain it's a he.

 

[dom1959]

well, the news seems ok, i wish you all the luck in the world with him!
will u be keeping him?

 

[HHLL38]

I will most definitely be keeping him, in fact, as long as he gets better and his health checks out, I might try breeding him.

Give that local pet store a reason not to buy WC's anymore.

It's something I've wanted to do since I saw/heard about the terrible condition and environmental impact wild catching does.

 

[ReptileLove18]

i hope the antibiotic helps and the tongue swelling goes down!!
they really do steal your hearts very quickly im glad he made his way into your hands to get the helps he needs!

 

[ReptileLove18]

I will most definitely be keeping him, in fact, as long as he gets better and his health checks out, I might try breeding him.

Give that local pet store a reason not to buy WC's anymore.

It's something I've wanted to do since I saw/heard about the terrible condition and environmental impact wild catching does.

im so glad to hear hes got a permanet home with you!!!! yay!! keep us updated on how hes doing he is a handsome little devil, even with his little sores

 

[deadhd5]

Great work with this little guy; it warms my heart to know that he is getting the best chance possible for a happy life. Please keep us updated, as this brave little fella will be in my thoughts

 

[HHLL38]

Okay, quick update.

First and foremost, three of the weird growths have fallen off with the Thermazene treatment. The growths aren't leaving any open wounds or sores behind, but his skin is a strange sort of yellow where they were. I am taking this as firmly good news.

However, in my care I have not seem him eat at all. I've tried crickets, waxworms and mealworms and have gotten little response. The vet did mention that his tongue was quite swollen when he examined him and after watching him doing some weird tongue moving and mouth opening behaviors I suspect that his tongue does not work. Growing worried that he would starve I resorted to making bug juice and trying to manually feed. I used Pedialyte, crickets, waxworms, water, calcium with D3 and reptivite without D3. At first he was not at all interested in working with me, but after catching him off guard and getting some into his mouth, I was in business. Got him to eat quite a bit of it and immediately afterwards watched him attempt to bask on my hand in non-existent light.

So, in short, the original problem seems to be improving, but we're on to a new and more dangerous problem. I will be attempting to spoon-feed again tomorrow when I get home from work and the first attempt really felt and seemed like a success.

Really starting to think this guy might have a shot.

 

[ReptileLove18]

im glad to hear the growths have really improved! great news!
thats concerning about his tongue, do you have another vet appointment set up for a check up? maybe something else can be found out by the vet. its good you got him to eat some bug juice, that will keep him going till something can be found out! there is a lot of cham owers that have had to hand feed their chams andhd healthy and happy chams! keep us updated on how this goes!!!