Should I be concerned?

[arkist]

Ok, I may just be paraniod but today I noticed a few things that have me worried about Socrates, my jackson chameleon.

First he has been displaying some weird colors. Where he would normaly display bright green, teal, and yellows; he is now displaying green, black, and white. The black and white are not in full saturation, but are alternating in stripes down his body.

Second, and this is where I think I might just be paraniod. But he has small black "spots" at the courner of his lips, at the back of his jaw where his lips come together. Not really spots just, just kind of a dark area. I can't tell if its just the folds of his mouth comming together or if it is early signs of mouth rot

I really wish I had some pictures but my digital camera is being retarted and every single picture is comming out fuzzy. I'm going to continue trying though.

Any thoughts?

 

[arkist]

Ok, these pictures are utter crap. The coloaring is much darker then what is displayed.

Here you can kind of see the dark corner of his mouth, his funky white/black coloring, and his yellow knees which are also a concern to me.

 

[Trace]

You did promise some pics of Socrates on another thread... I guess I'll have to be satisfied with some close up shots for now.

The black in the corner of his mouth looks like normal pigmentation to me. If you look closely at each individual scale, they aren't all a uniform green. Some have a darker spot/area (normal) that makes that entire area appear darker. Notice, he has the same dark areas on his arms and shoulders. Obviously if that area gets darker and well defined (ie: like a bruise) a trip to the vet is warranted.

The lighter areas on the elbows and knees may be the start of a burn?!?! Did those just come up recently?

Cheers,
t

 

[arkist]

You did promise some pics of Socrates on another thread... I guess I'll have to be satisfied with some close up shots for now.

The black in the corner of his mouth looks like normal pigmentation to me. If you look closely at each individual scale, they aren't all a uniform green. Some have a darker spot/area (normal) that makes that entire area appear darker. Notice, he has the same dark areas on his arms and shoulders. Obviously if that area gets darker and well defined (ie: like a bruise) a trip to the vet is warranted.

The lighter areas on the elbows and knees may be the start of a burn?!?! Did those just come up recently?

Cheers,
t

I know I did, and I was really looking forward to introducing him with some nice pics just as soon as he got that shed off his head. But I was really concerned about his health and that was much more important to me. I will still introduce him with some nice pics when he finishes sheding.

Your absolutly right about the dark around his mouth, I had not even considered comparing the scales the rest of those on his body.

He has had the yellow joints since day one. It has mostly been on his knees; sometimes green, sometimes yellow, and I swear they were brown this morning for a little while - course I could just be paraniod, sometimes I don't know if something I notice is something to be concerned about or just me exaderationg simptions.

What do burns on a chameleon look like. He has had those since day one so I wouldn't suspect them to be burns but I would like to know what burns look like so that I know what to look for just in case.

 

[AFH]

I know Trace mentioned possible burns on the knees and elbows (and she knows a hell of a lot more than me about these things) but I really don't see an issue. For one, they're pretty uniform, ie pretty equal on all joints that I can see. I have a veiled that had a burn, and it was darker and looked, well, like a burn (black). When my male panther was growing up, his knees and elbows were generally lighter and I monitored that closely, but as he grew, they became more like the rest of his body and nothing ever came of it.

I don't have much experience with Jackson's so this is really just my 2 cents. Just watch them and make sure there's no real intimate access to a bulb where he could get a burn.

 

[Trace]

Sorry Arkist, I have been a little busy the last few days to follow up here.

I'll echo what Alex (AFH) has said too. His knees may just be normal colouration. Take a look at the inside of his feet - it's the same colour. When I have seen the start of burns on lizards or chameleons, it usually starts as a white or blanched area, and knowing your initial issue with your basking light temperature possible burns was something that crossed my mind. I'm probably wrong. It's happened before!

I hope it's nothing. Beyond Socrates not eating today... how is he looking?

Cheers,
t

 

[AFH]

I'm probably wrong. It's happened before!

Say it isn't so, Captain Awesome!