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Too much UV for Jackson's Chameleon?
So yesterday I just took in a Jackson's chameleon from our local rescue. Here's the background I got:
Lizard is approx 2 yrs old, and appears to be in reasonably fair health. Housed in (and comes with) 16"x16"x30"tall screened mesh enclosure. Compact florescent UV light and infrared basking light. Owners moving away and had to rehome.
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So I took "Ziggy" home and immediately noticed he will not (or cannot) open his eyes. I already don't care for CFBs so I removed that light from his enclosure. I looked at today and saw that it was a 10.0 Reptisun (model series rated for "desert" species, not a jungle/forest species like a Jackson's cham). I also noticed his limbs are a little on the bony side, and saw that the previous owners have been feeding him pinhead crickets (he's an adult and could easily eat med-adult crickets).
I'm assuming that the previous owners left the UV light on most of the day (8-10 hrs), which is the leading cause of the chameleon's blindness, but mind you, this is only speculation on my part. My longterm goal is to: replace the bulb with one of lower rating and better quality (possibly a standard tube bulb), reduce the photoperiod, and occasionally take him outside for natural sunshine. I've already replaced the infrared bulb with a CHE. He is moving around a bit so that is good sign, but I'm still not seeing any eye opening. I have seen him rubbing his eyes a couple times. Mind you, I have not had that bright UV light on him since yesterday evening.
My dilemma is in the meantime, he cannot see, therefore, he cannot eat on his own. I do not want to stress him out unnecessarily, and I'm leery of what help taking him to a vet would do. I have some of that ZooMed Turtle Eye Rinse stuff, not sure if that would help. I'm also hesitant to try and force-feed him, because I know that is stressful on any reptile, and a chameleon especially, but I want him to not go too long without eating either, and I'm not sure when his last meal was.
Any thoughts?
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