6 week old jackson

[randilouhou]

Alright I still have my baby jackson and he seems to be doing well. So I decided to set him up in a little bit bigger of an enclosure . Still not the large one we have but, bigger than the small tank we were keeping him in. Just wanted to post a few pictures and see if there is anything more I can do or change. This is the only place I can seem to get any real answers on chameleons. Everywhere I go nobody seems to know more than the BASIC of basics. Actually had an incident today at petsmart buying a new uvb light ( went to unscrew the 1st one and it shattered and cut my hand ) where the girl told me she knew about chameleons and knew nothing.. and she was extremely rude!! So I am thankful all of you are here

Also I am now using the reptisun 5.0 ubv 13 watt mini compact fluorescent light. And a small 15 watt regular incandescent light bulb to help add some heat. The dripper and the humidifier are going. How long should I keep the humidifier on for? If I put it on a timer how often and how long each time? I put a jar of food (fruitflies and small crickets) I hope he will see them and eat from there, Otherwise I might have to put him in the smaller tank again to ensure that he is getting food.
You can see him in a couple pic's all the way on the right on the side of the cage.

[/URL][/IMG] Basking in the light. He loves it.
Here are some pic's . Please tell me how I did.

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[kplatvoet]

IMO the best information for baby jacksons is the youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKTbUaOQ0aA -

 

[mattj]

He can't fit through the grating on top? It looks like there's a finer mesh around the base. But is the top an issue?

 

[randilouhou]

Funny you say that. When I put the screening around it I didn't think he would get through the top. haha I was way wrong. He got up there right away. took him down and before I could fix it he was up there again. Problem now fixed.

 

[randilouhou]

Here he is soaking up the rays, Does he look healthy?

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[mattj]

I can't say he's unhealthy. I find it hard to tell with their coloration at that age. Has he grown much since birth? Mine are a few days old and look about the same size.

Is there only one? Was more than that born? Did you lose any? I only ask cause we had 5. And I heard normally clutches are larger. Mine seem to be doing good. I just know they have a strange tendency to take a turn for the worse unexpectedly.

 

[randilouhou]

I know. I have heard the same thing, I swear i fret over this tiny little guy all day. I can stare at him for hours just to make sure he is breathing. No I got him at a pet store who had them unexpectedly and the employees exact words were "he has a better chance of surviving with you than here at the store". And going on to tell me they only check on them 2-3 a day and not knowing if they had been fed yet that day. I knew the basic care for them but not one this young. Doing everything I can, hoping for the best. I have noticed that he has grown very little in the 2 weeks I've had him. How fast do jacksons grow?

 

[mattj]

Your guess is as good as mine regarding growth rate. But good for you trying to do the right thing.

Are you using any supplements? Ive always heard Jackson's don't need as much as a veiled. So I just do it once a week.

 

[randilouhou]

I am feeding the fruitflies a gutloader, I try to dust them but that's pretty hard. He hasn't had a cricket yet. What are you little ones eating?

 

[mattj]

Right now fruit flies. But like I said. Theyre only a few days old and were a surprise so I just grabbed the flies because I knew they were small enough. I do plan on mixing it up a little over the next few weeks.

Today was the first day I dusted them. To make it easier I used a quart sized Chinese soup kind of container. Poured a bunch of flies in there, dusted them and poured them into the tank.

 

[Juliaf3]

Hmmmm I don't know....that cage is awful big for such a little dude. But if he's eating and drinking....and has the proper lighting....your gut loading as well... Sounds pretty good to me. Let me grab this you tube video of a man who's raised Jackson's successfully.

 

[Juliaf3]

IMO the best information for baby jacksons is the youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKTbUaOQ0aA -

Nevermind! This is the video! Watch it!

 

[randilouhou]

haha thanks! Everybody recommends that guy. I tried to set my tank up like he did. He seems to like it. He was wondering all over it today. But I am afraid of losing him in it. If he doesn't eat tomorrow I will put him back in the small tank I have. It's just so small. it could only hold one little fake plant. Would it be wise to put him in the small one with some food a few hours of the day to ensure he eats?

 

[SaintJimmy]

I think that cage is fine

Just add mesh on the top and you will be good. He will grow into it. Don't constantly switch around the enclosure, he might get stressd out.

 

[kplatvoet]

Another thing I did with my baby (similar situation) was to hatch out some of these -false stable flies
http://www.mantisplace.com/
They were small enough for her when she was a month old -and she ate them real well- they would get out of the cage you have her in I think-
I kept mine in a 16 X 16 X 20 screen cage with a cool mist humidifier (crane) that I stuck a tube out of the end to flow into the top- I had various "sunlight" bulbs for basking depending on the temps-in one corner. She did best when it cooled off at night. (50's low 60's) I didn't use any 3D and calcium very lightly once a week at first (I was told that over dusting was what killed most of them and I was scared) (I'm just telling you what I did - I had one who's now going to be a year in a couple of weeks - most likely it wasn't my keeping just luck)
I had a strawberry or a piece of orange that I would put in the cage so that when I put the fruit flies in they would go to it and she could get them easily-
and I dumped a bunch in a couple of times a day (my husband was ready to kill me as they don't stay in the cage real well)

 

[Miss Lily]

Funny you say that. When I put the screening around it I didn't think he would get through the top. haha I was way wrong. He got up there right away. took him down and before I could fix it he was up there again. Problem now fixed.

I had exactly the same with mine - I got him at 7 weeks old and he weighed just 2g!! I spent hours sewing tutu mesh on the outside of a hamster cage I had intended to use, thinking the top would be ok as it was. I hadn't realised exactly how tiny Monty would be when he arrived home. He promptly walked straight out through the top, lmao! I had to put him into an exo terra cage to keep him safe. I have always preferred the linear (tube) UV bulbs placed across the top of the cage. You might also find that covering one or two of the sides in plastic will help keep humidity up for him/her.

 

[Lovereps]

Sorry I hadn't seen your post sooner.
If you're a caring person, it is a bit nerve-wracking to raise baby chams, especially Jackson's.
In the picture your cham looks fine.
I believe that keeping the environment humid enough but not constantly wet, plus gentle mistings to be crucial--and I see that you have the humidity covered in your setup.
An electronic humidity gauge makes for the best monitoring of humidity levels for my chams, but I remove the gauges before each misting, so they don't get ruined.
My baby Jackson's xanths never like the Reptifogger and don't seem to love being sprayed directly but they do seem to need some very fine, gentle, direct spraying in order to recognize their thirst and drink enough.

Flightless fruit flies are the mainstay at first, then I add small Phoenix Worms because of their high calcium content to their diets and then very small, properly fed crickets and some tiny superworms.

In my home, the air tends to be quite dry--too dry for Jackson's--- so despite the plants, I cover the 4 sides of the screen cages with clear plastic sheeting---with open areas near the bottom on 3 sides plus open areas at both the bottom and top of the front side of the cage in order to ensure ventilation---neither the topscreen nor bottom screen is covered by plastic.
What works for me may or may not work for others--but it may help someone out there who is plagued by low humidity woes despite frequent misting and abundant plantlife.