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Chameleonfan1

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Hello, I am a new chameleon owner, I have been one for 3 days. I have been feeding him 1 mealworm and 3,4, or 5 crickets a day with a vitamin supplement. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on what will make him "Fatten" up a little bit. He is very skinny so much that when he turns, you can see his entire ribcage.(not entirely my fault, I got it from a guy on craigslist who it didn't seem was taking proper care of him. He is a 7 month old male veiled chameleon with an attitude.
Im open to suggestions, Thanks!
 
hey

Hey welcome! You might want to offer him other insects like dubias or butter worms he will gain weight eventually don't make him fat though. Let me know if you need help with anything:D
 
Thanks

Hey ya I'll try some of those, thanks though I didn't mean fat but just gain some weight so he doesn't look like a skeleton!
 
Chameleonfan1 said:
Hello, I am a new chameleon owner, I have been one for 3 days. I have been feeding him 1 mealworm and 3,4, or 5 crickets a day with a vitamin supplement. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on what will make him "Fatten" up a little bit. He is very skinny so much that when he turns, you can see his entire ribcage.(not entirely my fault, I got it from a guy on craigslist who it didn't seem was taking proper care of him. He is a 7 month old male veiled chameleon with an attitude.
Im open to suggestions, Thanks!
Click to expand...

What supplement are you using? You will need three. And can you tell us what your housing your chameleon in and what lighting you are using for UVB and basking? What are you temps and humidity? It would be helpful for us to see a picture of him also if you can post one.
 
Welcome to the forums!

Mealworms are actually not a very good feeder. They don't have much in the way of nutrients and they're high in fat and chitin, which could lead to impactions. Their larger relatives superworms are better, but shouldn't be a staple. Crickets are the usual staple but you can try different kinds of worms as well. Silkworms, butterworms, and hornworms can be ordered online and are great feeders! With crickets, roaches and superworms gutloading is the key to good nutrition! You have to work through the food chain to give the bugs the nutrients your cham needs since it won't be getting them directly from plants. This link has great nutritional info on fruits and veggies to use for gutloading. Aim for veggies higher in calcium than phosphorus and avoid those high in oxalates or goitrogens.

Since you just got him it would be a really good idea to fill out this form so we can make sure you're on the right track with him. It's difficult to start off with everything right so this will help us help you find any improvements that need to be made! I too got a few of mine from people off craigslist and had to change a lot in their husbandry.

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about. (Which may not be anything at this point)
 
My Chameleon Information

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon: It is a Veiled Chameleon,Male, around 7 months, had him for 3 days total
Handling: I haven't handled him yet, just giving him some space
Feeding:I feed him mainly crickets and a mealworm a day
Supplements:Rep-Cal Calcium with VIT.D3 I dust 2/3 of all the crickets I give him
Watering:I spray his cage 2 times a day with a waterbottle and I bought a ReptiFogger which continuoulsly sprays all day.
Fecal Description: It "does his business" about two times a day and there is mainly brown with 1/3 of it looking like a mealworm yellow but not runny
History:Gets very nervous when many people are watching, loves crickets

Cage Info:
Cage Type:Exo Terra mainly glass cage with screen top
Lighting:I use exo terra a white light and two reddish lights in the back
Temperature: Ranges from 80 degrees to 76 to 84 (estimates). Lowest overnight temp, 76. I measure these with a thermometer
Humidity: 40% I use the ReptiFogger to raise humidity, I measure this with a hygrometer
Plants: no live plants:(
Placement:In my bedroom no near any fans or vents, near a window and is on a table about 2 ft off the ground
Location: MO in the Midwest
 
Picture

I hope this picture works let me know if not
 

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My sister is in springfield and has had reptiles for years, I will ask her tomorrow if she knows of one for you.
 
I'm pretty new to chams myself and by no means a expert but I do have some input and a couple of question.

First off on the fecal. The end that you said was yellow should be white, that is the urate (spelling?) Which is more or less reptile pee. From what I've read yellow/ orange is a indication of dehydration. You might try misting more and/or running a dripper.

Next on your lighting you were not very clear on what type of lighting you have, do you have a uvb light? Also you may want to get a more accurate way to measure temps, it's not something you really want to just be guessing on.

Lastly most recommend calcium WITH OUT d3 for most feedings, calcium WITH D3 about twice a month and herptivite again about twice a month and well gut loaded feeders. (look up gut loading if you haven't yet)

If I were you I'd go ahead a look into a vet to, I just had a fecal and a check up done on mine even tho he seemed health to me (just to be safe)
 
Superworms seem to be the perfect mix of nutrition and for bulking up your cham... just keep in mind that your cham will be healthier if he grows more gradually.

Edit: don't forget to properly gutload them -- like you would crickets/roaches
 
any advice

hi am staring up my chameleon viv, and want to know what i need to buy (apart from the viv) and any tips for a start up chameleon owner:)
 
There are plenty of guides, caresheets and blogs on this site and the rest of the net. It would be a waste of time trying to write it all in this thread, especially as this is another members attempt at getting help.

Do a search on here and read plenty, lots of things will be repeated, some will be contradicted, but the more you read the more you will understand. Dont be afraid to ask specific questions but dont rely on other people to provide all the knowledge you are asking for directly. Owning a chameleon is going to be a time consuming (but worthwhile) experience and researching its needs is just one aspect of that.

Best of luck and welcome.
 
Hi and welcome to the forums. First let me tell you that chams are very expensive and require special care but I commend you for doing your research before buying! The supplies you will need: all screen enclosure (size varies depending on cham), reptisun 5.0 uvb tube and fixture , household bulb for basking spot and fixture, digital thermometer/hygrometer (infrared laser temp gun), dripper, spray bottle or misting system, plants (search for safe plant list), river rocks or screen to cover soil,branches/vines (biovine), reptical without d3, reptical with d3, herptivite, feeder insects and gutload.
 
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