Any recommendations to make my Cham happier...

[no_dairy_jerry]

Hi Everyone,

I am hoping for some tips on how to make my chameleon's life better. I have him in the garage because he is not allowed in the house. The main things I want to work on are heat, comfort, and taming. I have a humidifier that's on a timer and goes off about 5 times a day. The enclosure has glass doors and I have heard that mesh wire is better but I am concerned about the cage getting too cold and his humidity levels going down. It's getting colder here in the winter being in Nor California so I need a good heating solution to keep him warm at night so I don't need to leave his light on. Finally, I am wondering if anyone has tips for taming him. I have given him his space for about 3 months and only help him 3 times being very cautious each time and not pulling him out. I have tried getting him used to me by hand-feeding but even when I have a cricked he doesn't want to come near me. Is there any treats that might spark his interest to come out and say Hi. Thanks in advance for any tips of products you could recommend making his life happier.

Here is a video of his enclosure (and the pictures are below)
https://share.icloud.com/photos/0uyN-zfeXqzQgal0NtPA4IcHA

 

[Pearl Fields]

ok so A: turn off the humidifier!!! DO NOT use that during the day anymore. Otherwise you are increasing the risk of an RI. which you dont want to have to deal with. i assure you that a veiled chameleon will be completely fine with the humidity going literally to 20% in the day. night is different but people can talk about that later. i would highly recommend that you fill out this form in detail so everyone can reveiw your husbandry and your chameleon can be happier.
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.

 

[no_dairy_jerry]

Thank you so much for the advice and for recommending the form. What a great way to organize the information! I can turn off the humidifier during the day but since I am at work all day I have to find an automated solution to keep the humidity levels where needed. Like I said in the video link above, I have wifi enabled smart outlets so I can have a mister or whatever else turn on and off through the day. Timing/misting schedule and preferred mister product would be very appreciated.

Here is all her info, Thank you all so much. I look forward to growing in this community.



Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Female Veiled Chameleon and I have had her for 2 full months and she was fairly small, maybe 3'' (not including tail)
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• I have only handled her 3 times to deep clean/rearrange her enclosure. I would like to spend more time with her as she seems to be scared of me or maybe just cautious. If I could find a way to reward her when she comes out so it's a happy experience, that would be ideal.
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• I have been giving her 8 crickets/day and gut loading the crickets with different leafy greens.
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• I dust the crickets twice a week with "Repashy Superfoods" brand powder calcium and Lugarti brand for vitamin A and D (there's calcium in there as well)
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• I have a fountain that runs during the day. I have seen her drinking once. I have been trying to give her space though so I am not constantly watching her.
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

• I have not tested her droppings but they range from darker droppings to some with white patches in it (maybe extra calcium?) The consistency is firm with the ends being softer.
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
• I put hornworms in her cage a month ago and she ate them. I thought they might be a treat for her.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• It was a hutch and I converted it to a cage. It's wood with two glass doors. She doesn't seem to be scared of her reflection as she spends a lot of time on a branch near the front of the cage. The cage is 39'' by 29''
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• I have a UVB light that runs the width of the cage and I have a lamp with a LUCKY HERP 75W bulb. I used to run both during the day and off at night, but since it's been cold recently I have both running during the day and the heat lamp on at night.
• 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?
• I have a thermometer and hygrometer and I try to keep it in the 40-70 range for humidity and make sure the temp didn't go above 80 during our abnormally hot fall this year.
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? No live plants. They are all fake and more for cover and climbing
• 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? It is in my garage. No fans or vents blowing on her. Its a pretty low traffic area as we only go in there to check on her and do daily things in the garage. The height of the cage is about 7 ft.
• Location - Where are you geographically located?
• Northern California.

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
Current Problem:
I want her to have the most comfortable environment. It is winter and with the cold weather I want her to be warm at night but I am worried about leaving her heat bulb on and her not getting ample rest at night. I also want her to feel more comfortable around me so any tips about that are helpful too. I've tried doing hand-feedings but she isn't interested in me at all even when I have food. I am wondering if there are any extra special treats that I could use to really get her attention. Lastly, I have heard glass is bad, but at the same time, I don't know if her cage will stay warm enough in the garage at night if I just had mesh wire on the doors to the cage. I was hoping for a recommendation for a pet-friendly space heater solution so I could turn her heat bulb out at night and possibly swap her glass doors for mesh wire doors (if that is what you think would be best).

I am all ears and would love your input on how to make her environment better and make her happy. She is beautiful and I love watching her in her enclosure but I just feel like she is scared/unhappy/annoyed all the time. I know that is how they always seem but I want her to thrive.

 

[Kronos]

One thing I would say, is you need a dripper instead of a waterfall, chams don’t usually drink from those, they like to drink from water droplets on plants/vines. But I’m not positive because we have a panther. It might be different with a veiled. A ceramic heater in your garage would be good to help keep her warm. As for supplements, I think everyone has a different opinion and as I said, we have a panther, not sure if it’s the same. But most people on here suggest calcium without D3 everyday, calcium with D3 & a multivitamin 2 times a month. I personally use Repashy calcium plus daily-it’s what my breeder uses, so I stuck with what they do. Since they’ve been doing it for 38 years.

 

[Beman]

So there are multiple things I am seeing that need to be corrected.... I want to add that as long as temps are not significantly lower then 50 degrees at night then the cham is fine. Please post pics of your supplements. I am not able to go through your form now. But since you have a female I am going to tag two members that can help you. @MissSkittles @AmandaS would either of you be able to go through everything with the OP?

 

[MissSkittles]

Sure. Give me a few and I’ll have feedback.

 

[MissSkittles]

Putting my feedback in red. Please do keep in mind that my intent is to help and not attack as I may be blunt.
Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Female Veiled Chameleon and I have had her for 2 full months and she was fairly small, maybe 3'' (not including tail) Very hard to figure out her age, but I’m going to guess maybe about 5 or 6 months old.
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• I have only handled her 3 times to deep clean/rearrange her enclosure. I would like to spend more time with her as she seems to be scared of me or maybe just cautious. If I could find a way to reward her when she comes out so it's a happy experience, that would be ideal. It’s a matter of using food to build her trust. It takes much time and even more patience and even then, there are no guarantees. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/building-trust-with-your-chameleon.2396/
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• I have been giving her 8 crickets/day and gut loading the crickets with different leafy greens. You’ll be needing to cut back on feeding. I would say cut her back to about 5 once daily in the morning for now.
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• I dust the crickets twice a week with "Repashy Superfoods" brand powder calcium and Lugarti brand for vitamin A and D (there's calcium in there as well) Repashy makes a few different calcium’s. Which one specifically are you using? I’m not at all familiar with Lugarti...will have to look it up. Do I understand correctly that you are dusting with both twice weekly? You should be using calcium without D3 at every feeding and depending on your multivitamin and D3, those would be one feeding every other week. Vitamin A & D build up in the body.
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• I have a fountain that runs during the day. I have seen her drinking once. I have been trying to give her space though so I am not constantly watching her. Please remove the fountain. Several reasons why - chams don’t drink from fountains or bowls, they become bacterial breeding grounds no matter how clean you keep it and it can effect your humidity. Many chams are secretive about drinking, so if you’ve seen her drink once, you’re ahead of many of us.
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• I have not tested her droppings but they range from darker droppings to some with white patches in it (maybe extra calcium?) The consistency is firm with the ends being softer. The white is the urine, called urate. White means well hydrated. It’s ok if it has a little yellow or even a touch of orange. All orange means dehydration.
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
• I put hornworms in her cage a month ago and she ate them. I thought they might be a treat for her. Yes, they are a treat. Also great for hydrating as they’re essentially bags of water.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• It was a hutch and I converted it to a cage. It's wood with two glass doors. She doesn't seem to be scared of her reflection as she spends a lot of time on a branch near the front of the cage. The cage is 39'' by 29'' In your video, you have a part of it blocked off. ??? Also, for better circulation you may want to remove the glass and add screen. Stagnant air is not a good thing. Also, you have the top solid which means even more limited air flow. The hutch is great, but you need to cut out the top and cover it with aluminum window screening (available at any hardware store). High humidity + heat + poor ventilation is a recipe for a guaranteed respiratory infection.
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• I have a UVB light that runs the width of the cage and I have a lamp with a LUCKY HERP 75W bulb. I used to run both during the day and off at night, but since it's been cold recently I have both running during the day and the heat lamp on at night. Once you’ve screened over the top, your lights need to go on top of the screen. With both inside you are risking burns and possibly too much uvb. What type is your uvb fixture and what is the strength of the uvb bulb? These will determine best distance for placement of basking area.
• 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?
• I have a thermometer and hygrometer and I try to keep it in the 40-70 range for humidity and make sure the temp didn't go above 80 during our abnormally hot fall this year. Humidity is a bit too high. It needs to be between 30-50% during the day. At night is when you can use your humidifier and raise the humidity 70-100%. Temp of 80 during the day at basking area is perfect! At night, it’s ok and actually beneficial to have the temps drop. Veileds can handle temp drops to the 60’s at night.
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? No live plants. They are all fake and more for cover and climbing Veileds eat their plants. They have been known to eat fake leaves and get impacted, which can be fatal. Start getting some live plants...pothos is awesome and doesn’t need any additional lighting. Here’s a list for safe plants. https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/
• 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? It is in my garage. No fans or vents blowing on her. Its a pretty low traffic area as we only go in there to check on her and do daily things in the garage. The height of the cage is about 7 ft. Height is great! They feel safest when looking down at their world. You do need to add many more branches and vines for her to travel on. They live in trees so you need to recreate that environment for her. I’m curious, why the garage and not inside the house?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?
• Northern California.

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
Current Problem:
I want her to have the most comfortable environment. It is winter and with the cold weather I want her to be warm at night but I am worried about leaving her heat bulb on and her not getting ample rest at night. No lights on at night. If your temps at night are getting below 50 in the garage, you can use a ceramic heat emitter bulb. Just make sure it still allows for a decent cooling at night. I also want her to feel more comfortable around me so any tips about that are helpful too. I've tried doing hand-feedings but she isn't interested in me at all even when I have food. I am wondering if there are any extra special treats that I could use to really get her attention. I like silkworms for hand feeding and building trust. Not only are they a good staple feeder, but they don’t bite, don’t stick like glue to anything (like hornworms do) and move slowly enough to hold them in my hand with minimal movement. To build my chams trust in me, I got one of these https://www.amazon.com/HERCOCCI-Mec...+Feast&rnid=2528832011&s=pet-supplies&sr=1-20 which prevents feeders from escaping so easily and I held it out with their buggies in it at each and every feeding. Lastly, I have heard glass is bad, but at the same time, I don't know if her cage will stay warm enough in the garage at night if I just had mesh wire on the doors to the cage. I was hoping for a recommendation for a pet-friendly space heater solution so I could turn her heat bulb out at night and possibly swap her glass doors for mesh wire doors (if that is what you think would be best). She needs the ventilation.

I am all ears and would love your input on how to make her environment better and make her happy. She is beautiful and I love watching her in her enclosure but I just feel like she is scared/unhappy/annoyed all the time. I know that is how they always seem but I want her to thrive.Lol...veileds are notorious for their sassy attitudes. Making the upgrades and improvements I’ve suggested will only have a positive impact on her life and happiness. This is a great site for learning everything you could want about chameleons. https://chameleonacademy.com/veiled-chameleon-care/ Do make sure to check out the podcasts on the home page...they are awesome! Neptune the chameleon on YouTube is another great resource for learning about husbandry and other things.

 

[MissSkittles]

Now let me talk about eggs. Whether your sweet little girl ever even sees a male, she will lay eggs a few times a year. Since it takes so much out of them and shortens their lives, we try to reduce laying frequency and clutch size with lower basking temps and decreased feeding. My girls are both over a year old and the oldest has laid twice and the other just once. Their basking temps are around 80 and I give them each 3 feeders 3 times a week (plus treats - they love pupated bsfl). Once your girl has laid her first clutch, feed her well for a couple of days and then do the same as I do. In another month or so, you could reduce her feeding to every other day.
Sometime in the near future, you’ll see all of her beautiful colors and patterns come out and she’ll get very restless. This is her receptive period...she wants and is ready to mate. This can last anywhere from one to a few weeks. Now is the time to prepare your laying bin. A plastic container at least 10x10x10 filled with play sand that is moist enough to hold a tunnel without collapsing should be placed in her enclosure. Anywhere from a few weeks after being receptive, she’ll have gotten plump and you may even be able to see little egg bulges at her back. Her spots will start to darken too. One day she’ll refuse to eat and maybe look different. She’ll find the lay bin and start digging. She needs absolute privacy until she is done. It can take a couple of days and you‘ll know she’s done when she’s back on her basking branch looking thinner.