Baby chameleon

lizardgirl

lizardgirl

New Member
Hey guys,
I'm new to chameleons and just got a baby veiled 3 days ago from Petco. She's about 4 inches long including her tail, stays green most of the time and when she turns brow/black I just take her out and hold her and she turns green again within a couple minutes.

I have her in a 10 gallon glass tank with a screen lid for now but this weekend I'm building her a large mesh enclosure. There is coconut husk substrate and moss, and lots of vines for her to climb on. I have a drip system for water and spray the tank a few times a day, and also have heat lamps for day and night about 10 inches from the top. I feed her tiny crickets and mealworms but she seems to like the crickets more. Also she is very active.

She was on my shoulder today and I noticed a little squeak sound and she opened her mouth a few times. I put her back and she did it again and then stopped. Could it be an RI or do they sometimes just make a noise here and there? Any help would be great, thanks!
 

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Thank you! I'm so glad I found this site!
Yes, her eyes are closed. She was sleeping when I took the picture :)
I shall read everything on that blog, I'm determined to learn as much as possible
 
Did you make the picture in the daytime? Sleeping during the day or even just closing their eyes during the day is a sign that something is wrong.
 
There should be no light/heat at night unless your temperature drops below 50F. They like it cooler at night, so preferably below 70. Also, there should be no substrate, just an empty cage bottom or paper towels if necessary.

The squeaking sound could be her hissing. I would leave her alone for the first week or two and then gradually get her used to you by hand feeding. Like Jann said, I would definitely make sure you get a larger screen cage by as soon as you can. It should be OK as long as you get it by this weekend.

Also, could you fill out the help form below? This will let people check to make sure everything looks right.

https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/
 
Thanks for the link sharp229, I've never been on a forum before so this is all new to me.
Here's the info:

Veiled chameleon, female, not sure of the age but I'm guessing around a month and a half or so. Have had her for 3 days.
I hold her twice a day for a few minutes.
I feed her 3-4 tiny crickets in the morning that have been fed carrots. She hasn't eaten the mealworms I put in there.
I use Zoo Med's Reptivite vitamin powder on the crickets.
I have a tree stump looking dripper and also have a cup of warm water that drips on her vines through the day, along with misting.
Feces are black with white on the end, shes gone twice that I could see.

Tank is glass with screen lid, 11"x 20"x12"h. Will be making a bigger screen cage in a few days. It is on the carpeted floor away from drafts.
I use Exo Terra heating bulbs for day and night (it gets pretty chilly in here at night) set to switch at 9am/9pm.
Temp ranges from 75F to 80F with some shaded areas.
Not sure about humidity yet, going to get one of the strips this week. I have a very spongy live moss that I keep in there to hold moisture though. I mist with a spray bottle as well.
At the moment there is only moss as far as live plants go, but I have ordered some different kinds of leafy things and am just waiting for them to get here.

The problem is she squeaked and I'm not sure why, though I guess it could've been a hiss.

Sorry this is such a long comment haha wanted to get it all there
 
Based on the info you provided, I would suggest:

* Try to not handle her at all if possible for the first week or two. Then gradually get her accustomed to you by hand feeding. Note that bright colors as well as dark colors can indicate stress.

* Will she only eat 3-4 crickets, or is that just how many you offer? She should be allowed to eat as many as she wants until at least about 8 months or so.

* You should use plain calcium every feeding, calcium with D3 every other week, and multivitamin every other week. Reptivite is a multivitamin, so you will not want to give that every day.

* There should be no lights on at night as it may disrupt sleep. If her environment will get below 50F, use a ceramic heat emitter or other non-light emitting heat source at night. If the environment does not drop below 50F, use no heat at night.

* What is the temperature of her basking spot? It should be around 85F, 80F is a little too low.

* Do you have a UVB bulb? What is the brand and model? How old is it? Is there any glass between the bulb and your chameleon? Note that a full spectrum bulb is not necessarily a UVB bulb.

I would not worry about the squeak if there are no other symptoms. If she is holding her mouth open a lot, having excess mucous, making popping sounds, or having bubbles come out of her mouth, then it may be an issue.

When my veiled hissed as a baby it sounded a lot like a squeak.
 
Welcome, lots to learn and this is a great place for it. Having a female you will have to look into setting up a laying bin for her.
 
Thanks everyone :D I wish I'd found this site before I got her so everything would be set up properly instead of going by what other sites say. I think I've found some reliable sites now though. I took the substrate out of her cage and will be calling the vet tomorrow to see if they have anything open this weekend so that I can bring her in and have her looked at.
 
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