Calcium? Multivitamins? Questions!

[acusick]

Hello! I have a 1 month old chameleon. No idea if it's a male or female but I've got him in a 24x24x48 screen cage. He seems to love it. He's eating 5-6 small crickets a day. I use all fake plants, he's got tons of vines and branches. I've got a misting system ordered and on the way...for now I am just spraying it multiple times a day...I am very worried that my chameleon will get sick and or die because so many people say how hard they are to take care of , so I'm trying to do everything properly. He doesn't look sick or anything I just want to do this right to prevent anything bad from happening! ANY input is greatly appreciated! My main question here is...what do I coat the crickets with?! There are so many different kinds of calcium and multivitamins and so many different brands. What do I buy?! Also, I've been keeping all the lights on for 12 hours then turning them all off for 12 hours. Is this correct? My chameleon is nice, so far, he stays bright green all the time, even when I get him out of the cage. I can't think of any other questions right now but if there's anything you guys do to keep your chameleons happy and healthy please let me know! I am very new to chameleons. This is my first one! Oh and I have UVB and UVA lights, 100wt basking light. And also, when can I feed my chameleon other things besides crickets? Does he need to be a certain age? What else can I give him?
Thanks guys!!!

 

[carol5208]

Hello! I have a 1 month old chameleon. No idea if it's a male or female but I've got him in a 24x24x48 screen cage. He seems to love it. He's eating 5-6 small crickets a day. I use all fake plants, he's got tons of vines and branches. I've got a misting system ordered and on the way...for now I am just spraying it multiple times a day...I am very worried that my chameleon will get sick and or die because so many people say how hard they are to take care of , so I'm trying to do everything properly. He doesn't look sick or anything I just want to do this right to prevent anything bad from happening! ANY input is greatly appreciated! My main question here is...what do I coat the crickets with?! There are so many different kinds of calcium and multivitamins and so many different brands. What do I buy?! Also, I've been keeping all the lights on for 12 hours then turning them all off for 12 hours. Is this correct? My chameleon is nice, so far, he stays bright green all the time, even when I get him out of the cage. I can't think of any other questions right now but if there's anything you guys do to keep your chameleons happy and healthy please let me know! I am very new to chameleons. This is my first one! Oh and I have UVB and UVA lights, 100wt basking light. And also, when can I feed my chameleon other things besides crickets? Does he need to be a certain age? What else can I give him?
Thanks guys!!!

First of all, is that all you are offering is 5 or 6 crickets a day or all he/she will eat? If that is all you are offering, you need to increase that by about 3 times. Babies can easily pound down 20 feeders a day. You can feed other feeders at any time as long as they appropriately sized. Little silkworms would be a good addition. 100watt is very high wattage. What is your basking temp? Is you chameleon kept in glass or screen? Also, you did not mention what kind it is? If it is a veild, then the males have little points on the back of the back heels called tarsal spurs. The females do not. If it is a panther you can post pics of the tail/vent area and we can try and tell you what sex it is. You can also post pics of the veilds back feet if you are unsure what I am talking about. A pic of your set up would be helpful so we can see if you have everything set up right. As far as the supplements, you need a calcium without d3 to be used at every or most feedings, a calcium with d3 to be used twice a month and the multivitamin. I use Sticky Tongue Farms Minerall OUTDOOR formula for calcium without d3. I do not use d3 at all as I live in Florida and my chameleons get enough natural sunlight. I use herptivite for my multi.

 

[carol5208]

Sorry I see you have him/her in screen cage and a very large one at that for a 1 month old no matter what the species! Are you sure it is finding the food ok?

 

[kinyonga]

Make sure the calcium is phosphorous - free and look for a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene ( prOformed ) source of vitamin A. If you get one that has prEformed vitamin A it can build up in the system. If the chameleon does need prEformed vitamin A you can give it as needed so its under your control.

 

[acusick]

He will usually take 7-8 crickets from me. I will drop more crickets in the cage and he hunts for them and they will crawl up the screens so he can eat them. He is a veiled chameleon. Sorry for not mentioning that earlier! I have a 75 wt and a 100wt because the 75 wasn't keeping it warm enough. It was only staying at 70 degrees with the 75wt. Now it's 80-85 with the 100wt. The humidity is crap right now because I am still waiting on my misting system. It's only at like 60% humidity sometimes lower. I will take a picture of everything I have tomorrow, but I don't see where I am supposed to upload the picture?