Cham is been on the floor of her cage for the past night/ this morning

[Dreyesbrooke]

So I have a year old Cham (female) she has never done this before, I have had her for a few months.

Last night I came home and she was on the bottom of the floor just still I tried to take her out and she wasnt having it. I let her be for the night thinking she will come up by morning and she hasn't she was her normal bright green while she slept but still stayed this morning.

I have a reptihumidifier on for a few hours mixed up during the day, I spray her cage additionally 3 times a day and for a few hours I have a dripper system that dripps for a little to water the plant that is in there that is a Fern.

I feed her 15-20 Crickets (gut loaded from the repti shop) and dusted with calcium every other feeding. She eats meal worms 2 times a week from a feeder I have hanging as a treat.

Her cage is mesh and its the large one 16.1 x 30 x 16 inches

Tropical UVB & Heat Lighting Kit with dome fixture

She has the plant at the bottom left, a lrge branch that goes from bottom to top and has break off branch paths to around the top of the cage, there is hanging vines for fun, she has some shade at the bottom to go under a plastic kind of leave thingy. and a basking spot at top.

I dont handle her really much at all she comes to the front when she is in a mood to be every so often but still maybe a 5 min trip out of the cage

She eats well and her pee is white with a little bit of faint yellow sometimes not all the time

I dont know if this is something to be too worried about but I am

I changed her bulbs at the 6 month mark and her temps are always on spot for top heat and bottom cool with a mid range of 70 in the middle

What could I have done wrong to make her be at the bottom?


Please help!

 

[Leighfisher959]

Do you have a laying bin for her at the bottom of the cage? She may be trying to lay her eggs

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

Do you have a laying bin for her at the bottom of the cage? She may be trying to lay her eggs

I have the fern in a pot with soil? could she be pregnant I bought her 2 months ago. the bottom of the cage has two plastic bins so it is easy for cleaning nad no drips on the floor of water run off. Do I need something else ?

 

[jamest0o0]

Definitely something to worry about. Sounds like she could want to lay eggs. Without a bin there is a strong chance of egg binding which results in death.

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

Definitely something to worry about. Sounds like she could want to lay eggs. Without a bin there is a strong chance of egg binding which results in death.

How do I make a egg lyaing bin?

 

[jamest0o0]

Look up laying bins. It's simple to set one up. Chameleons lay eggs with or without a Male. Similar to how chickens do.

 

[Leighfisher959]

I have the fern in a pot with soil? could she be pregnant I bought her 2 months ago. the bottom of the cage has two plastic bins so it is easy for cleaning nad no drips on the floor of water run off. Do I need something else ?

If you type laying bin into the search bar you will find tons of acceptable ways to prepare a proper laying bin. You want dirt or sand to lay in with no fertilizers or treated pesticides. There’s a lot to it, but she can indeed become egg bound and become very sick and potentially die. I’m new and own a panther boy but just from doing research on this forum you will discover so much about your beloved pets! I’m sure more experienced owners will weigh in as well !

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

Thank you guys I will go after work and have one for her, I stayed up all night crying I though I did something wrong. But I try to have the perfect set up for her.

 

[Beman]

Yes, sounds like she is needing to lay eggs. Females do this even if they have not been mated. Read this. You need a 12x12x12 laybin This will give you the details for what you need and how it has to be set up. You need to do this asap. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/egg-laying-and-the-laying-bin.345/?page=2#ubs-comment-3775

 

[Leighfisher959]

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

View attachment 223746

Thank you!

 

[Leighfisher959]

Thank you guys I will go after work and have one for her, I stayed up all night crying I though I did something wrong. But I try to have the perfect set up for her.

Don’t panic just make sure you so it soon and take some of your down time to acquaint yourself with this forum, like I said I have learned soooooo much, things I never even thought of! From gutloading your feeders to correct lighting! You are in the right place !

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

how do I know I am buying the right sand/soil? does anyone have any recommendations
of brands ?

 

[jamest0o0]

Any all natural play sand works

 

[Syreptyon]

how do I know I am buying the right sand/soil? does anyone have any recommendations
of brands ?

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the following brand is acceptable to use and readily available at Home Depot or other such stores: https://www.acehardware.com/departm...Uug1e0ct1jOEGDEOQjeBI-qIurBysfERoCTqkQAvD_BwE

I used this stuff to make a substrate mix for my carnivorous bog garden, but I'm pretty sure people use it for lay bins as well!

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

So I have her in it I’m keeping a distant eye on her and she hasn’t done anything? Can I keep her in there for the night?

 

[jamest0o0]

Leave it in there at all times, as long as it's deep enough and can hold a tunnel you should be good. Give her privacy, she won't lay eggs if she sees you.

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

Leave it in there at all times, as long as it's deep enough and can hold a tunnel you should be good. Give her privacy, she won't lay eggs if she sees you.

I used the bin method as her cage wasn’t big enough for what I saw. So does she need anything in there with her the top is off she can’t get out. And it’s deep enough.

 

[Dreyesbrooke]

I used the bin method as her cage wasn’t big enough for what I saw. So does she need anything in there with her the top is off she can’t get out. And it’s deep enough.

The stuff on her is the water from the humidifier I had going before bed for her.