Chameleon losing weight during/after shed?

[xxhalloqueenxx]

Hi all!
I've had my juvenile veiled chameleon, Pascal, for about a month & a half now. In that time, he's shed twice, the most recent having started about a week & a half ago. In that time, I feel as though he's lost some weight. Nothing else has changed- he's got lots of energy & good grip, he's eating regularly, & is pooping regularly- everything else seems ok. I gave him waxworms today in hopes that they'll bulk him up- he ate 4 of them eagerly, but now seems to have a little belly on him. Is this something I should be concerned about? Humidity & heat have remained steady (Heat around 80 degrees, humidity around 50-60%) & he's on a 12 hour timer. Is there anything I can do differently to ensure his well-being?

Thanks everyone!

 

[xxhalloqueenxx]

Your Chameleon -Male Veiled Chameleon, estimated to be about 3 months old & in my care for a month & a half.
Handling - Before shedding, Pascal was handled 2-3 times a week. Since then, I have only handled him today.
Feeding - Pascal eats about 10 crickets every other day, which are fed Fluker's Orange Cube Complete Cricket Diet coated with a Calcium/D3 powder. He also has dusted mealworms 2-3 times a month & today, 4 waxworms.
Supplements - Fluker's Calcium W/Vitamin D3, every other feeding & gutloaded.
Watering - I have a drip system & a humidifier going constantly, & I spray the enclosure down twice daily. For the most part, Pascal gets upset when I spray him down, but he will sit on the side of the cage under the humidifier & occasionally drink from the leaves.
Fecal Description - Recent feces is white with brown in the center, looks like it usually does. Never tested for parasites.
History - Pascal went through a recent shed that lasted over a week. Since I got him, he has shed twice.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Screen enclosure, approx. 12"x12"x18"
Lighting - ZooMed ReptiSun 5.0 UVB on a 12 hour timer
Temperature - Temps kept around 80 degrees, with UVB lighting & ceramic heat emitter on opposite sides of the cage. Heat emitter is kept on 24-7. Temperatures measured via in-tank gauge.
Humidity - Humidity is kept between 50 & 60% by a drip system & humidifer which are always running.
Plants - Only artificial plants are being used.
Placement - Cage is located on a stand in an area between living & dining room. Not a high traffic area, no air vents nearby. Window is fairly close. Enclosure is about 3 feet off the ground.
Location - Concord, CA (East Bay Area)

 

[ataraxia]

Your Chameleon -Male Veiled Chameleon, estimated to be about 3 months old & in my care for a month & a half.
Handling - Before shedding, Pascal was handled 2-3 times a week. Since then, I have only handled him today.
Feeding - Pascal eats about 10 crickets every other day, which are fed Fluker's Orange Cube Complete Cricket Diet coated with a Calcium/D3 powder. He also has dusted mealworms 2-3 times a month & today, 4 waxworms.He should be offered feeders daily at his age. Your dusting schedule should also change ASAP. supplemented d3 over a period of time will cause your animal issues. Plain calcium should be used at most feedings, calcium with d3 a couple times a month and a multivitamin a couple times a month. I would look up sandrachameleons blogs on gut loading. She has many great tips on ingredients you can use..
Supplements - Fluker's Calcium W/Vitamin D3, every other feeding & gutloaded. See Above.
Watering - I have a drip system & a humidifier going constantly, & I spray the enclosure down twice daily. For the most part, Pascal gets upset when I spray him down, but he will sit on the side of the cage under the humidifier & occasionally drink from the leaves.
Fecal Description - Recent feces is white with brown in the center, looks like it usually does. Never tested for parasites.
History - Pascal went through a recent shed that lasted over a week. Since I got him, he has shed twice. Most animals at this age shed within a day. This leads me to think that A. his nutrition is off and B, Humidity levels arent correct. Some animals are different and i could be wrong in this particular instance but i am going off of a high percentage of animals at his age.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Screen enclosure, approx. 12"x12"x18"
Lighting - ZooMed ReptiSun 5.0 UVB on a 12 hour timer
Temperature - Temps kept around 80 degrees, with UVB lighting & ceramic heat emitter on opposite sides of the cage. Heat emitter is kept on 24-7. Temperatures measured via in-tank gauge. Why is the emitter left on 24/7? A good night time temp drop is welcomed to try and mimic natural conditions. I would switch this bulb out with a normal house hold bulb, You should notice your animal taking advantage of the light producing heat.
Humidity - Humidity is kept between 50 & 60% by a drip system & humidifer which are always running.
Plants - Only artificial plants are being used. Becareful with veileds and artificial plants. They do like ot taste vegetation real or not. This could mean him ingesting these artificial leaves possibly causing problems. A pathos is a great cheap live plant that thrives in typical chameleon care conditions.
Placement - Cage is located on a stand in an area between living & dining room. Not a high traffic area, no air vents nearby. Window is fairly close. Enclosure is about 3 feet off the ground.
Location - Concord, CA (East Bay Area)

See the BOLD in the quote.

 

[Kate]

Hi there. Have you weighed him? He will shed as he is growing and he will grow a lot at that age. Perhaps as he is growing he is getting longer which makes him look thinner. I would weigh him periodically on digital scales.

 

[pssh]

Hi there. Have you weighed him? He will shed as he is growing and he will grow a lot at that age. Perhaps as he is growing he is getting longer which makes him look thinner. I would weigh him periodically on digital scales.

This is true. If you aren't weighing him, you dont really know if he is loosing or gaining weight. Chameleons can greatly alter their appearances, so going off of what the animals looks like is not accurate at all.

 

[xxhalloqueenxx]

I will definitely pick up some calcium & multivitamin powder. I ended up reading more about these when I started searching into the forums, & I just checked out SandraChameleon's blog- thank you! I was feeding every day, but was finding that he was regularly eating about every other day- the "off" days I'd end up removing the feeders I'd put in that day. Should I start offering them again just in case? I gave him waxworms yesterday, & when I offered food today he wasn't interested. I'll start up again tomorrow. Humidity is around 50-60%, is that something I should change? I started putting the heat emitter on all the time because the temperatures seemed to be getting too cold at night- in the mid-50's some nights. Is the regular lightbulb something I should be putting on at night instead? What is a regular nighttime temperature? I noticed he sleeps on the side of the cage with the heat emitter at night, & on the other side during the day.

I'll also get a digital scale to maintain his temperature, thank you!

 

[Kate]

No light at night is recomended. Only use a heat emitter if temps drop to 50. They do well with drop in temps during the night.Sandras blogs are great. You will learn lots on this site.