Chameleon Puberty

[ethan99]

My Chameleon is acting strange! He is a veiled, 5 month old, male. He will never let me touch him and he won't eat out of my hand anymore! Is he going through puberty? If he is not then when do veiled chameleons go through puberty???

 

[ChameleonMom]

My Chameleon is acting strange! He is a veiled, 5 month old, male. He will never let me touch him and he won't eat out of my hand anymore! Is he going through puberty? If he is not then when do veiled chameleons go through puberty???

I don't believe they go through a specific period of 'puberty' but they do have some teenager traits...lol. I would be more worried that perhaps there is something else going on with him.

Can you fill this out so we have more information to better help you? https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[ChamMan7]

Your little man's just growing up. Veileds can be a little spunky and it could be that he is just getting into his teenage days. As he gets older he may grow out of it, but you may also just have to accept his new personality.

 

[ethan99]

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Veiled, male, 5 months. I have owned him for 2 months.
Handling - I hold him about every other day.
Feeding - I feed him about 7 crickets each day.
Watering - I have a drippier on his cadge. I mist him about 2 times every day. I usually don't see him drink.
Fecal Description - Never been tested for parasites.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Screen all around, 3 feet tall.
Lighting - I have a heat lamp and another regular light (not sure what kind).
Humidity - Between 1 and 100 (1- no humidity, 100- very humid) usually 50-60.
Plants - 1 real umbrella plant, 1 fake vine, and 1 fake stick.
Placement - The cadge is in a small bedroom, next to a window. Not near any vents.
Location - Live in Washington state.

 

[ZuggieTheCham]

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Veiled, male, 5 months. I have owned him for 2 months.
Handling - I hold him about every other day.
Feeding - I feed him about 7 crickets each day.
Watering - I have a drippier on his cadge. I mist him about 2 times every day. I usually don't see him drink.
Fecal Description - Never been tested for parasites.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Screen all around, 3 feet tall.
Lighting - I have a heat lamp and another regular light (not sure what kind).
Humidity - Between 1 and 100 (1- no humidity, 100- very humid) usually 50-60.
Plants - 1 real umbrella plant, 1 fake vine, and 1 fake stick.
Placement - The cadge is in a small bedroom, next to a window. Not near any vents.
Location - Live in Washington state.

When u say I have a heat light and a reg light what do u mean??
Cham's need a heat light and a UVB light too! A long fluorescent tube ?? Is that what u have?? If you don't then this is probably the cause! Also you Haven't mentioned anything about supplements ? Do you dust your crickets with calcium ? What calcium do u have if you do ? And ur cage sounds abit bare , could do with a lot of vines and stuff so he can climb up and down his cage to cool down and stuff,
And is he eating atall? Or just not from ur hand? And what does his poop look like ??

 

[ethan99]

When u say I have a heat light and a reg light what do u mean??
Cham's need a heat light and a UVB light too! A long fluorescent tube ?? Is that what u have?? If you don't then this is probably the cause! Also you Haven't mentioned anything about supplements ? Do you dust your crickets with calcium ? What calcium do u have if you do ? And ur cage sounds abit bare , could do with a lot of vines and stuff so he can climb up and down his cage to cool down and stuff,
And is he eating atall? Or just not from ur hand? And what does his poop look like ??

Yeah, I have a heat light and a UVB light.
I do not dust the crickets.
Im pretty sure he is eating, but just not from my hand.
His poop is small and blackish.
There is a big long fake vine curling around the cadge.

Here is a picture of the cadge, if it helps... (I turned off the heat light because there was a glare)

 

[ZuggieTheCham]

Yeah, I have a heat light and a UVB light.
I do not dust the crickets.
Im pretty sure he is eating, but just not from my hand.
His poop is small and blackish.
There is a big long fake vine curling around the cadge.

Here is a picture of the cadge, if it helps... (I turned off the heat light because there was a glare)

Ahh okay well that's good that u have the UVB light got me worried there, but u need to be dusting your crickets with calcium your chameleon WILL NOT survive in your care without it, u should of been told that when u got sold the Cham?? They need to have a good schedule of calcium so u need to go get this ASAP! Because that's what will be wrong with ur little guy!!! Here is what you need
Plain calcium WITHOUT D3!!
Calcium With D3
And a multivitamin supplement

The plain calcium should be dusted lightly onto your crickets EVERY SINGLE FEEDING!! and ur little guy hasn't had none for 2 months,

The calcium WITH D3 once every 2 weeks


The multivitamin about once a month should be okay.


Or there is another option, there is an all in one calcium powder that has all of the above in it and called REPASHY ALL IN ONE CALCIUM PLUS
This one will provide you with what ur Cham needs in one easy supplement all you have to do is dust your crickets every single time you feed and that will be it ! It's just easier than having to stick to a schedule, I use it and my Cham is happy an healthy!

Your Chameleon needs these supplements right away!! Serious thing will happen to his health if u don't , we'll things are already starting to take effect already if he isn't eating, ur cham's tongue may not be functioning properly Booz of this and that's why he won't eat well can't by the sounds of it, and if u don't get some supplements in him quick time things will only get worse and worse, his bones will start to warp and he cant get something called Metabolic bone disease and he won't be able to walk eat or anything can get really bad!!
Can u post me a pic of ur Cham ?? Ur cage doesn't look too bad tbh. that tray at the bottom need to be removed ASAP it will just gather bacteria and that's not good for ur Cham !! Some more vines would be great aswell !

 

[ethan99]

Ahh okay well that's good that u have the UVB light got me worried there, but u need to be dusting your crickets with calcium your chameleon WILL NOT survive in your care without it, u should of been told that when u got sold the Cham?? They need to have a good schedule of calcium so u need to go get this ASAP! Because that's what will be wrong with ur little guy!!! Here is what you need
Plain calcium WITHOUT D3!!
Calcium With D3
And a multivitamin supplement

The plain calcium should be dusted lightly onto your crickets EVERY SINGLE FEEDING!! and ur little guy hasn't had none for 2 months,

The calcium WITH D3 once every 2 weeks



The multivitamin about once a month should be okay.


Or there is another option, there is an all in one calcium powder that has all of the above in it and called REPASHY ALL IN ONE CALCIUM PLUS
This one will provide you with what ur Cham needs in one easy supplement all you have to do is dust your crickets every single time you feed and that will be it ! It's just easier than having to stick to a schedule, I use it and my Cham is happy an healthy!

Your Chameleon needs these supplements right away!! Serious thing will happen to his health if u don't , we'll things are already starting to take effect already if he isn't eating, ur cham's tongue may not be functioning properly Booz of this and that's why he won't eat well can't by the sounds of it, and if u don't get some supplements in him quick time things will only get worse and worse, his bones will start to warp and he cant get something called Metabolic bone disease and he won't be able to walk eat or anything can get really bad!!
Can u post me a pic of ur Cham ?? Ur cage doesn't look too bad tbh. that tray at the bottom need to be removed ASAP it will just gather bacteria and that's not good for ur Cham !! Some more vines would be great aswell !

Thanks for the advice!!! Here are some questions I have...
1. I have never feed him worms, but if I do can I dust them too?
2. Where can I get the calcium dust?
3. What should I replace the tray with??? There is nothing under it.

 

[mcbdz]

Hello and welcome to the forums. I agree you need to dust your feeders, also you will need to gut load them. I'm adding a link of general care, you are off to a good start. then I'll post a link to give you info on feeding your chameleon. This is very important since they can't find their own food and, in the wild they would have a very broad diet of all different kinds of insects.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/general-care-true-chameleons-5943/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
and then do a lot of reading on here but basically feed your feeders good healthy food(fresh fruits and veggies) what they eat is basically what you are feeding your chameleon.
supplements:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/65-supplements.html
Gutloads:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/75-feeder-nutrition-gutloading.html
Yes this is a lot but very important.
Now for the drain pan. Remove it, raise your cage up as high as you can, then you can just give it a slight tilt(prompt something under one side) and put a bucket at the low side to catch the water.
Good Luck

 

[ChameleonMom]

Thanks for the advice!!! Here are some questions I have...
1. I have never feed him worms, but if I do can I dust them too?
2. Where can I get the calcium dust?
3. What should I replace the tray with??? There is nothing under it.

Yes, you can dust worms too. Are you 'gutloading' your crickets with anything? Gutload means to feed your feeders good, healthy food so it goes directly into your chameleon when your cham eats the feeder. This is also essential to good cham health BUT AS MENTIONED ABOVE, YOU NEED THE SUPPLEMENTS IN ORDER FOR YOUR CHAM TO LIVE! Sorry for the CAP LOCK but I can't stress how very, very important it is for you to buy some supplements for your cham.

You can get the dust at any PetSmart, or pet store that specializes in or deals with reptiles. Google it if you have to!

These are the supplements I use and I buy them at PetSmart:
Top: Rep-Cal Calcium with NO D3; Bottom (L): Rep-Cal Calcium w/D3; Bottom (R): Rep-Cal Herptivite


As noted above, if you buy these, you dust your feeders every time you feed with the plain Calcium (top container), twice a month (I do every other Sunday) with Calcium w/D3, and I alternate with Herptivite on the Sunday's I don't dust with D3.

As for the tray, do what mcbdz suggested. BUT BUY YOUR SUPPS FIRST!!

Good luck!

 

[ethan99]

Yes, you can dust worms too. Are you 'gutloading' your crickets with anything? Gutload means to feed your feeders good, healthy food so it goes directly into your chameleon when your cham eats the feeder. This is also essential to good cham health BUT AS MENTIONED ABOVE, YOU NEED THE SUPPLEMENTS IN ORDER FOR YOUR CHAM TO LIVE! Sorry for the CAP LOCK but I can't stress how very, very important it is for you to buy some supplements for your cham.

You can get the dust at any PetSmart, or pet store that specializes in or deals with reptiles. Google it if you have to!

These are the supplements I use and I buy them at PetSmart:
Top: Rep-Cal Calcium with NO D3; Bottom (L): Rep-Cal Calcium w/D3; Bottom (R): Rep-Cal Herptivite
View attachment 68157

As noted above, if you buy these, you dust your feeders every time you feed with the plain Calcium (top container), twice a month (I do every other Sunday) with Calcium w/D3, and I alternate with Herptivite on the Sunday's I don't dust with D3.

As for the tray, do what mcbdz suggested. BUT BUY YOUR SUPPS FIRST!!

Good luck!

Thanks!

Well, I feed the crickets red potato. (I cut it in half and put both halves in the cricket keeper.)

 

[ZuggieTheCham]

Have u got some supplements yet?
Also what kind of worms do you feed him? And is potato all you use? You need to be using more that just that, things like carrots, kale, sweet potato
Collard greens, mustard greens and so on.