Cup feeding woes

[royden]

I switched to cup feeding my male veiled roughly 3 months ago. He's been on pretty much a winter long hunger strike. He's lost weight and I've really had to force him to eat several times.

However, I'm having real problems cup feeding.

He does not seem to understand that that cup hanging off the side of the cage is always full of food. So I don't know how much of his lack of appetite to attribute to his fasting, or his lack of cup feeding skill.

I currently leave two or three huge roaches in his cup all day. Sometimes I'll see him actually climb down to the cup and eat. But sometimes the roaches will sit there untouched for up to 2 or 3 days! And then I take one out and place it infront of him and he's like "holysmokeswheredidyoufindthatI'msohungry - crunch!" Like he's been starving. Even though 2 days ago he was plucking the same roaches out of the same cup just a few inches under his nose.

The other thing I do is fill the cup with crawling crazy roaches, and hold it in front of him, so he sees it. And he sees the roaches. I see him watching the roaches. No interest. Until I take one out of the cup...then it's like "I'msohungrythatroachappearedoutofthinair! - crunch!"

How do I teach my chameleon that food comes from the cup? It's a cd holder cup. Translucent but not transparent. Tied to the lower portion of the cage so when he's at his basking spot he's looking down into it. I don't think he can actually see it from his basking spot because my china doll is overtaking the cage, but I know he can see it from various spots in his cage.

 

[Justin Carl]

i had an issue with my veiled as well.
try placing several cups in different location.
i found that my veileds like a tupperware bowl placed at the bottom of the cage.
try several locations with 2 feeders in each cup/bowl.
hope that works

 

[royden]

that's a good idea.

thanks!

 

[GraemeShelton]

i'm going through the same trouble with my panther. my veiled went straight for bowl that I fed him from when I still had him but my panther avoids it like the plague. this is frustrating because it seems the only way to feed mealworms (too small for anything but crickets and mealwrms).

my panther is similar with his drinking habits. there will be my dripper dripping right in front of him and he'll be sitting there looking all dry and miserable, so i take my mister and put a drop on his nose. right after i do that he gets up and drinks like he's been stuck in a desert for weeks...

they are frustrating to try and teach haha.

I've heard teaching them feeding habits gets harder as they get older.

Hope everything works out well!
Graeme

 

[dodolah]

for sure that is the lack of cup feeding skill.
put one near his basking spot. Chameleon often make it as their vantage point of surveillance.
So, it is more likely he will see the roaches from there.
put another one almost at the bottom. So, he will see the cup when he's surveying the landscape (again)..

after a while, you should see your chameleon favoring one cup over another (my money is the one near the basking spot).
Then, you can just dump the rest of roaches in his favorite cup and take out the other cup.

The reason he does not want to eat the roaches when you offer him the cup is because he get nervous eating in front of you.
one of his eyes will focus on the cup and the other one will focus on you (the giant predator).
He is more worried about being eaten by the giant predator than eating the roaches.
What you can do is to line the cup in between you and his sight.
so, he does not need to divide his focus on both you and the cup.

lining his peripheral sight will make him feel safer; thus, increase his urge to eat the roaches in the cup.
But, this trick sometimes fail if you have a very finicky and shy chameleon.

One thing for sure if you want to train him cup feeding is to make sure that your presence is known by your chameleon.
And making sure he SEES that you put something yummy inside of the cup.
try leaving after that process. and come back later to see if the insects are gone.

 

[Chris Anderson]

I've used the design at the following URL quite successfully. You might consider giving it a try as well: http://www.chameleonnews.com/year2003/jan2003/hints/hints.html

Chris

 

[royden]

The reason he does not want to eat the roaches when you offer him the cup is because he get nervous eating in front of you.
one of his eyes will focus on the cup and the other one will focus on you (the giant predator).
He is more worried about being eaten by the giant predator than eating the roaches.

I've heard that before, but it doesn't really hold up when you take into account that he actually considers me to be three huge predators wrapped into one (left hand, right hand, face) and then to take out a roach and have him eat it out of my hand - doesn't really make me think he's concerned about my proximity to him.

Good thought though, and I do usually keep the cup between me and him.

I'm going to try the multiple cup thing, or maybe just relocate his cup closer to his basking spot.

I'm just big on asthetics of the setup. I like having a cage that appears to be a chunk of the amazon in my office; clean, uncluttered and nice to look at. A big plastic cd cup upside down, and infront really ruins that for me. That's why I like it down low near the bottom. Oh well - I'd rather have a fat happy cham.

 

[dodolah]

hahahahaha...
i can definitely understand your point.
you are talking to somebody who literally arrange the cage and the vines in the enclosure around the red hibiscus flower making it the focal point of the whole cage.

I think we just can't help it..

 

[Scotty]

I've used the design at the following URL quite successfully. You might consider giving it a try as well: http://www.chameleonnews.com/year2003/jan2003/hints/hints.html

Chris

Royden,
This is the feeder I have albeit a bit better looking...
I too am big on aesthetics and to camoflauge the feeder is easily done...Paint it green/brown, stick fake plants on it, BUT let me say this, it really does work with the mesh at the back for the crix roaches to climb on, my 7 month old veiled, just zapps them off...he too was a finicky eater when I just had a cup.
Good luck mate...
Cheers
Scott.

 

[royden]

roaches too? Cause roaches seem to stay low and not climb up.

 

[Scotty]

LOL Yep roaches too,
I live in the opposite hemishere to you and our roaches climb anything...We need to paint a substance called Fluon or Teflon paint on all our enclosures that house our roaches as they climb almost anything...we call them "woodies" or wood roaches or speckled feeder roaches..Scientific Name : Nauphoeta cinerea.
I have heard your Dubia (is that correct) are the pussy's of the roach world...LOL
I probably should say the best for feeders as they don't climb...we have problems with escapees of our type, pain in the butt, but a good all round feeder!
Cheers
Scott.

 

[OldChamKeeper]

There is another oddball thought to your problem. Over the years I've come across chameleons that for some reason won't "pick" a single target out of a group. In the ocean, schooling fish use their numbers to confuse a predator. Now while I don't think this is happening at that level I'm only throwing out there that you may have an animal which is used to finding a solo food item.

I had a Jackson some years back that would only eat from the cup when I had one food item in it. If I put in 4-5 items he would just stare at them without eating.

Just a thought

 

[Cally95]

Hello,

Dont know if its legitimate or not but I have heard some are picky for feeder cups that they can't see thru. So try a solid cup and then a tranparent one and see if that makes a difference!!

Dell