Does my veiled Cham look Healthy?

[Chewybahama]

This week I got my first female juvenile veiled chameleon. I'm worried about her color.. I've been looking at countless pictures of other juveniles and it seems mine is not as vibrant.. she's kind of pale in comparison ..Should I be worried or is this color okay? ( She was also this pail in the pet store)

 

[Chewybahama]

 

[Gingero]

Congrats on the new chameleon and welcome to the forums. Very exciting

There’s a lot of things that can influence a chameleon’s color. It’s how they communicate with us. I would first want to make sure your husbandry is correct to make sure there isn’t anything that needs improvement.

Can you copy, paste, and fill out this forum with as much detail and pictures?
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/how-to-ask-for-help.66/

 

[Chewybahama]

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - 3-5months old female veiled . Owned for two days
• Handling - was held everyday at pet store by manager there.( Very friendly, when you open the door she comes right over to you) I'm trying to get her adjusted to her new home I'm letting her settle before handling her.
• Feeding - gutloaded crickets with calcium powder. Eats about 6/7 a day
• Supplements - I was told to dust crickets everyday.
• Watering - I mist her cage 5-10 times a day. Yes I see her drinking
• Fecal Description - gooey grey
• Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - glass screen combo. 30 gal. 24hx18x18
  • Lighting - 60 watt daytime blue heat bulb, 13 watt tropical uvb bulb
  • Temperature - 80 degrees during day and night. Not sure about basking or floor temp
  • Humidity - 50-70. when I mist it gets up to 80
  • Plants - fake plants
  • Placement - cage sitting on a desk about 3.5 feet off ground in low traffic area
  • Location - Colorado!

 

[Gingero]

Thank you for answering the questions! Super helpful. I’ll start working on providing some feedback.

Follow-up question(s): What supplements are you using? Brand? If you’re using more than one, how often do you use each of them?

 

[Gingero]

Ooh also pics of the full enclosure top to bottom please

 

[Chewybahama]

Thank you! I filled out the form below. Do you need more pictures ? I can post some more if you do . In the pictures you can see her tail and legs are such a pale light green they almost look white..is that concerning ?

 

[Chewybahama]

 

[Gingero]

Thank you! I filled out the form below. Do you need more pictures ? I can post some more if you do . In the pictures you can see her tail and legs are such a pale light green they almost look white..is that concerning ?

Yes I saw. Thank you for that. But you didn't mention what kind of supplements you're using, just that you're using them on a daily basis. The type of supplement you're using matters as some can cause toxicity, and others can cause metabolic disease if not used properly. So it's super important to make sure you're using the right kind, the right amount of times.

Yes to more pictures please. I'm most interested in seeing her whole enclosure including the top and bottom.

I'm in the process of giving you feedback (it'll take some time, I want to give you as much detail as possible). The coloring could be due to some incorrect husbandry you have based on your answers in the form. Stay tuned for my suggestions

 

[Gingero]

Ah we posted at the same time haha. YES thank you! Exactly what I was looking for! And to confirm that's the only supplement you're using?

 

[Chewybahama]

Yes we keep posting at the same time haha sorry for that! Yes that is the only supplement I'm using . I've only had her for two days, the first day was plain crickets . Today I gave her dusted ones.

 

[Gingero]

• Your Chameleon - 3-5months old female veiled . Owned for two days You'll have to let us know what name you pick out. Since she is female, you'll want to provide a laybin so that she has somewhere to lay her infertile eggs. Let me know if you need help on how to do this.
• Handling - was held everyday at pet store by manager there.( Very friendly, when you open the door she comes right over to you) I'm trying to get her adjusted to her new home I'm letting her settle before handling her. That's a great idea. Usually takes a week or two before they get adjusted.
• Feeding - gutloaded crickets with calcium powder. Eats about 6/7 a day What specifically are you gutloading with? Do you plan on feeding her anything besides crickets?
• Supplements - I was told to dust crickets everyday. You do want to schedule your crickets every day, but you'll want to use different supplements for different days. You'll want to use calcium WITHOUT D3 (not the one you have) 6 days a week and on that 7th day alternate between calcium WITH D3 and a multivitamin (I like Reptivite). See the video below for more of an explanation.

• Watering - I mist her cage 5-10 times a day. Yes I see her drinking This is too much misting which prevents the enclosure from having time to dry and put her at higher risk of developing an upper respiratory infection. I'd recommend misting her 2x a day for 3-5min. See video below for more advice on watering your chameleon.

• Fecal Description - gooey grey Uhhh there should be a brown part and a white/cream part. Not sure if that's what you meant. I also made a video about chameleon poop (I know it's a weird topic, but it's important) that I'll link below.

• Cage Info:
  
  • Cage Type - glass screen combo. 30 gal. 24hx18x18 The recommended size for a female is 18x18x36 so the one you have now is a bit small. Also you'll hear conflicting info on glass vs. screen enclosure. Screen is recommended 90% time since glass puts your cham at a higher risk of getting an upper respiratory infection.
  • Lighting - 60 watt daytime blue heat bulb, 13 watt tropical uvb bulb Unfortunately your UVB is not sufficient. It does not put out enough UVB for her to synthesize D3 and calcium and puts her at HIGH risk of getting metabolic bone disease. You'll want a linear T5 HO (high output) UVB. I'd suggest the Reptisun 5.0 or Arcadia 6%. THIS IS SUPER IMPORTANT.
  • Temperature - 80 degrees during day and night. Not sure about basking or floor temp This is too toasty for your little lady at night. Do you have the heat bulb on at night? See video below.
  
  
  
  
  • Humidity - 50-70. when I mist it gets up to 80
  • Plants - fake plants If you want to add live plants, this is a good video:
  
  
  
  • Placement - cage sitting on a desk about 3.5 feet off ground in low traffic area
  • Location - Colorado!

 

[Gingero]

I know that is a lot of info I threw at you. Please read and re-read it and ask any questions you might have even if it is why I made the recommendations I made, happy to go into more detail. These changes are going to be essential in giving your chameleon the happy life I know you want to give her <3. I'm headed to bed, but will check-in in the morning. I'm sure other forum members will have weighed in by then, but this should give you a good starting point.

 

[Chewybahama]

Thank you so much for all the feed back I really appreciate it. I'll be sure to correct everything you said to do.

The cage: I originally perchanged a repti breeze screen cage in the size you mentioned BUT the darn reptile store said " they are great cages for everywhere else except Colorado , Colorado is EXTREMELY dry and cold it would be hard to keep any humidity in it" SO I RETURNED IT FOR THIS ONE . I do plan on getting he a larger cage as she grows bigger though. I guess I can return this cage for the repti breeze but I feel like it's going to stess her out emptying this cage and putting her in a new one all over again .

The misting. I'm misting it so much to make sure she has water dropletts at all times. Everytime I see no dropletts I've been misting, should I not be doing this? I hear they don't drink standing water, I had a dripper but ended up returning it because it would drain completely out within an hour, the reptile lady said she never drank from it anyways that she only drank from the leaves so just to mist her cage . Is misting it only a few times going to be enough for her to drink?? Also, when I go to sleep she goes about 10 hours without misting,when I wake up her humidity is 35-40 but jumps back up once I mist it and holds for several hours .

The lighting: yes I keep he heat lamp on all night( once again reptile store said to) my house doesn't get below 70f should I turn off all lights at night? I'm also going today to get the bulb you recommend, thank you so much for correcting me .

Poop: yes, fits your description.

Crickets: noted and I'll correct my dusting powders ! I plan on giving her different worms for treats. I feed the crickets apples or broccoli before I feed them to her.

As for her color...is she sick because of my husbandry? Is it a big concern the color she is now ? Do I need to take her to the vet today?... Or is she going to be okay.

Again thank you SOSO much!!!! Ps- her name's CHEWY <3

 

[Gingero]

Her name is adorable Explains your username!

Yeah I hear ya on the enclosure. Dry climates are usually the only environments where glass enclosures are used. Once I saw you were in Colorado, I went "Ohhhhhhh". Your humidity levels seem fine as is, so I *think* you're okay. But it would be great to hear from keeper's in Colorado to know what they do.

No you shouldn't be misting that often. You want to give the enclosure a chance to dry out between misiting sessions. If it is constantly damp/moist, then bacteria will start to grow and that can cause an upper respiratory infection. You are correct in that they only drink from moving water. But two longer sessions a day should be fine. The way to tell if a chameleon is hydrated/getting enough water, is by their urates, or the white part of their poop. If they look white/cream she is okay. If they start to look bright orange, then she may not be getting enough water and you can make adjustments. You just have to be SUPER careful if you're using glass to give it time to dry out. Totally fine to go without misting at night.

Ah okay. Yes turn off all lights at night. Go for 12 hours on, and 12 hours off. You can pick up an outlet timer from Walmart, Target, Amazon for $3 to automate this for you. You only need to worry if it gets colder than 60F in the room she is in. And even then don't turn lights on, use a ceramic heater or portable room heater.

YAY for getting the new UVB bulb Make sure it is a T5 NOT a T8.

The more kinds of bugs you can feed her, the better. It'd be like feeding a human PB&Js all day every day. Some good bugs to feed are dubia roaches, black solider fly larvae, super worms, hornworms, silk worms, occasional wax worms, and flying bugs. You can buy all of these online if you can't find them locally.

Broccoli is on the bad list for gutload. Apples are on the only-okay list for gutload. There are better things you could be using.

Good ingredients to use for gutloading: mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion leaves, collard greens, escarole lettuce, papaya, watercress and alfalfa

Sort of good things to use for gutloading: sweet potato, carrots, oranges, mango, butternut squash, kale, apples, beet greens, blackberries, bok choy and green beans

Dry ingredients to use: bee pollen, organic non-salted sunflower seeds, spirulina, dried seaweed, flax seed and organic non-salted almonds

Bad things to use for gutloading: potatoes, cabbage, iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, corn, grains, beans, oats, bread, cereal, meat, eggs, dog food, cat food, fish food, canned or dead insects, and vertebrates

Foods to boost immune health: Bee pollen, Cantaloupe, Carrots, Green Peppers, Kale, Mangoes, Turnip Greens, Mustard Greens, Collard Greens, Oranges, Nectarines, Tangerines, Peaches, Pink Grapefruit, Pumpkin, Squash, Sweet Potato, Berries, Apples, Nuts, and Watermelon

Foods to aid with nerve and eye health: whole grains, dark leafy greens, flax seed, almonds, and Brazil nuts

Yes, I'd attribute her colors to the issues with husbandry. I don't see any reason to take her to the vet at this point. Once the changes are made she should be feeling MUCH better. She could also be getting close to shedding. Chams will turn paler and duller in color as they get ready to shed.

 

[Chewybahama]

Okay thank you so much for all you help

 

[Gingero]

Okay thank you so much for all you help ❤

You are so welcome! Please post updates as you make changes to ensure you're on the right track.

 

[Chewybahama]

Bought the proper lighting and picked up some calcium dust without d3. Now you said to get a laybin for her.. what does that look like and what do I put in said laybin. When will she start laying eggs do you think??? ... I was trying to read up on it but heard horror stories of females dying because it wasn't done properly ...I also heard it's rare for her to lay eggs if there is no male around. I would love your input on all of this please.

 

[MissSkittles]

While your enclosure looks more pleasing with the soil bottom substrate, it is not recommended unless you are bioactive. A plain bare floor is best for health and hygiene reasons. You should also add many more branches and vines for your girl to travel on. Your cham can’t use all of that empty space. Live plants are much more preferred. Veileds tend to eat their plants and may try to eat a fake one. This could lead to serious impaction. My favorite is Pothos...quick and easy to grow, nice long vines for added cham travel, provides hiding places and humidity pockets and are a safe nibble for a cham. A great place for information on your cham and husbandry is https://chameleonacademy.com/

 

[Syreptyon]

Bought the proper lighting and picked up some calcium dust without d3. Now you said to get a laybin for her.. what does that look like and what do I put in said laybin. When will she start laying eggs do you think??? ... I was trying to read up on it but heard horror stories of females dying because it wasn't done properly ...I also heard it's rare for her to lay eggs if there is no male around. I would love your input on all of this please.

I dunno who gave you that dangerous misinformation, but to be clear it is NOT rare for females to lay eggs without mating. It is inevitable and a natural part of their biology.