Excessive eating. Maybe not enough drinking. (Pics)

[comtec101]

All of you are probably are getting tired of all my posts Ive had my new baby female veiled for about 2 weeks now. Her cage is right next to my computer so I watch her often and in the 2 weeks ive had her I still have yet to see her drink water. Right now I have a ficus plant inside the terrarium. Dont mind the setup in the pics. I have a whole new setup being shipped this week with the proper needs. I use "The Little Dripper" and have that running at about 1 drip per second for about 3-4 hours a day (usually in the mornings). I also spray down the terrarium 3 times daily for at least 2-3 minutes. Ive tried the shower technique with the reflecting water. Anytime I spray the cage or try the shower she always freaks out and runs away hiding behind a leaf. For the misting I use Mist'r Lizard for a fine mist but she still doesnt like it. Her eyes seem to have sunk a little bit since I got her.

When it comes to eating, she is a pig. She is about 2 months old (max) I assume and I feed her 1-3 waxworms or small superworms every other day and about 7-8 crickets every day (about a little less than half an inch each). She consumes it all. Today after feeding her quite a bit this morning. She is still roaming around the cage as if shes trying to hunt for more food. She spotted a little white rock that was stuck inbetween the terrarium and the back panel (it was stuck in there so she wouldnt have ate it). I probably watched her shoot her tongue at it 4 or 5 times before I quickly removed the object. Any time I put my hand in the cage with a worm on it she doesnt hesitate for a second after she sees it move. I hope I am feeding her enough. From what I have seen on other posts she is eating much more than the average baby veiled.

Attached is some pictures I took this morning of her eyes. They dont look severly sunk but I noticed a bit of a difference from when I got her. Her urate what pure white when I got her, now its mostly white with a little orange.

Sorry for the bad quality pictures. Used my Iphone to do it lol. The first picture is the spot she was at when she was flinging her tongue at what she thought was food. The other 3 are pictures of her eyes.

Thanks!

 

[pssh]

What color are her urates? White means she is hydrated, yellow and orange mean she is dehydrated. Babies eat up to 12 crickets or equivalent of every day. I would not feed waxworms that often, and maybe only use superworms once or twice a week. Some chams tend to get addicted to fatty-er foods.

 

[comtec101]

ive only seen 2 urates since I got her. One was very white, the other was white with a little orange.

 

[pssh]

White with a very tiny bit of yellow/orange at the tip is fine. It means she's drinking, just not when you're looking.

 

[dmaizer]

White with a very tiny bit of yellow/orange at the tip is fine. It means she's drinking, just not when you're looking.

i have had my veiled since last nov. and iv only seen him drink once out of the mistking nozzle.

 

[comtec101]

Good deal. Also, she is still pretty tiny and young. Will I have to worry about her laying eggs in the near future (within 2 weeks). Or is it not even a possibility that young. After a week ill have the new terrarium and then ill put down a tubaware with playing sand. Reason I ask is it was just a thought that popped in my head of why she could be moving around in the cage so much (especially from the middle towards the bottom of the cage).

 

[AReptile]

When she is wandering around looking for more food as you say does she do so on the bottom of the enclosure or on the plants you have in there for her?

 

[comtec101]

she never goes down to the bare bottom. But she is always wandering around really low on the ficus plant or the vines I have down there

 

[pssh]

Veiled can become sexually mature as young as 4 months so plan to put a bin in around 4-5 months.

 

[Ellron]

What color are her urates? White means she is hydrated, yellow and orange mean she is dehydrated. Babies eat up to 12 crickets or equivalent of every day. I would not feed waxworms that often, and maybe only use superworms once or twice a week. Some chams tend to get addicted to fatty-er foods.

So would about 5 crickets and a small silkworm be a good days feeding for a 2 month old?

 

[comtec101]

ok now this is the first time ive seen her go to the bare bottom of the cage. She climbed to the bottom and is facing a corner while trying to constantly climb it (though she cant). maybe she wants out? lol

 

[atsutane]

wry hello thar...

i mean, it looks like we are in the same boat and our chams are very similar in age.

take a look at this link, this guy is a mod here on the forums and is very helpful

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

when she is a bit older(5-6 months) he suggests feeding slightly less and keeping the temperatures relatively cool to keep females from cycling (laying eggs) so they will live longer.

as for drinking, i rarely see mine either, however i have a mister that goes off every three hours, and i mist by hand when i am around

i see mind wander around her cage quite a bit, never ever at the bare bottom, but very much like yours. i have fed her an average of 4-5 med/small crix/worms a day... i offer her as many as she will eat while hand feeding and leave a few in her cage as a snack, and she seems to be doing well...

an orage/yellow tip on the white urate is not uncommon, just as long as the majority of the urate is white you should be fine. remember these chams come from dry areas so if you are misting and all that and she simply isnt drinking, then you should be ok.


looks like you are doing your research and going to have a happy cham.

 

[pssh]

Uhhh, two month olds can't lay eggs. You don't need to cut food back until 5-6 months.

Ellron: it depends on the size of the silkworm, but to me that doesn't sound like a whole lot (but I don't know how big the crickets, Cham, and silkworms are so....)

 

[atsutane]

my bad!

thats totally what i meant, when she gets older*


its all in the blog

 

[Ellron]

Uhhh, two month olds can't lay eggs. You don't need to cut food back until 5-6 months.

Ellron: it depends on the size of the silkworm, but to me that doesn't sound like a whole lot (but I don't know how big the crickets, Cham, and silkworms are so....)

They are 1/8 crickets or a little bit bigger. The silkworm is about 2 1/2 inches. I know it is bad to over feed as they grow faster and it can cause MBD, so I was being very conservitive. How much would you recommend. He is 2 months old and about 3 1/2 inches long.

Are the silkworms too big?? I though it would be ok since they are nice and soft....

 

[jamncristian]

fill the mister with hot water so when it sprays out it should feel luke warm

 

[Ellron]

They are 1/8 crickets or a little bit bigger. The silkworm is about 2 1/2 inches. I know it is bad to over feed as they grow faster and it can cause MBD, so I was being very conservitive. How much would you recommend. He is 2 months old and about 3 1/2 inches long.

Are the silkworms too big?? I though it would be ok since they are nice and soft....

I found this article here :http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/ "
During the first six months of a veiled chameleon's life, it has an amazing appetite. Reptiles are extremely good at converting food into body mass, and grow at an amazing rate during this time. However, at this stage of life they should not have access to as much as they can eat (please see specific care for females) which could be up to 25 or 30 small crickets a day! Rather they should be grown at a slower pace and offered 5 to 8 feeders per day. Growing them too fast could lead to problems with MBD as well as other developmental issues.
This should taper at about six months old and by one year of age the chameleon will most likely do quite well on three to five insects once every other day or so.
Vitamin and mineral supplementation should continue throughout the animals life (see supplements page). "
Guess I answered my own question, it does seem a little vauge though....................... 5 to 8 feeders? So is that like a silk worm and a couple of crickets?

Crickets = 1/8
Silkworm = 2

 

[pssh]

At two months my guy was eating 3/8 inch crickets. I fed anywhere from 8-12 crickets (or equivalent of) a day. If that helps any... He was about two inches snout to vent ( I think.) You're just going to have to use your best judgement on this one.

 

[Elizadolots]

Isn't there some general rule like "feeders no wider than the space between the chameleon's eyes". I thought I'd read that somewhere here.

 

[Ellron]

Pssh: thank you
Elizadolots: Yes, I think that is a standard rule of thumb