Feeding and Care, please help

[Mahal347]

My chameleon is abut 4 or 5 months old and I want to make sure I am feeding him the right amount. I was told about 5 crickets a day, but then told to feed him more. Also there have been a few issues with him eating the crickets and then spitting them out, but then eating the others( and they are about the same size)

As for today he only had two, because the other crickets 1 he ate then spit out and then the other cricket touched the saliva and then couldn't move anymore(so that lead to him not eating it)Should I feed the mealworms that we have so he can have enough to eat, or feed him more later today or tomorrow.

I also had a question about gut loading. Before i used potatoes, but then found out not to feed them those. Im not entirely sure what to feed them, or what needs to be in the container with them for them to survive. What is a good container to keep them in?( lately they have been escaping so I would like some suggestions in what time of place to keep them in so this doesn't happen, and to live longer) I will provide a picture of the current container that was giving to me, just for a backup to put the crickets in.

I am a semi-new owner and want to know all I can so he can live happy and healthy, so if anyone can provide me with any answers that would really be helpful. I know there is a lot of negativity with first time reptile owners having chameleons, but my mother bought him a few months ago as a gift( without telling me btw) and I want to take care of him as best as I can, even though I wasn't prepared in the start

Thanks

 

[guanagator]

Im by no means an expert but happy to answer a few of your questions, if you use the search function you can find some good gut load suggestions. For mine I rotate kale, romaine, carrots, strawberries, oranges, red peppers, and Repashy Superload. A deep storage container can make a good home for lots of crickets. What species do you have? It's been years since I've had a veiled but think mine ate far more, I know my panthers at that age averaged 20+ 1/4 inch a day. I would free roam about 15 small crickets in his enclosure and let him hunt them, if they are gone in a few hours give him some more, babies gotta eat to grow and somethings not adding up with 5 a day. They are either too big or he's not getting enough. Avoid feeding meal worms as they can cause impaction in chams, superworms are ok as a treat. Hornworms make another great treat. You want to vary the feeders as much as possible, crickets and roaches can be a base but need to get a nice mix to keep them happy. Getting his husbandry dialed in quickly will be key to your success, what's his supplement schedule? That's very important while they are growing to avoid MBD. You came to the right place to find help, research and dial in the basics then you can enjoy watching him grow.

 

[Tamiesa]

Useful

I gut load my locusts with a variety of things such as
fresh grass , carrots, lettuce, broccoli, fresh peas, green beans ,sprouts which they love an easy to come by at this time of year.
Doesn't have to cost fortunes as
Grass an dandelion leaves are usually around in your garden, though you have to be sure they are clean. I funnily grow them in a pot with a weather cover over them so I know they are clean an fresh.

I also now dust locust with calcium every other day

Don't know whether that helps

 

[Mahal347]

Im by no means an expert but happy to answer a few of your questions, if you use the search function you can find some good gut load suggestions. For mine I rotate kale, romaine, carrots, strawberries, oranges, red peppers, and Repashy Superload. A deep storage container can make a good home for lots of crickets. What species do you have? It's been years since I've had a veiled but think mine ate far more, I know my panthers at that age averaged 20+ 1/4 inch a day. I would free roam about 15 small crickets in his enclosure and let him hunt them, if they are gone in a few hours give him some more, babies gotta eat to grow and somethings not adding up with 5 a day. They are either too big or he's not getting enough. Avoid feeding meal worms as they can cause impaction in chams, superworms are ok as a treat. Hornworms make another great treat. You want to vary the feeders as much as possible, crickets and roaches can be a base but need to get a nice mix to keep them happy. Getting his husbandry dialed in quickly will be key to your success, what's his supplement schedule? That's very important while they are growing to avoid MBD. You came to the right place to find help, research and dial in the basics then you can enjoy watching him grow.

Thank you I will try to feed him more, I was told mealworms were ok, but then not but when we run out of crickets my mom just feeds him mealworms. I put the supplement only a few days in the week, used to be more before but noticed it became a problem.

 

[Mahal347]

I gut load my locusts with a variety of things such as
fresh grass , carrots, lettuce, broccoli, fresh peas, green beans ,sprouts which they love an easy to come by at this time of year.
Doesn't have to cost fortunes as
Grass an dandelion leaves are usually around in your garden, though you have to be sure they are clean. I funnily grow them in a pot with a weather cover over them so I know they are clean an fresh.

I also now dust locust with calcium every other day

Don't know whether that helps

yes this does help thank you, its good to know all the different foods to feed the crickets, so thanks again