Feisty Little Ball Of Fire.... Help?

[The Wild One]

Hi, I recently just bought a Baby Female Veiled Chameleon and I would love it if I could get some help. I have a few concerns about her misting schedule, drinking habits and hydration, and hissing. I’ll post some pics of her terrium

As for the misting schedule I don’t have one of those fancy misting machines because well, I really don’t have enough money, believe it or not but your average 7th grader doesn’t have a steady income. Anyways I have a reptifogger and I hand mist, but I don’t want to over hydrate her or the other way around. I have a hydrometer with a built in thermometer but I have a screen cage and I can’t figure out how to get it to stick and I currently don’t have any wire ties. But I have to go back to school in August so I won’t be home most of the day. Any ideas ? Greatly appreciated.

She doesn’t drink in front of me but I assume she’s drinking because her urates are completely white so that’s a good sign. I can’t get close enough to see any symptoms because she is really shy.

She hissed at me earlier today and tried to bite.. out of nowhere. Although my mom tried to grab her a few days ago and she hissed at her, that I can understand.
But I’m kinda confused even tho I think she’s in her teenage stage, or she was rlly mad at me for something. I’m having trouble building trust with her, she won’t hand feed or even eat in front of me. So if any of y’all have suggestions they will be very helpful!

Yes I know that they don’t like the be handled, and that they are just looking pets. This is my first reptile so I hope this will really help. I know that I’m young and everything and I will (and always have) read over my replies and try not to be snappy. I am open to any type of Constructive Criticism. I love to learn about these little guys!

Here are some pics that I took... if y’all see anything wrong with her plz reach out. I would love to keep my baby girl happy and healthy!

 

[The Wild One]

 

[pi_and_peg]

Hi, I recently just bought a Baby Female Veiled Chameleon and I would love it if I could get some help. I have a few concerns about her misting schedule, drinking habits and hydration, and hissing. I’ll post some pics of her terrarium and it is screen.

As for the misting schedule I don’t have one of those fancy misting machines because well, I really don’t have enough money, believe it or not but your average 7th grader doesn’t have a steady income. Anyways I have a reptifogger and I hand mist, but I don’t want to over hydrate her or the other way around. I have a hydrometer with a built in thermometer but I have a screen cage and I can’t figure out how to get it to stick and I currently don’t have any wire ties. But I have to go back to school in August so I won’t be home most of the day. Any ideas ? Greatly appreciated.

She doesn’t drink in front of me but I assume she’s drinking because her urates are completely white so that’s a good sign. I can’t get close enough to see any symptoms because she is really shy.

She hissed at me earlier today and tried to bite.. out of nowhere. Although my mom tried to grab her a few days ago and she hissed at her, that I can understand.
But I’m kinda confused even tho I think she’s in her teenage stage, or she was rlly mad at me for something. I’m having trouble building trust with her, she won’t hand feed or even eat in front of me. So if any of y’all have suggestions they will be very helpful!

Yes I know that they don’t like the be handled, and that they are just looking pets. This is my first reptile so I hope this will really help. I know that I’m young and everything and I will (and always have) read over my replies and try not to be snappy. I am open to any type of Constructive Criticism. I love to learn about these little guys!

Here are some pics that I took... if y’all see anything wrong with her plz reach out. I would love to keep my baby girl happy and healthy! And the terrarium, plz and thx!

Hello.
For a start, when it comes to holding, the trick I think is to sit down in front of her cage. Let her see you. Let her understand you aren't there to hurt her. Then, after doing that for a couple days, try opening her cage and just holding your hand still in it. She probably won't like, so don't do it for too long. Eventually she'll get more comfortable with you. Another step, if you have maybe some plant in her cage you take in and out, take her out while she is on it, sit, and watch her. The goal of all of these ideas is to let her know you are safe. You won't hurt her and she will take a long time to understand that but once she does- then you can work on holding her.
Chameleons are still relatively new to captivity compared to other creatures. They haven't been bred captively long enough to develop complete trust in humans and it depends greatly on thier lineage too. My chameleon who likes being held, or is at least more open to it, was captive bred and raised. As were her parents and those prior. My other chameleon, who I have no clue about her lineage becuase I saw her being housed with two sub-adults that were bullying her to the bottom of the cage so I bought her, is more unpredicatable. Some times she's climbing to you. Recently she's just hissing at me when I walk by her cage.
Big rule: never stress them out. Yes, it seems everything stresses them out. It's very nerve racking. As a 9th grader, it makes me very anxious for my "first" reptile to be such a vulnerable creature. I have alot of time/experience with ball pythons, corn snakes, crested geckos, and leaopard geckos-- But never 100% fully me. I knew if I wanted something, it'd be a waste of time and money to work up to it for me personally.
For misting, try misting 3-4 times a day. I suggest putting a shower curtain around thier cage to help keep the humidity in. Think about when you're getting a hot shower- they love that. When it comes time to school, try misting her for a long time in the morning, maybe see if one of your parents can mist her through the day, if not- a long mist the second you get home too will likely be necessary.
To keep tabs on the humidity, try to take the hydrometer and attack it with a bread tie. Next time you get bread, cut off the paper, and make sure to twist it out so there's nothing sharp in the cage.
My chameleons don't get handfed for multiple reasons. They don't like it, first, and that's okay. I wanted to bond with them that way, but they didn't want to- So I had to do something else. I'd honestly reccomend just putting thier crickets/mealworms/roaches/ect in thier cage and letting them hunt. It's good for them to explore. It's fun fo watch. (From a distance. My chameleon, Pascale, won't eat if she can see me. My chameleon, Paige, will eat and then probably try to eat me.) Make sure when you do this though to remove thier food they didn't eat in about an hour. Some chameleons like to eat at different times too. It's up to you to explore different times to see when she is hungry and wants to hunt.
This is all I have to say. I can't say you should trust me. I've had my chameleons for nearly two months after.. so much research- And I'm still doing things wrong. I don't know everything. Not everything I'm saying is likely 100% what you should be doing. I would say, you do know your chameleon best. No one else is there watching her, holding her, caring for her- and what works for some may not be what works for others.

 

[Beman]

https://www.chameleonbreeder.com/podcast/ep-89-naturalistic-hydration-for-chameleons/

Plus there are many more podcasts in the different seasons that will help you.

 

[The Wild One]

Ok thanks for the advice

 

[JoXie411]

So with handling it took my female 3 month to hand feed. It also took her 3 months to finally want to come out on my hand or even leave her cage. Patients Is key here. Veiled are extremely grumpy and have hot temperaments. They also aren’t very forgiving if you miss read there body language. The podcast will be a great step for you.

You might want to consider a heat gun to make use the readings are correct. They are like $10 super cheap. I feel like I missed something but if you have more questions I’m more then welcome to answer

 

[JoXie411]

So your going to want to add more branches and foliage to the cage. If you can find them without looking there isn’t enough coverage. I also see your using a compact uvb bulb your going to want to upgrade that right away to prevent mbd. You will want a t5ho 5.0, this is a hooded tube light

 

[janjan20]

Welcome! How old do you think she is? Since you have a female it’s very important to do your research on setting up a lay bin, how often to feed her, what gravid colors look like. They will lay in fertile eggs like chickens but many at a time. Here are some links to get you started.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/egg-laying-and-the-laying-bin.345/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video.77225/

 

[Leighqt]

Congratulations on your new Baby.

My Cham is now 8/9 months, he will hand feed certain Bugs ( locust ,large Crickets) and we are learning together about feeding from tongs, I feel we are still building trust , he drinks in front of me but always has a eye on me. His house is in my living room ,so he can see my family going about our daily lives, he will sit on a branch near the front and observe, I have Dogs and I think he enjoys watching them play.

I have lots of Vines so he can traverse all of his home, plenty of plants both real and fake. I enjoy observing him, eg he has been trying to walk to a certain spot in the Viv, so I added a plant to that area for his comfort, like a human child we respond to their needs.

Your little lady will need a laying bin in her cage and as suggested already there are some very informative podcasts, YouTube videos.

 

[The Wild One]

Can they lay eggs if I don’t have a male?

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

Can they lay eggs if I don’t have a male?

Yes

 

[Graves923]

Can they lay eggs if I don’t have a male?

Yes, females will still develop unfertilized eggs. Its extremely important to set up and maintain a proper laying bin for any egg laying female chameleon.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/egg-laying-and-the-laying-bin.345/

 

[The Wild One]

Then what do I with the eggs after their laid, how many times do they lay eggs, and around what age do they start?

 

[The Wild One]

Welcome! How old do you think she is? Since you have a female it’s very important to do your research on setting up a lay bin, how often to feed her, what gravid colors look like. They will lay in fertile eggs like chickens but many at a time. Here are some links to get you started.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/egg-laying-and-the-laying-bin.345/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video.77225/

She’s about 4 months old

 

[Thehippie]

Then what do I with the eggs after their laid, how many times do they lay eggs, and around what age do they start?

They start around 6 months since that is sexual maturity age for them and it all depends on the chameleon, how much you feed and how you supplement your cham. You need to supplement with calcium as stated above so she doesn't become egg bound. And if you feed more often she will lay more eggs.

 

[Graves923]

https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

Most of your questions are answered here^^^^

I personally refer to this caresheet anytime I am unsure of something.

 

[The Wild One]

K thanks for the advice

 

[The Wild One]

So I just sat with my hand in her cage for like 10 min and she’s halfway down... is that considered progress??

 

[Thehippie]

So I just sat with my hand in her cage for like 10 min and she’s halfway down... is that considered progress??

When did you get her also only 10 mins is not going to make a difference spend time with her for hours on end... But don't take her out. Read a book near her or sit on here but somewhere she can see you

 

[The Wild One]

That’s what I’ve been doing lately just sitting on my bed