First Veiled Chameleon

[bay1997]

Hello!
I am a new chameleon owner as well as a new member to these forums.
I have previously kept snakes but had made the decision to venture into the world of chameleons a few months back and began research then. I finally have felt prepared enough and brought home my new little man 4 days ago. He's 4 weeks old and around 4ish inches long, not including tail. Everything in his enclosure seems up to par (humidity good, basking temp good, there's a ton of branches to climb and leaves to hang out in). But he still seems unhappy or stressed. Could this just be due to the stress of moving to a new home or is there something I could be over looking as far as husbandry goes?
Thanks!

 

[Char333p]

Hello!
I am a new chameleon owner as well as a new member to these forums.
I have previously kept snakes but had made the decision to venture into the world of chameleons a few months back and began research then. I finally have felt prepared enough and brought home my new little man 4 days ago. He's 4 weeks old and around 4ish inches long, not including tail. Everything in his enclosure seems up to par (humidity good, basking temp good, there's a ton of branches to climb and leaves to hang out in). But he still seems unhappy or stressed. Could this just be due to the stress of moving to a new home or is there something I could be over looking as far as husbandry goes?
Thanks!

Welcome! Yes for sure. They need a few weeks to adjust. As long as he is eating and drinking he will be fine. Younger chameleons usually need have different needs then older chameleon.

Can you post pics of him an his enclosure? So we can get idea of what his set up is like

 

[bay1997]

Here are the photos! I have a couple more plants with some broader leaves on their way in the mail because my local pet store was out of stock. The photo of him on my husbands hand was from right when we brought him home before we put him in his enclosure, and he hasn't been handled at all since.
Thank you!!

 

[bay1997]

Welcome! Yes for sure. They need a few weeks to adjust. As long as he is eating and drinking he will be fine. Younger chameleons usually need have different needs then older chameleon.

Can you post pics of him an his enclosure? So we can get idea of what his set up is like

Also, the attached photo of his enclosure was from in the morning right when his light came back on, thats why the temperature is a little on the low side

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

Gotta upgrade that lighting ASAP!

 

[JoXie411]

Cheat sheets, also is he translucent??

 

[Peeps101]

View attachment 226182View attachment 226181

Here are the photos! I have a couple more plants with some broader leaves on their way in the mail because my local pet store was out of stock. The photo of him on my husbands hand was from right when we brought him home before we put him in his enclosure, and he hasn't been handled at all since.
Thank you!!

That’s so interesting. Some of his feet make him look like a translucent chameleon by how pink they are. He looks great either way though! If you get more branches be sure to place them horizontally going up and down like a zig-zag going up. Also a lot of new owners tend to go straight to feeding mealworms, don’t feed those as they can cause impaction. I noticed you only have a dual lamp, you’ll need a UV linear bulb + the fixture to prevent MBD (metabolic bone disease). When you get insects for him to eat make sure you’re dusting them with the right supplements (dump the bugs in a bag w/dust and lightly shake them until they’re covered) and feeding your insects (gut loading) with carrots and other greens. Take a look at these graphics for more into and use the resource tabs here and ask many questions!

 

[bay1997]

Gotta upgrade that lighting ASAP!

When I was at the reptile store and asked about lighting, they told me the larger lights could get too warm for the little guy. But I will take your word for it!! Thank you!!

 

[Peeps101]

Cheat sheets, also is he translucent??

That’s what I was wondering! Two of his feet are pink and one isn’t

 

[Peeps101]

When I was at the reptile store and asked about lighting, they told me the larger lights could get too warm for the little guy. But I will take your word for it!! Thank you!!

How many of his feet are pink? Just those two in the pic?

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

When I was at the reptile store and asked about lighting, they told me the larger lights could get too warm for the little guy. But I will take your word for it!! Thank you!!

They don't produce much heat if at all. Haha petstore employees will say anything to get you to buy the things they have heavily in stock. They produce UVB and some UVA. Those screw in light bulb UVB bulbs are garbage and do not produce enough UVB in enough of an area to keep your chameleon healthy

 

[bay1997]

That’s so interesting. Some of his feet make him look like a translucent chameleon by how pink they are. He looks great either way though! If you get more branches be sure to place them horizontally going up and down like a zig-zag going up. Also a lot of new owners tend to go straight to feeding mealworms, don’t feed those as they can cause impaction. I noticed you only have a dual lamp, you’ll need a UV linear bulb + the fixture to prevent MBD (metabolic bone disease). When you get insects for him to eat make sure you’re dusting them with the right supplements (dump the bugs in a bag w/dust and lightly shake them until they’re covered) and feeding your insects (gut loading) with carrots and other greens. Take a look at these graphics for more into and use the resource tabs here and ask many questions! View attachment 226187View attachment 226188View attachment 226189View attachment 226190

Thank you!! His crickets are currently being gutloaded with sweet potatoes and spinach. And Im using calcium with out D3 to dust! I'll get him a new lighting set up asap, I think i was given some misinformation at the reptile shop I got him from. Thanks again!

 

[JoXie411]

That’s what I was wondering! Two of his feet are pink and one isn’t

Might just be a low

 

[bay1997]

How many of his feet are pink? Just those two in the pic?

Both his back feet are fully pink, and the tips of one of his front feet are pink as well.

 

[JoXie411]

Both his back feet are fully pink, and the tips of one of his front feet are pink as well.

Did they at least inform you he was translucent at the pet store? If not then yea they didn’t know much

 

[bay1997]

Cheat sheets, also is he translucent??

I am not totally positive what that means in regards to chameleons, would you mind explaining?

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

Thank you!! His crickets are currently being gutloaded with sweet potatoes and spinach. And Im using calcium with out D3 to dust! I'll get him a new lighting set up asap, I think i was given some misinformation at the reptile shop I got him from. Thanks again!

Awesome and thank you! Very rarely do we get such delightful agreeable adults in this forum. Best of luck to your family and your new family member! Just remember we are always here if you need us

 

[JoXie411]

I am not totally positive what that means in regards to chameleons, would you mind explaining?

It just means he has a skin pigment difference From normal veiled chameleon‘s

 

[Peeps101]

I am not totally positive what that means in regards to chameleons, would you mind explaining?

They’re kind of the same as a veiled cham but they’re arms and legs are that pink-ish/pale color your little guy has

 

[bay1997]

Awesome and thank you! Very rarely do we get such delightful agreeable adults in this forum. Best of luck to your family and your new family member! Just remember we are always here if you need us

Thanks! I just want to make sure I'm giving him the best care that I can