hello everybody! Help....

[Irish]

Hey guys,
I'm still kind of new to the whole chameleon ownership and I'm looking for any tips or suggestions to raising my veield cham (Nabby). Nabby's still pretty young (6-8 months) so I'm not sure if it's male or female. I got it from a buddy who has a ton of reptiles, so he set me up with the basics to get me on the right track. I have a 22"x22"x36" screen cage with fake and real plants, a 100 watt zoo med uvb powersun bulb and a basking light on separate timers. Nabby seems to be pretty healthy and happy. Usually eats 5-7 crickets every other day that are being fed veggies and Fluckers calcium fortified cricket quencher. So I guess I just have a few basic questions (that I'm sure have already been answered here but I couldn't find them, sorry)

1) Am I feeding enough, and what else can I be feeding Nabs?
2) How big should Nabby be at this age?
3) Is this enclosure big enough for an adult cham?
4) And is there anything else I should know to keep Nabby happy?


Thanks for any input guys!! Please help the noob!

 

[buzz]

Hey guys,
I'm still kind of new to the whole chameleon ownership and I'm looking for any tips or suggestions to raising my veield cham (Nabby). Nabby's still pretty young (6-8 months) so I'm not sure if it's male or female. I got it from a buddy who has a ton of reptiles, so he set me up with the basics to get me on the right track. I have a 22"x22"x36" screen cage with fake and real plants, a 100 watt zoo med uvb powersun bulb and a basking light on separate timers. Nabby seems to be pretty healthy and happy. Usually eats 5-7 crickets every other day that are being fed veggies and Fluckers calcium fortified cricket quencher. So I guess I just have a few basic questions (that I'm sure have already been answered here but I couldn't find them, sorry)

1) Am I feeding enough, and what else can I be feeding Nabs?
2) How big should Nabby be at this age?
3) Is this enclosure big enough for an adult cham?
4) And is there anything else I should know to keep Nabby happy?


Thanks for any input guys!! Please help the noob!

with veiled you can pretty much sex it at birth there will be a spur on the foot. tht means it is a male. you shld feed him every day. and also use supplements on his food. Get rid of the powersun bulb it is to much uv for him. you need to get a retisun 5.0 linear bulb. your basking area should be around 85 degrees.if i were you i would upgrade his cage but you might be able to get away with it. and make sure you mist him atleat 2 times a day allowing the cage to dry between mists. and have a dripper as well. hope this helps.

 

[Irish]

thanks for the info buzz! how big would the spur be? Nabby has a little bump there but i cant really tell if it's big enough to be a male. He seems to love the UV bulb but I'll definitley move it farther from the cage so it's not too much for him. And I live in the bay area, so it's not too hard to keep his basking area around 85. lol Thanks again!

 

[Jamelon]

Hey Irish, im no expert since i havent picked up a chameleon yet but ive been reading the forums for a while so ill save the veterans some time and give you a little info, and they can add the finer details if i miss anything

If theres a bump then its a male, the spur isnt too large (sry dont have a picture) you can definetly find one if you look had enough to compare it to

You can feed Nabby silkworms, butterworms, mealworms, grasshoppers....basically anything that isnt toxic once ingested. Make sure to not feed Nabby flies caught in the wild, you never know what they were eating...most likely poo or some carrion which isnt all too good for your chameleon. As for the cage i think you are alright for now, but if you want to make nabby really happy then you can upgrade in the future. as buzz said you need to mist the cage so that Nabby can drink, mist all of the plants in there and nabby as well if he enjoys it but if he runs away just spray the plants. the mistings should be a couple minutes not just a quick one .

cant help with the size of nabby for the age, you should probably post a picture of him up so the experts can take a look and let you know. anyways hope this helps

 

[laurie]

Welcome Irish, let me add I ideas also. I have a veiled just a bit younger that yours so I can give you Peppers schedule. You can keep Nabs in his current cage but most of us use a 24x24x48 for a veiled adult. For now please fill out the attached form & post some pictures of your chameleon. The pictures will tell us if it is male of female.

CHAMELEON INFORMATION:

Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.


Pictures are helpful

 

[buzz]

just to add to jameleon with the food. you can also feed him dubia roaches they are great on protein and they love them. just make sure to get small ones cause they tend to get pretty big pretty fast. they are also easy to start a colony with to i am currently in the proccess. but make sure you do not feed him meal worms they can cause impaction. I would say thet best feeders for him are crickets. dubias. and silkworms so ive heard those are pretty much the best but variety is always good. use the other ones as treats. dubias and crickets are more of a staple food then the others.btw butterworms are good but very fatty most worms are going to fattier then the crickets or dubias so dnt give them to him TOOO much you dnt want him to be fat. last thing make sure you gutload your feeders when you buy them dnt feed them to him for 24 hours put them in sme where with sme veggies and stuff to get them sme nutrients. srry for he long post i tend to go on rants

 

[kinyonga]

Tarsal spur...
https://www.chameleonforums.com/tarsal-spurs-12120/index3.html

Its important to dust the insects (just before feeding them to the chameleon) with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for the usually poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus found in many of the feeder insects.

I also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder to ensure that the chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. I leave it to produce the rest of the D3 from its exposure to the UVB (which should not pass through glass or plastic, BTW). D3 from supplements can build up in the system and cause problems but that produced from the exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of the UVB.

I dust twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A. The beta carotene won't build up in the system like the prEformed sources of vitamin A will...and it leaves the chameleon's owner to decide how much prEformed vitamin A (if any) is given to the chameleon. Excess prEformed vitamin A (acetate, retinol, retinyl, etc.) may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD.

I gutload crickets, roaches, superworms, locusts, etc. with a wide variety of greens (dandelion, kale, collards, escarole, endive, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, zucchini, etc.). These same greens and veggies can be offered to your chameleon along with a small amount of fruit (pear, apple, melon, berries, etc.).

Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are all important in bone health and other systems in the chameleon and need to be in balance. You need to look at what you feed the chameleon, what you feed the insects and what you supplement with when trying to balance them.

Appropriate temps. also play a part since they aid in digestion and thus indirectly in nutrient absorption.

If your chameleon is female, then its important to provide a suitable place for her to dig in the cage in case she needs to lay eggs. They can produce eggs even when not mated.

Its also important not to overfeed her constantly once she is sexually mature.

Hope this helps!

 

[Champeleons]

.btw butterworms are good but very fatty most worms are going to fattier then the crickets or dubias so dnt give them to him TOOO much you dnt want him to be fat.

I have heard a lot of you say that butterworms are very fatty, but someone had posted a nutrient comparison a couple weeks ago, & it showed butterworms as having a very low fat %, lower than crickets even...was i reading that wrong?

 

[Irish]

hey guys...thanks for all the useful info, and sorry it took me so long to get back. Here's Nabby's info...


Your Chameleon - Veiled, not sure of sex or age (need some help with that!) I've had him for about 5 months now i think.
Handling - I only handle him 1 or 2 times a week (he seems to be ok with that and actually hangs on to me when I try to put him back in his cage )
Feeding - I was only feeding Nabs 4-6 crickets every other day (recommended by the guy I got him from) but I recently started feeding him roaches, and he loves them! The roaches are getting apples and various other greens and the crickets are getting calcium fortified fluckers gelled water, some greens, and I started dusting them a few times a month.
Supplements - Sorry, not sure of what type of dust it is...just got a little bag of it from a friend. What do you guys recommend?
Watering - I've just been spraying the cage down with a spray bottle, but I'm trying to figure out a misting system with a pump sprayer (any ideas?) I try to mist him 3 or 4 times a day for a few minutes each time. I see him drink every once and awhile but not every time.
Fecal Description - Appears to be pretty solid, brown and white usually. Sometimes has a hint of cream color in the white part. Has not been tested for parasites (is this recommended?)
History - Not a whole lot of info. Got him as a baby and I haven't had any problems with him. But his parents both died recently within a week of each other to unknown causes (kind of concerned about that.)

Cage Info:
Cage Type - I built a 22"x22"x32" cage with aluminum mesh sides and a plexi-glass bottom.
Lighting - I have a powersun 100 watt UVB bulb that I usually turn on when I'm home and make sure to keep on for a few hours after he eats. And I have a 75 watt flood light that I have on a timer to come on every couple of hours during the day to keep him warm. I was using a red light to keep him warm at night, but I was told that it's not necessary and I should just use a ceramic bulb(opinions?)
Temperature - Don't yell at me, but I haven't measured the temps...sorry. any recommendations on a good thermometer?
Humidity - Again...don't yell at me but haven't measured...recommendations?
Plants - I have a live umbrella plant in the cage, not sure of the actual species, but I got the ok to use the plant from a reptile guy. And I have some fake plants and some real grape vines for him to crawl around on.
Placement - I have the cage in the corner of my room, so not much traffic/noise/anything to stress him. It's on the floor so the top is appx 32" from the ground and the light is about 4-6 inches above that.
Location - I'm in the east bay. Inland from san francisco so It's a little humid and hot in the summer and then lots of rain and cold in the winter.

No problems that I'm really worried about other than curious about his size??

Hopefully this is enough info to help me out! Thanks everybody!