ERKleRose
Chameleon Enthusiast
Don’t handle him daily! Read the caresheet! https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/ He should only be fed every other day and have more crickets when you feed. What do you gutload with? He needs phosphorus free calcium without D3 every feeding, phosphorous free calcium with D3 twice monthly, and a multivitamin twice monthly. He needs to be misted at least twice, preferably three times, a day for at least 2 minutes, but preferably 5 minutes. Do you have a dripper? Try more variety in his feeders, silkworms are super healthy, along with multiple types of roaches, and hornworms add hydration, which I recommend using for you. Do not put him in front of a mirror! Mist his eyes to try to rinse them out daily. Maybe turn the kennel on its side, so that it’s 4 feet high, which is the minimum height for an adult male veiled. A minimum cage size for an adult male veiled is 2’ by 2’ by 4’ high. Get rid of the red bulb, and replace it with a regular white light incandescent heat bulb from the hardware store. When you get the money, invest in an automated mister and a t5HO linear uvb fixture and bulb. Make the lights 12 hours of uvb and basking and 12 hours of pitch black darkness. While you’re at the hardware store for a basking bulb, pick up an electric temperature gun for the basking spot and a digital hydrometer/thermometer combo to measure ambient temp and and humidity. Turn the overhead fan off. Find an exotics vet with cham experience a little further out to take him to.Cage Info:
View attachment 215817 View attachment 215817- Chameleon - He is a veiled chem, male, and is about 2 years old. He has been in my care since May of 2018
- Handling - I handle him daily now, but for the summer he was not handled much due to an emergency
- Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? Crickets. What amount? 5-6 a day, depending on size. What is the schedule? Once in the morning, all at once, in a feeding bucket. He eats when ever he feels during the day. How are you gut-loading your feeders? With
- Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? I use exo-terra non vitamin D powder, once a week, on his whole feeding of crickets.
- Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? I use a hand sprayer, once in the morning, and usually once in the evening, for about a minute, and of course his5-10 minute shower once a week, sometimes twice. Do you see your chameleon drinking? Yes, but not in the quantities he should be.
- Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Brown, and has cricket remains such as wings and bottoms of legs in them. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? I don't think he has
- History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. He is bland in one eye, meaning getting him to notice stuff is difficult. When I tried to feed him some strawberry, the puffed and missed. But he can look at him self in mirror for several minutes and not puff. I use a feeding bucket to ensure he gets his food.
- Cage Type - A home made, 3 ft high, four and a half foot deep dog kennel, that was the cage variety before we put plastic chicken wire around the outside and made a better door.
- Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? He has 13 hours of uva and uvb, a exo-terra lighting
- Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?basking spot 8s 100! Didn't check that! I am so embarrassed! I figured the distance was most important. This will be fixed asap(fixed!) The lowest would be 60. Cage floor temp is75.
- Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?I keep his humidity so that, at max it's 70, and it's only once gone below 45 the hand sprayer, once or twice a day. A zoo med hydrometer
- Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? I have tried to keep several live plants in there, but all have died(any reccomendation, that are really hearty? He's rough on plants.)
Current Problem - I don't believe he is drinking quite enough. The shaking is completly gone, but now he has a dark spot on his side, and I have read that it may be a fungal infection, a burn, or bruise. The main problem is, no herp vet anywhere around here. So it's all home remidies. This forum is all I have for help. I can send a pic of his encolure and the spot. One more thing about the spot, when he is a light colour, it's dark, when the rest of his body is dark, it's light... So sorry for not getting this on here sooner! I will be checking daily, and give updates as they come.
- 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?back corner of the house, I have a celing fan, that I keep going most of the time, and the two sides are ventilated, two side are against the wall, so I can keep humidity up, and circulate air. No high traffic in there. It's on the floor, but he have a heated basement so the floor isn't cold.
- Location - Where are you geographically located? In Canada, mid Saskatchewan.