How is my little guy doing?

[wcoll325]

Hey there everyone! Brand new owner here, have had this little guy for almost a week now.
He’s eating fruit and leafy green gut loaded dubias, meal and wax worms well and drinking when I drip water in the morning and evening (dripper system and fogger on the way in the mail). I just want opinions on if he looks healthy. I know he’s not happy yet, still adjusting.

First image is him at the store, the next at home, then taking his first steps in his new Enclosure.
I had an awesome convo with someone from r/chameleons that helped me tweak my husbandry and answer a lot of questions so we then updated the enclosure (4th photo during (pooed in my hand shortly after photo was taken) and 5th photo where he’s currently living)). I know glass isn’t good but that’s what was suggested at the store; waiting for new mesh enclosure to arrive.

He pooed again this afternoon, first one looked like urate, nice and white with yellowish slime then followed by the 4 honkers in the 6th image. He has been eating quite a bit and I imagine he was not fed so well in the store.

The last photo was just a few minutes ago, my husband tried to coax him out a couple hours ago and he did not go for it. Does my little guy’s look give any hints to sickness or something I should change? I definitely have overbearing parent vibes at the moment since he’s so new to me!

 

[wcoll325]

I believe he’s around 3-4 months old.

I haven’t really handled him unless absolutely necessary (bringing him home, setting up his enclosure).

I’m using repti-calcium without D3. He was fed small crickets and meal worms at the store (ran out of crickets). I started with a few meal worms and wax worms and he would come down to his bowl to feed on them. Now that I have roaches, I place the feeders (now just wax worms and dubia roaches) in a small plastic bowl with a light dusting of the calcium so they get a slight coating and then feed him the roaches near the spot where he perches. His aim has gotten so good! He will usually climb down to get the worms if he is still hungry.

I have a 65w soft light incandescent flood bulb for heat directly on the mesh top and the Arcadia 24w HO T5 12%. Bulb for UVB about 15 inches above the mesh top. Temperature directly under the heat bulb is 85F but he hangs out in an area that is usually 72-80F.

 

[Beman]

Welcome to the forum. Cute lil man you have there. If you can fill out our husbandry form below by copy pasting it into your response and filling it out I can give you thorough feedback.

Chameleon Info:

• 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.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

 

[wcoll325]

Cham



Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Veiled, Male (I believe), I have had him for a week.
• Handling - Handled for the first couple days while adjusting his enclosure. He has been very antisocial for 4 days now.
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? Feeding meal worms, wax worms, and dubia roaches. What amount? 2-3 worms and 4-5 roaches twice a day. Feed around 7am and 6pm How are you gut-loading your feeders? Gut-loading feeders with leafy greens, dandelion greens, carrots, fruit, and hibiscus flowers
• Supplements - Zoo Med repti-calcium without D3; I lightly dust his feeding dish with calcium and let feeders get a slight dusting before letting him have them. Just started herptivite with D3 last night.
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use?I have a water bottle with holes that drip for 3-4 minutes twice a day into his plants. I use a hand mister an hour after lights out. I have seen him drink a couple times. He will lick droplets off the walls of the enclosure and from the leaves of his hibiscus.
• Fecal Description - His stool has been dark brown, first time he went it was one small piece with the urate attached and slightly orange. Went last night (pictured above) urate came out first and fell out to where I couldn’t get a picture. It was cream/white with yellowish goo. He has not been tested for parasites.
• History - Came from Petsmart, no known issues that I know of.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Thrive reptile 30 gallon enclosure, 18x18x24 inches, mostly glass with aluminum mesh top and vent on front above door. We keep the door open when we are home for better air flow.
• Lighting - GE 65w soft white flood lamp for heat and Arcadia proT5 HO UV-B.
• Temperature - 86 degree basking spot under heat light, 76-80 degrees at highest point where he usually hangs out. 70-74 degrees toward the bottom of the foliage where his food dish is. Lowest overnight temp is usually around 65 degrees. I measure temps with two digital hygrometers, one at the top and one toward the bottom. I also have a hand held temperature gun that I use to spot check various places throughout.
• Humidity - 80-98% humidity at night and 40-55% during the day. Maintained by misting and live plants, Measured with digital hygrometer.
• Plants - Mostly live plants, have a large hibiscus and medium pothos vine, a fake syngonium vine that came with the enclosure.
• Placement - Cage is located in living room next to the door to the yard as its the only source of natural light in the room, above an air vent that stays closed, with a ceiling fan about 3 feet away that is hardly ever used. Top of the cage is about 4 feet off the ground.
• Location - Located in Missouri, USA.

Current Problem - Just wanting someone to help me tweak my husbandry and let me know if my little guy looks healthy!

 

[MissSkittles]

Hi there and welcome! Your little guy is adorable I’ll go thru all of your husbandry, but it’ll take me a bit of time.

 

[MissSkittles]

I haven’t yet read anything, but I expect there to be quite a bit of changes to make and it may seem overwhelming. Just keep in mind that we all started at the beginning and are here for you.

• 
  
• Your Chameleon - Veiled, Male (I believe), I have had him for a week. I’m going to make a very rough guess that he is somewhere around 4 months old...maybe. I do see his tarsal spurs and he does have male patterns, so no question about his gender.
• Handling - Handled for the first couple days while adjusting his enclosure. He has been very antisocial for 4 days now. Give him time to settle in and adjust to his new life. Veileds are well known for not being the friendliest though. Building trust is important and here’s a great blog on that. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/building-trust-with-your-chameleon.2396/
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? Feeding meal worms, wax worms, and dubia roaches. No, meh and yes. Attaching some graphics that will help on types of feeders. Like us, variety is best and enjoyed. What amount? 2-3 worms and 4-5 roaches twice a day. If my guesstimate about him being 4 months old is correct, he needs to be fed more like 12-15 feeders once daily in the morning. As he gets older and his growth slows and ends, you’ll be feeding less and less often. Feed around 7am and 6pm How are you gut-loading your feeders? Gut-loading feeders with leafy greens, dandelion greens, carrots, fruit, and hibiscus flowers Very nice! You could add a bit though. See graphic below.
• Supplements - Zoo Med repti-calcium without D3; I lightly dust his feeding dish with calcium and let feeders get a slight dusting before letting him have them. Yes and no. You want to lightly dust his feeders right before giving to him. You’ll use the calcium without D3 at every feeding except one every other week. Just started herptivite with D3 last night. Do you mean Reptivite with D3? If so, you’ll use for only one feeding every other week. If you do mean Herptivite, that is only a multivitamin and you’ll need an additional calcium with D3. You would alternate using them for one feeding weekly, so that each is given once every other week.
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use?I have a water bottle with holes that drip for 3-4 minutes twice a day into his plants. I use a hand mister an hour after lights out. I have seen him drink a couple times. He will lick droplets off the walls of the enclosure and from the leaves of his hibiscus. Using your dripper is great, but you do need to mist more. It is best to mist for at least 2 minutes twice daily - right before lights on and off.
• Fecal Description - His stool has been dark brown, first time he went it was one small piece with the urate attached and slightly orange. Went last night (pictured above) urate came out first and fell out to where I couldn’t get a picture. It was cream/white with yellowish goo. He has not been tested for parasites. Poo looks pretty normal. It is always a good idea to have a veterinary wellness check and a fecal check. Chain pet stores do not check them. Also, you’ll be able to meet with and start a relationship with your exotic vet (although we hope you’ll never need one).
• History - Came from Petsmart, no known issues that I know of.

I’m going to break this into two parts.

 

[MissSkittles]

• Cage Type - Thrive reptile 30 gallon enclosure, 18x18x24 inches, mostly glass with aluminum mesh top and vent on front above door. This enclosure is ok for now, but before you know it, your little cutie will be a big handsome fella and be needing much more space. The minimum is a 2x2x4’ enclosure, but if you have the ability to give larger than that, by all means do. While everyone has their preference, I like screen enclosures as they are more forgiving and adjustable for your individual environment. I don’t want to get into this much here, but usually we cover the back and some or all of the sides to keep in humidity (if needed) and overspray of water. We keep the door open when we are home for better air flow.
• Lighting - GE 65w soft white flood lamp for heat and Arcadia proT5 HO UV-B. Oh thank goodness! You have an excellent uvb light! You’ll want there to be a distance of about 9” between basking spot and lights. As little ones do like to walk upside down along the screen top, it’s best to elevate the lights at least a few inches to prevent burns.
• Temperature - 86 degree basking spot under heat light, 76-80 degrees at highest point where he usually hangs out. 70-74 degrees toward the bottom of the foliage where his food dish is. Lowest overnight temp is usually around 65 degrees. I measure temps with two digital hygrometers, one at the top and one toward the bottom. I also have a hand held temperature gun that I use to spot check various places throughout. The 86 is a bit too warm for a youngster. It is a good temp for when he becomes an adult though. For now, keeping his basking area around 80 is great.
• Humidity - 80-98% humidity at night and 40-55% during the day. Maintained by misting and live plants, Measured with digital hygrometer. Excellent!
• Plants - Mostly live plants, have a large hibiscus and medium pothos vine, a fake syngonium vine that came with the enclosure. You will need to remove the artificial plants and the vine with the mossy stuff. Veileds like to nibble their plants and can’t differentiate between real and fake. All it takes is one nibble of a fake leaf to create a bowel obstruction. Attaching a safe plant list. For the hibiscus and other tropical plants, you will need a rather strong plant light. Arcadia Jungle Dawn is good. I use Sansi 70w.
• Placement - Cage is located in living room next to the door to the yard as its the only source of natural light in the room, above an air vent that stays closed, with a ceiling fan about 3 feet away that is hardly ever used. Top of the cage is about 4 feet off the ground. You will want this to be higher. Height = safety for chameleons. I have mine with their tops about 18” away from the ceiling.
• Location - Located in Missouri, USA.

Current Problem - Just wanting someone to help me tweak my husbandry and let me know if my little guy looks healthy!
Yes! He does look healthy…and adorable! So, you don’t need to make as many changes as I initially thought before reading your husbandry. The pics of your enclosure threw me off quite a bit. Your enclosure set up is lovely, but unfortunately is more appropriate for something like a crested gecko. Chameleons are more arboreal and need a simulation of a tree with lots of branches to travel. Unless truly bioactive, having a bare floor is best and easiest to keep clean and hygienic. There are several styles and types of feeding stations specifically for chameleons that help contain feeders like crickets. I have/love the shooting gallery. https://tkchameleons.com/products/shooting-gallery I’m attaching a pic of one of my enclosures to give you an idea of a decent set up. I use Dragon Ledges https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/ which make attaching things super easy.
Do keep asking any questions you may have and sharing pics and progress of your handsome little guy. Very glad that you’re here.

 

[wcoll325]

I did mean Reptivite with D3, got confused! I will start feeding him more and only in the morning. I will head to the pet shop and get some small crickets today! Luckily I work at a restaurant with a salad bar that is closed on the weekends so I am able to take a lot of stuff that would otherwise be thrown away to gut load.

I have a fogger, automatic drip, XL mesh enclosure and a plant stand to go in it on the way in the mail so hopefully that will help with watering and humidity. I was worried about misting too often because the humidity shoots up pretty high when I do so.

 

[wcoll325]

• Cage Type - Thrive reptile 30 gallon enclosure, 18x18x24 inches, mostly glass with aluminum mesh top and vent on front above door. This enclosure is ok for now, but before you know it, your little cutie will be a big handsome fella and be needing much more space. The minimum is a 2x2x4’ enclosure, but if you have the ability to give larger than that, by all means do. While everyone has their preference, I like screen enclosures as they are more forgiving and adjustable for your individual environment. I don’t want to get into this much here, but usually we cover the back and some or all of the sides to keep in humidity (if needed) and overspray of water. We keep the door open when we are home for better air flow.
• Lighting - GE 65w soft white flood lamp for heat and Arcadia proT5 HO UV-B. Oh thank goodness! You have an excellent uvb light! You’ll want there to be a distance of about 9” between basking spot and lights. As little ones do like to walk upside down along the screen top, it’s best to elevate the lights at least a few inches to prevent burns.
• Temperature - 86 degree basking spot under heat light, 76-80 degrees at highest point where he usually hangs out. 70-74 degrees toward the bottom of the foliage where his food dish is. Lowest overnight temp is usually around 65 degrees. I measure temps with two digital hygrometers, one at the top and one toward the bottom. I also have a hand held temperature gun that I use to spot check various places throughout. The 86 is a bit too warm for a youngster. It is a good temp for when he becomes an adult though. For now, keeping his basking area around 80 is great.
• Humidity - 80-98% humidity at night and 40-55% during the day. Maintained by misting and live plants, Measured with digital hygrometer. Excellent!
• Plants - Mostly live plants, have a large hibiscus and medium pothos vine, a fake syngonium vine that came with the enclosure. You will need to remove the artificial plants and the vine with the mossy stuff. Veileds like to nibble their plants and can’t differentiate between real and fake. All it takes is one nibble of a fake leaf to create a bowel obstruction. Attaching a safe plant list. For the hibiscus and other tropical plants, you will need a rather strong plant light. Arcadia Jungle Dawn is good. I use Sansi 70w.
• Placement - Cage is located in living room next to the door to the yard as its the only source of natural light in the room, above an air vent that stays closed, with a ceiling fan about 3 feet away that is hardly ever used. Top of the cage is about 4 feet off the ground. You will want this to be higher. Height = safety for chameleons. I have mine with their tops about 18” away from the ceiling.
• Location - Located in Missouri, USA.

Current Problem - Just wanting someone to help me tweak my husbandry and let me know if my little guy looks healthy!
Yes! He does look healthy…and adorable! So, you don’t need to make as many changes as I initially thought before reading your husbandry. The pics of your enclosure threw me off quite a bit. Your enclosure set up is lovely, but unfortunately is more appropriate for something like a crested gecko. Chameleons are more arboreal and need a simulation of a tree with lots of branches to travel. Unless truly bioactive, having a bare floor is best and easiest to keep clean and hygienic. There are several styles and types of feeding stations specifically for chameleons that help contain feeders like crickets. I have/love the shooting gallery. https://tkchameleons.com/products/shooting-gallery I’m attaching a pic of one of my enclosures to give you an idea of a decent set up. I use Dragon Ledges https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/ which make attaching things super easy.
Do keep asking any questions you may have and sharing pics and progress of your handsome little guy. Very glad that you’re here.

I removed the mossy vine a couple days ago when I started feeding him roaches just in case he didn’t catch them before they made their way to it. I plan on getting him a taller table with a drain hole once the new screen enclosure comes in later this week. I will take a walk through the woods near my house to find some fallen branches and get them sanitized.

 

[MissSkittles]

I did mean Reptivite with D3, got confused! I will start feeding him more and only in the morning. I will head to the pet shop and get some small crickets today! Luckily I work at a restaurant with a salad bar that is closed on the weekends so I am able to take a lot of stuff that would otherwise be thrown away to gut load.

I have a fogger, automatic drip, XL mesh enclosure and a plant stand to go in it on the way in the mail so hopefully that will help with watering and humidity. I was worried about misting too often because the humidity shoots up pretty high when I do so.

Humidity will of course shoot up when misting, but with good ventilation will come back down to hopefully, the ideal range of 30-50%. Since your night temps are 65, you can use a fogger and have your humidity go all the way up to simulate natural hydration of fog.

 

[Jpeff]

Better off cutting fresh from trees then dead dry ones. I leave the bark on them. So when they get wet not as slipper. She gave you great advice.

 

[Beman]

Just remember when you get branches you do not want pine, cedar, or eucalyptus. I got all of mine from a neighbor that had just cut back his huge tree. I was able to then get fresh cut branches that I could cut down to fit. Sometimes you can contact tree trimming businesses and get some from them. I do not strip the bark either.