How much is too much?

[Ellie And Me]

Ok been doing alot of reading on the whole feeding thing for my vailed. Some are saying just feed 5-7 crickets. Honestly I think this is insane.

This is what i'm doing. I'm feeding from 9-12 small crickets one day then going to a few small mealworms the next day and as a treat once a week I will give her one or two wax worms. I know over feeding is a big problem but under feeding is a big no no also.

This is my first chameleon but ive had many ther reps. from savana monitors, berm python, lepord geckos. never had to worry about over feeding. But that was before the internet was big and bill gates said "we will never need 1 gig of memory" but now the problem is that so many think they are EXPERTS on everything and can post at a click of a mouse. just looking for your thoughts.

Sorry I've had Ellie for a few months now and she might be less than 8 months old.

 

[jannb]

If she's of good size and over 6 months old you should be feeding her 6 to 8 feeders depending on the size every other day. You might find my egg laying/laying bin helpful. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html

 

[Ellie And Me]

hmm I'll have to look into it more. she pretty much feeds like she hasn't eaten in weeks everytime I feed her.

 

[jannb]

hmm I'll have to look into it more. she pretty much feeds like she hasn't eaten in weeks everytime I feed her.

Females always act like they are starving.

 

[RUNNERBOY]

i just got a baby veiled and i dont really know how much to feed him/her day to day cuz i have normally been feeding him 3 crickets but he chowed down on five today all at once. is there any number that i should stop feeding him at?

 

[jannb]

i just got a baby veiled and i dont really know how much to feed him/her day to day cuz i have normally been feeding him 3 crickets but he chowed down on five today all at once. is there any number that i should stop feeding him at?

How old is he? If he's a baby then feed him all that he will eat in a few minutes and a couple for later twice a day. Babies eat 10 to 15 small feeders a day.

 

[RUNNERBOY]

How old is he? If he's a baby then feed him all that he will eat in a few minutes and a couple for later twice a day. Babies eat 10 to 15 small feeders a day.

10 to 15???? So I am starving him!?!?!? Frick. Not really any idea how old he is, got him from petco, he about 2.5 inches long if that helps.

 

[jannb]

10 to 15???? So I am starving him!?!?!? Frick. Not really any idea how old he is, got him from petco, he about 2.5 inches long if that helps.

At 2.5 inches I'd let him have pretty much all he wants.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Babies you can give as much as they can eat within about 5 minutes, two or three times a day.
Adults do not need much, roughly 8-14 feeders a week (spread over several days) is sufficient. overfeeding adult females is a bad idea. waxworms are a bad idea too.

You can read specifically what I feed my animals in my blog:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/food-diary/

 

[Ellie And Me]

guess i'll have to find a vet and see what they say. got her to eat some chopped romaine and apples the other day. took her about 15 mins and a few passes around the feeder cup to even try. I'll have to try other things as well any sugestions on fruit and veggies?

 

[kaylie]

guess i'll have to find a vet and see what they say. got her to eat some chopped romaine and apples the other day. took her about 15 mins and a few passes around the feeder cup to even try. I'll have to try other things as well any sugestions on fruit and veggies?

I would listen to Jann about the feeding amount, she is a Veiled expert and has some of the most healthy looking and beautiful Veileds I have seen, and successfully bred them. I have read that feeding females too much can cause them to lay more often and have bigger clutches, which in turn shortens their lives. They do not get so lucky as to have 10+ insects on a platter in front of them everyday in the wild. Even if they did, they would get way more exercise out there than in captivity to balance it out.

Mustard greens, collard greens, kale, strawberries, carrot, ect. I think if you can gutload with it, they can eat it directly. Not sure if it's the same for dry gutload though. Do a search, there are threads on this out there. I'm not totally sure of any more, my Veiled won't go for anything but insects.

 

[kaylie]

By the way Jann (or anyone else who can answer), what amount would you recommend feeding a 7 month male Veiled? Feeder size being medium.

 

[kinyonga]

A chameleon is not a monitor or a leopard gecko, etc. its a chameleon and not everything that applies to other lizards applies to a chameleon.

If you overfeed a female veiled chameleon constantly you may very well end up with a chameleon that suffers from constipation, may prolapse and may develop MBD as well as reproductive issues.

"Chronic overeating leads to shortened lifespans in both sexes. Overfed females will produce massive clutches of eggs. They usually do not live more than two years"...
http://webspinners.com/coloherp/cb-news/Vol-33/cbn-0604/Veiled.php

"Dr. Stahl who remarked that such prolapses are usually caused by overfeeding"...
https://www.chameleonforums.com/warning-about-overfeeding-young-melleri-15428/

 

[pssh]

You would think that it is not enough, but you are not a chameleon. Mammals and chameleons are very different in most aspects. Healthy adult chameleons can go weeks without eating (more than a month even) without any serious side effects. Some even go on hunger strikes for that long.

Veiled females tend to produce clutches depending on environmental factors like food abundance, temperature, etc. When conditions are ideal for egg making (ie, plentiful food and water and optimal basking temps) they will cycle much bigger clutches. When conditions are less than ideal for reproduction (limited food and lower basking temp) they will usually produce smaller or no clutches. That being said, the amount of food that is not optimal for reproduction is still enough for the females to live longer, easier lives.

Overfed female veileds have been known to lay 100+ eggs which severely takes a toll on their health and life span. These chameleons generally live 2-3 years where as females that are prevented from cycling have been known to live 6+ years.

 

[bikesforme]

when i had a vieled i would grow a pot of collards and a pot of kale and 1 of red leaf lettus under grow lights that way i always had young fresh veggies for him

 

[Jammonlee]

What if your babies don't want to eat 15-20 crix a day? I've let mine free roam for the 3 weeks I've had them. All crix are accessible, while trying to hide, if he wanted to search for them he could easily find them. 5 of them normally stand next to him while he basks...but he doesnt always go for them. He may take one or two, then leave the rest alone and by the end of the day the feeder count is only 3 lower. I've since moved to cup feeding. I've cut a milk jug and placed it lower and close to his favorite spot for him to see. The jug is surrounded by leaves in case the strange thing might scare him. he hasnt came close to it yet but I'm hoping he will soon. We will see....

 

[camimom]

I would listen to Jann about the feeding amount, she is a Veiled expert and has some of the most healthy looking and beautiful Veileds I have seen, and successfully bred them. I have read that feeding females too much can cause them to lay more often and have bigger clutches, which in turn shortens their lives. They do not get so lucky as to have 10+ insects on a platter in front of them everyday in the wild. Even if they did, they would get way more exercise out there than in captivity to balance it out.Do a search, there are threads on this out there. I'm not totally sure of any more, my Veiled won't go for anything but insects.

Can a 5 week old veiled male eat strawberries? or should i stick to ff and pinheads?

 

[jerseyrugby21]

A chameleon is not a monitor or a leopard gecko, etc. its a chameleon and not everything that applies to other lizards applies to a chameleon.

If you overfeed a female veiled chameleon constantly you may very well end up with a chameleon that suffers from constipation, may prolapse and may develop MBD as well as reproductive issues.

"Chronic overeating leads to shortened lifespans in both sexes. Overfed females will produce massive clutches of eggs. They usually do not live more than two years"...
http://webspinners.com/coloherp/cb-news/Vol-33/cbn-0604/Veiled.php

"Dr. Stahl who remarked that such prolapses are usually caused by overfeeding"...
https://www.chameleonforums.com/warning-about-overfeeding-young-melleri-15428/

i have a male veiled that i just bought (2 months)
i am feeding him pretty much all that he can eat worth of crickets (10-15)
am i feeding him to much? almost everyone i talk to say feed him as much as he can eat while there are some that say that they shorten the lifespan. i just want to do what is best for my little guy. i will obviously lower the amount once he gets older but i don't want him to get any issues
(another thing i have heard is that overfeeding can cause MBD so this is obviously a pressing issue)