Hydration

[Lincolntowncar]

Hello,

I have an about 2-3 month old chameleon that I got about two weeks ago. Aside with my issue with feeding him I’ve run into what I don’t know for sure is an issue. Basically, I don’t ever see him drink and idk if I should be worried! I saw him drink for the first time a couple of days ago and got very excited but haven’t seen him since. I use a deli cup with holes as a dripper and I also use a pressurized mister AT LEAST 2 times a day and that’s at a very minimum. Unless I’m at work or school I’m usually misting whenever I see leaves get dry. I know there are methods of checking for hydration like touching his skin but he still does not seem 100% comfortable with me so I have avoided handling him at all causes (which I’m also a little stressed about but I know these guys take a while to get comfy).

Basically to summerize, should I be worried about the drinking thing or do you think he’s just doing it when I’m not in the room? Also any tips on the process of getting those guys to trust you? I’ve made process, yesterday he was going to hunt for a mealworm I placed (I’m waiting for roaches to come in the mail, don’t worry not using as a permanent staple) and he couldn’t get there so I gave him my finger as a boost and he accepted it... process! But yeah if anyone could help with these two issues I’d Greatly appreciate it!

 

[Lincolntowncar]

Also here’s that sheet to fill out in case someone asks/when I replied after someone asked for it, I never got a response /:

Please fill out the “how to ask for help” form and post your answers back here. Quality pictures will help us help you.



Chameleon Info:

◦ Your Chameleon - Veiled chameleon, male, 2-3 months according to the last person I filled this out for. He has been in my care for about a week or so now.

◦ Handling - I have not handled him yet because I feel he needs more time to get used to the way things are going. Don’t want to stress him out.

◦ Feeding - Feeding is just starting to pick up, as I haven’t found the perfect way to feed him. I started with meal worms then found out they aren’t great for every day feeding. I then got dubia roaches and finally after a lot of trial and error figured out a way to feed him without them running away or falling to the bottom (put them on the ceiling). Now that I’m getting him to eat in general I’m going to start gut loading. Also I tried a feeding bowl but I don’t think it’s the best for this cage set up.

◦ Supplements - Repticalcium for the calcium no D3 and reptical for the multi vitamin and calcium with D3. Without D3 in mostly every feeding and others every two weeks.

◦ Watering - I have a pressurized mister that I spray whenever I see it gets dry and I also use a dripper for secondary/ when I’m at work. I mist just all the plants until I see they’re well dripped for him to drink. I actually saw him drink for the first time today after using the water purifier I got! Was very exciting, I was getting worried

◦ Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? There are dark and light fecies around the cage. No he has not been tested as I just got him.

◦ History - nothing I was told.



Cage Info:

◦ Cage - Combo cage with glass that has ventilation in the front doors and mesh on the top. 12 x 12 x 18 for now and will be upgrading in a few months when I love. Brand is Exo-terra.

◦ Lighting - Reptisun UVB 5.0 light for the UVB. Switched from the infared nano 25w to the 25w basking for heat. Brand for heat is zoo med. 8am-8pm for both.

◦ Temperature - 84 degrees at all times (aside from night time) I got a system that shuts off when it gets any hotter than that. It floats above the mesh with just a makeshift lamp holder I set up. Bottom stays at 72 degrees. Big time I’ve seen mid-low 70s. I have 3 thermometers. One is the original with a temp and humidity gauge. Second is the new system I referred to that has the timer. Third is a classic thermostat for the bottom.

◦ Humidity - From 50-70. Sometimes 40’s and 30’s when ventilation is going smooth. 80’s at night. Maintaining by making sure ventilation is good and misting the substrate if it gets too low. Use a thermostat/humidity gauge.

◦ Plants - No live plants for now, waiting til I get a new cage then hopefully going fully bioactive.

◦ Placement - Cage is in the corner of my room, kinda made its own little room by covering it all up with makeshift blinds. No fans or air vents nor high traffic. Don’t know the height. It’s on a night stand.

◦ Location - East Bay Area.



Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
He is shedding and I just want to make sure it’s normal that it’s white and it all looks normal in general. Ill provide pictures. Feeding techniques still aren’t perfected. I feel like a feeding bowl doesn’t really work because he stays at the top and my placement is towards the middle as that’s where it fits best. I’ve been going through trial and error with placing the food near him but he gets a little startled and I want to avoid stressing him out but it’s the only way he eats. He ends up eating I just want to see if there’s a better way. I’ve seen a makeshift feeding station that looks amazing but I would probably have to wait until I get the bigger cage because my cage is too small to fit it. Also, any specific place you recommend to buy dubias? Maybe also crickets too, I’ve tried to avoid getting those little terds but I might have to just do it to make sure he has variety, unless you know any other insect that’s as nutritious.
I’m going to try to provide photos for every question.
--------------



Please Note:

1 The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.

2 Photos can be very helpful.

 

[janjan20]

Can you take a pic of the poo and urate...I never see my guy drink and it’s been over a month. I have a dropper and mist several times a day. I do keep track of the urate color. It should be white to very light yellow. Anything darker is a concern he is not staying hydrated. Also, keep an eye on his eyes. They become sunken in when they are dehydrated. I know @Beman and @JoXie411 have more experience with veileds than I do. They also get some water from their food, is he eating better?

 

[Beman]

Here there see feedback in red bold. Welcome to the forum!

Chameleon Info:

◦ Your Chameleon - Veiled chameleon, male, 2-3 months according to the last person I filled this out for. He has been in my care for about a week or so now.

◦ Handling - I have not handled him yet because I feel he needs more time to get used to the way things are going. Don’t want to stress him out.

◦ Feeding - Feeding is just starting to pick up, as I haven’t found the perfect way to feed him. I started with meal worms then found out they aren’t great for every day feeding. I then got dubia roaches and finally after a lot of trial and error figured out a way to feed him without them running away or falling to the bottom (put them on the ceiling). Now that I’m getting him to eat in general I’m going to start gut loading. Also I tried a feeding bowl but I don’t think it’s the best for this cage set up. Good..

◦ Supplements - Repticalcium for the calcium no D3 and reptical for the multi vitamin and calcium with D3. Without D3 in mostly every feeding and others every two weeks. Good

◦ Watering - I have a pressurized mister that I spray whenever I see it gets dry and I also use a dripper for secondary/ when I’m at work. I mist just all the plants until I see they’re well dripped for him to drink. I actually saw him drink for the first time today after using the water purifier I got! Was very exciting, I was getting worried Good

◦ Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? There are dark and light fecies around the cage. No he has not been tested as I just got him. What does the urate portion look like? This is the white portion.. If it is showing mostly white then Hydration is good. If it is showing mostly yellow or orange then not so good.

◦ History - nothing I was told.



Cage Info:

◦ Cage - Combo cage with glass that has ventilation in the front doors and mesh on the top. 12 x 12 x 18 for now and will be upgrading in a few months when I love. Brand is Exo-terra. You will need to upgrade quicker then a few months. They grow very very rapidly in the first 5 months.

◦ Lighting - Reptisun UVB 5.0 light for the UVB. Switched from the infared nano 25w to the 25w basking for heat. Brand for heat is zoo med. 8am-8pm for both. Is the reptisun a T5Ho fixture?

◦ Temperature - 84 degrees at all times (aside from night time) I got a system that shuts off when it gets any hotter than that. It floats above the mesh with just a makeshift lamp holder I set up. Bottom stays at 72 degrees. Big time I’ve seen mid-low 70s. I have 3 thermometers. One is the original with a temp and humidity gauge. Second is the new system I referred to that has the timer. Third is a classic thermostat for the bottom. good.

◦ Humidity - From 50-70. Sometimes 40’s and 30’s when ventilation is going smooth. 80’s at night. Maintaining by making sure ventilation is good and misting the substrate if it gets too low. Use a thermostat/humidity gauge. Try to keep in in the 30-50% range during the day. Night when lights are off it can be high. FYI substrate will get nasty if not fully bio active set up.

◦ Plants - No live plants for now, waiting til I get a new cage then hopefully going fully bioactive. I highly recommend getting a live pothos plant now.. They love to munch on them and it will provide natural humidity and a place to hide.

◦ Placement - Cage is in the corner of my room, kinda made its own little room by covering it all up with makeshift blinds. No fans or air vents nor high traffic. Don’t know the height. It’s on a night stand.

◦ Location - East Bay Area.



Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
He is shedding and I just want to make sure it’s normal that it’s white and it all looks normal in general. Ill provide pictures. Feeding techniques still aren’t perfected. I feel like a feeding bowl doesn’t really work because he stays at the top and my placement is towards the middle as that’s where it fits best. I’ve been going through trial and error with placing the food near him but he gets a little startled and I want to avoid stressing him out but it’s the only way he eats. He ends up eating I just want to see if there’s a better way. I’ve seen a makeshift feeding station that looks amazing but I would probably have to wait until I get the bigger cage because my cage is too small to fit it. Also, any specific place you recommend to buy dubias? Maybe also crickets too, I’ve tried to avoid getting those little terds but I might have to just do it to make sure he has variety, unless you know any other insect that’s as nutritious.
I’m going to try to provide photos for every question.

Shedding is normal. Do not mist him directly. It is important that he remain dry while shedding or the shed will stick back to the skin. They need the air between to shed properly.

Put the feeding bowl in anyways... He will figure it out. This will give him a secondary option for feeding as well.

I buy feeders from https://dubiaroaches.com/ and I have bought from rainbowmealworms.com in the past.

Adding images for you as well.
www.chameleonbreeder.com is a great podcast full of tons of info. Lots of episodes.
This is a blog I did on building trust. May be helpful to you. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/building-trust-with-your-chameleon.2396/

 

[Graves923]

Chameleons can be shy drinkers. Its been over a year since I've seen my veiled drink. Monitor the eye turrets and the urates.

 

[Lincolntowncar]

Here there see feedback in red bold. Welcome to the forum!

Chameleon Info:

◦ Your Chameleon - Veiled chameleon, male, 2-3 months according to the last person I filled this out for. He has been in my care for about a week or so now.

◦ Handling - I have not handled him yet because I feel he needs more time to get used to the way things are going. Don’t want to stress him out.

◦ Feeding - Feeding is just starting to pick up, as I haven’t found the perfect way to feed him. I started with meal worms then found out they aren’t great for every day feeding. I then got dubia roaches and finally after a lot of trial and error figured out a way to feed him without them running away or falling to the bottom (put them on the ceiling). Now that I’m getting him to eat in general I’m going to start gut loading. Also I tried a feeding bowl but I don’t think it’s the best for this cage set up. Good..

◦ Supplements - Repticalcium for the calcium no D3 and reptical for the multi vitamin and calcium with D3. Without D3 in mostly every feeding and others every two weeks. Good

◦ Watering - I have a pressurized mister that I spray whenever I see it gets dry and I also use a dripper for secondary/ when I’m at work. I mist just all the plants until I see they’re well dripped for him to drink. I actually saw him drink for the first time today after using the water purifier I got! Was very exciting, I was getting worried Good

◦ Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? There are dark and light fecies around the cage. No he has not been tested as I just got him. What does the urate portion look like? This is the white portion.. If it is showing mostly white then Hydration is good. If it is showing mostly yellow or orange then not so good.

◦ History - nothing I was told.



Cage Info:

◦ Cage - Combo cage with glass that has ventilation in the front doors and mesh on the top. 12 x 12 x 18 for now and will be upgrading in a few months when I love. Brand is Exo-terra. You will need to upgrade quicker then a few months. They grow very very rapidly in the first 5 months.

◦ Lighting - Reptisun UVB 5.0 light for the UVB. Switched from the infared nano 25w to the 25w basking for heat. Brand for heat is zoo med. 8am-8pm for both. Is the reptisun a T5Ho fixture?

◦ Temperature - 84 degrees at all times (aside from night time) I got a system that shuts off when it gets any hotter than that. It floats above the mesh with just a makeshift lamp holder I set up. Bottom stays at 72 degrees. Big time I’ve seen mid-low 70s. I have 3 thermometers. One is the original with a temp and humidity gauge. Second is the new system I referred to that has the timer. Third is a classic thermostat for the bottom. good.

◦ Humidity - From 50-70. Sometimes 40’s and 30’s when ventilation is going smooth. 80’s at night. Maintaining by making sure ventilation is good and misting the substrate if it gets too low. Use a thermostat/humidity gauge. Try to keep in in the 30-50% range during the day. Night when lights are off it can be high. FYI substrate will get nasty if not fully bio active set up.

◦ Plants - No live plants for now, waiting til I get a new cage then hopefully going fully bioactive. I highly recommend getting a live pothos plant now.. They love to munch on them and it will provide natural humidity and a place to hide.

◦ Placement - Cage is in the corner of my room, kinda made its own little room by covering it all up with makeshift blinds. No fans or air vents nor high traffic. Don’t know the height. It’s on a night stand.

◦ Location - East Bay Area.



Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
He is shedding and I just want to make sure it’s normal that it’s white and it all looks normal in general. Ill provide pictures. Feeding techniques still aren’t perfected. I feel like a feeding bowl doesn’t really work because he stays at the top and my placement is towards the middle as that’s where it fits best. I’ve been going through trial and error with placing the food near him but he gets a little startled and I want to avoid stressing him out but it’s the only way he eats. He ends up eating I just want to see if there’s a better way. I’ve seen a makeshift feeding station that looks amazing but I would probably have to wait until I get the bigger cage because my cage is too small to fit it. Also, any specific place you recommend to buy dubias? Maybe also crickets too, I’ve tried to avoid getting those little terds but I might have to just do it to make sure he has variety, unless you know any other insect that’s as nutritious.
I’m going to try to provide photos for every question.

Shedding is normal. Do not mist him directly. It is important that he remain dry while shedding or the shed will stick back to the skin. They need the air between to shed properly.

Put the feeding bowl in anyways... He will figure it out. This will give him a secondary option for feeding as well.

I buy feeders from https://dubiaroaches.com/ and I have bought from rainbowmealworms.com in the past.

Adding images for you as well.
www.chameleonbreeder.com is a great podcast full of tons of info. Lots of episodes.
This is a blog I did on building trust. May be helpful to you. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/building-trust-with-your-chameleon.2396/

View attachment 232473View attachment 232474

So here are two series of photos for everything... gonna have all my stuff as well as some photos of him. For the Urates I actually didn’t realize that it’s the white portion of the fecies. Put my mind at ease to see it’s not pure orange or anything like that, it seems to be mostly white with some light tint of yellow so that’s awesome. Anyways here you go

PS. Gonna be getting a new UVB soon, I know those aren’t the correct ones to have and don’t know why I was sold that one when the correct one was the same price ):<

 

[Lincolntowncar]

More pics

 

[janjan20]

So here are two series of photos for everything... gonna have all my stuff as well as some photos of him. For the Urates I actually didn’t realize that it’s the white portion of the fecies. Put my mind at ease to see it’s not pure orange or anything like that, it seems to be mostly white with some light tint of yellow so that’s awesome. Anyways here you go

PS. Gonna be getting a new UVB soon, I know those aren’t the correct ones to have and don’t know why I was sold that one when the correct one was the same price ):<

From what I can tell in the pic the urates look pretty good.

 

[Beman]

@Lincolntowncar Ok question hun. What is with the fort you have built around the cage? Is this for night so there is not added light or are you keeping it up all the time?

 

[Lincolntowncar]

@Lincolntowncar Ok question hun. What is with the fort you have built around the cage? Is this for night so there is not added light or are you keeping it up all the time?

Haha, it’s just to keep him secluded and away from traffic. I have a room that people go in and out of all the time and I just wanted to avoid getting him stressed, at least while he’s still young. It’s not up all the time, I keep it down while I’m home typically. Do you think it’s unnecessary?

 

[Beman]

Haha, it’s just to keep him secluded and away from traffic. I have a room that people go in and out of all the time and I just wanted to avoid getting him stressed, at least while he’s still young. It’s not up all the time, I keep it down while I’m home typically. Do you think it’s unnecessary?

No, I think it is a good idea if there are people going in and out when you are not there. You also want to make sure they know to keep their distance. I was just curious. lol. I do not feel it is a bad thing for them to see their keeper. Beman was right beside my desk the first 3 months so he had full view of me while I was on the computer all day. Now he is across the room from me. I can see him and he can see me.

 

[JoXie411]

@Lincolntowncar Ok question hun. What is with the fort you have built around the cage? Is this for night so there is not added light or are you keeping it up all the time?

They have scary stories b4 bed and the fort makes the stories better

 

[Lincolntowncar]

No, I think it is a good idea if there are people going in and out when you are not there. You also want to make sure they know to keep their distance. I was just curious. lol. I do not feel it is a bad thing for them to see their keeper. Beman was right beside my desk the first 3 months so he had full view of me while I was on the computer all day. Now he is across the room for me. I can see him and he can see me.

I was actually thinking to put him on my desk for the same reason, to have him next to me while I’m on my computer but I was afraid he’d be stressed. Maybe I’ll bring him over when traffic slows down in my room, to make sure he’s comfortable with me.

 

[Lincolntowncar]

They have scary stories b4 bed and the fort makes the stories better

Hahahah, I put a chair in there recently too lmao

 

[Beman]

I was actually thinking to put him on my desk for the same reason, to have him next to me while I’m on my computer but I was afraid he’d be stressed. Maybe I’ll bring him over when traffic slows down in my room, to make sure he’s comfortable with me.

Honestly I think Beman got used to me faster because he was able to watch me without me bothering him. There was about 2 feet of space between where I was sitting at my desk and where he was next to it. .

 

[JoXie411]

Hahahah, I put a chair in there recently too lmao

I love a good scary story b4 bed lol