hydration..

[RePtAr11]

just wondering if showering once a week is good for hydration if he is looking a lil dry. i do not see him drinking in the shower, but it is hitting him pretty nice. just wondering if this will some how hydrate him without having to drink. i put him in there for close to 20 to 30 min.

 

[SageZA]

The trick is to provide a Drinking source during the day.

Cheapest is a dripper, you can make one yourself.

 

[Hugh Wahl]

I try to get my guys in the shower for a good ten minutes once a month ( if there are no problems). I also spray and us drip cups everyday just to ensure proper hydration.

 

[Miss Machine]

Make sure your animal has a source of drinking water multiple times a day.. Spraying is good but together with a dripper, is the best chance of making sure your animal gets hydrated. I shower my three chams every 14 days for about ten minutes. It's also a possibility for them to clean their eyes.

 

[Hoj]

my little guy will drink from a small hand dripper i useually do this in the evening for 5min or untill he stops drinking, just to make sure hes good and hydrated. between that and 5, 30sec mistings a day ( mistking ) and dripper.
just gave him his first shower today and he seemed to like it so i think i will be doing this more often.

 

[RePtAr11]

my guy just seems a lil dry latley i spray and have a drip running most of the day. just thought maybe the water from the shower would soak up into his skin. but yes im sure he is good. i have givien him 2 showers since i have had him about a month and a half now.

 

[LoyaltyNECO]

As far as showering, I was wondering if there is any known effects of the chlorine or ammonia that is in many people's water on Chameleons?

 

[Hugh Wahl]

I've wondered that myself but have never come across a situation where I've read about any one having a problem with it.

 

[DeviousMike]

Not to snag the thread but its still sorta on topic. If you have a misting system, is there a benefit from showering your cham?

 

[Miss Machine]

@DeviousMike; some have misting systems that will mist for some ten of fifteen minutes a time i read here. But those same people must have a good drainagesystem installed
;-). Because the long misting sessions will simulate rain, the chams are triggered to drink and clean their eyes. I cannot mist for such a long period at a time cause I don't have a drainagesystem installed. That's why I shower my chams every two weeks, to give them the opportunity to clean their eyes and offcourse to drink the luke warm water if they want.

 

[jojackson]

just wondering if this will some how hydrate him without having to drink

Not at all, it's very important to ensure the lizard drinks no matter how much you spray or shower it. Lizard skin does not 'soak up' water, its largely impermeable and designed to retain water inside.

 

[RePtAr11]

ok.. well i do all this. and i have only seen him maybe drink 3 times shooting at the drops maybe a few times. does not seem like much. What about my crickets they seem pretty juicey. i know he gets some moisture from that right, im sure not enough though.

 

[SonTigerPantherCham]

I too have wondered about the chemicals in the city water. I would love to shower him but afraid of the water.
I mist, drip, hand mist and hand shower with warm water twice a day. He really seems to like the warm water. But its r/o. Don't even water my plants with tap water

 

[jojackson]

Yes Reptar, the better gutloaded your insects with fresh fruit & veg the more moisture your lizard will gain from them too, however drinking water is still a must.

 

[RePtAr11]

action jackson here to help. cool i figured that would help a lil bit, but not much. not saying he is dehydrated but just never really see him drink much. i know if i got close to him with a lil eye dropper or something he would flip out. maybe i will get him out to see if he will hand drink.

 

[Tandra Lee]

hi retar11..i have been given some great advice on here in regards to watering,live plants that retain water for long periods of time(ficus,umbrella) also i use a monsoon rs400 that mists every hr for 2 mins(seems alot but its really dry here) and i have a dripper that drips pretty much all day,i gut load my crickets well with a dry food(cricket crack) and i use cucumbers,strawberries,grapes cut in half,lettuce,sweet potatoes,oranges cut in good size pieces with the rind left on(cricket tub smells like oragnges now) and also butternut squash..my crickets are plump,juicy and i immagine they taste awesome(for my chams that is lol) i also have a fern in my cham homes with my mister soaks well and my chams will munch on them often(they are soft,wet and easily digested) i made my dripper from a glass hamster water bottle,i stuck fish pump tubing into the end of the nozzle and attatched a valve to the end of that so i can controll the amount it drips,i just lay the valve end ontop of the mesh outside the home in a spot i know my chams love to sit and let it drip away..hope this helps

 

[SonTigerPantherCham]

Tandra Lee, what kind of fern do you use? I would love to put one in my Chammies house

 

[RePtAr11]

sessir i do all of that.. but i was concerned about the fern also.. i hear some are not so great, and alot of them are toxic. but yeah what kind are you using? also off the topic.. but whats the easiest drain setup?? at first my plants soaked it up good. But now it goes through the plant half way through the day and then fills the plant drain underneath.. anyways whats the besy way. u can maybe see my setup in a few other post from me.

 

[Elizadolots]

Reptar, you need to be looking at your chameleon's poop. Many (possibly most?) won't drink in front of you. They have a tendency to freeze as though you are a predator (a reasonable assumption on their part). If the poop looks good then your chameleon is getting enough water even if you aren't seeing it. Good poop has a white or creamy bit that is separate from the "feces". If that is yellow or orange, there is a hydration issue.

 

[RePtAr11]

yes i do check.. and i have been gut loading more often with oranges now.. i think this is making his poop more runny but does harden. but kind of ozzy the other day. but did see some white. he poops quite a bit lol. and i have been trying to spray a light stream into his mouth, but does not budge to open. i even try to make him rare up and open up... but he wont even do that. i think he is realizing who i am maybe, he just eats and does his own lil thing.. i love to watch him. just he is getting so big really fast. im thinking i need to try and handle him more often.. what do yall think.