Is it normal to not see any colors in my 4 month old panther?

[LukeSchuster]

I'm very new to the chameleon scene, so anything that doesn't seem normal to me, which may be very normal, freaks me out. My 4 month old Ambilobe blue-bar panther isnt showing any colors yet, and i dont know if that means anything. When i raised discus fish, when something was wrong they showed faint color. I don't know if the same applies for chameleons, or that hes just a late bloomer and his colors will come with every month. Any helpful info would be great!

 

[rminnis]

Take a couple good photos of your cham and its color that worries you and provide a little information on how you keep it and these guys and gals on here will let you know if anything may be wrong!

 

[rminnis]

I only have veileds but i know they got more colorful as they got older. Is your panther male or female I dont think the females are ever as colorful but I could be wrong.

 

[LukeSchuster]

Toby is fed 6-7 dusted crickets (calcium/no d3) a day, and goes crazy when i put them in the enclosure. He wastes no time crushing them all. He spends a majority of the day basking. The enclosure has 2 UVB and a basking bulb that stays around 95 degrees in the warmest spot. I have an automatic mister come on for about 40 seconds every 4 hours, and i mist the cage with a handheld several times a day.

 

[LukeSchuster]

I only have veileds but i know they got more colorful as they got older. Is your panther male or female I dont think the females are ever as colorful but I could be wrong.

i was told it was a male when i bought him from Chameleon Paradise, and i hope that remains true. And yes, it is true that female panthers never quite get as colorful as the males.

 

[Link]

i was told it was a male when i bought him from Chameleon Paradise, and i hope that remains true. And yes, it is true that female panthers never quite get as colorful as the males.

If you send pictures two of the tale close up would help

 

[Link]

I would try to get your basking spot down a little bit in temperature. I keep mine around 88 where it is the hottest

 

[LukeSchuster]

If you send pictures two of the tale close up would help

I hope this helps! It also seems weird that he lays around alot during the day, he eats and drinks fine, but i know his tail shouldnt be all curled up during the day as if he is sleeping

 

[Link]

It kind of looks like a male to me. The tail roll up is fine. mine do it during the day every now and then. but I would lower your temperature I think it might be too hot in there for him. Without D3 everyday 2 times a a month with d3 and vitamins. Also what UVB lights are you using 5.0 10.0

 

[LukeSchuster]

It kind of looks like a male to me. The tail roll up is fine. mine do it during the day every now and then. but I would lower your temperature I think it might be too hot in there for him. Without D3 everyday 2 times a a month with d3 and vitamins. Also what UVB lights are you using 5.0 10.0

The uvb lights are a 5.0. So him not having colors like others his age is normal? Is he possibly a late bloomer, or is something affecting him?

 

[Pitcard]

My ambilobe didn't really start getting vibrant colors until he was around 7-8 months, and it's only now that he's over a year that he's really starting to look like what I've come to expect from a panther.

Maybe another member can chime in on this, but I would recommend bumping up the number of crickets you feed. My guy was smashing tens of crickets at that age, and recently he's down to about 5 a day. I would give him as much as he'll eat once a day, monitor his poops to make sure he's not tearing himself a new one, and make slight adjustments if necessary.

Edit: Also be sure to check on him at night! His best colours will show when he's got his pjs on, so to speak.

 

[LukeSchuster]

My ambilobe didn't really start getting vibrant colors until he was around 7-8 months, and it's only now that he's over a year that he's really starting to look like what I've come to expect from a panther.

Maybe another member can chime in on this, but I would recommend bumping up the number of crickets you feed. My guy was smashing tens of crickets at that age, and recently he's down to about 5 a day. I would give him as much as he'll eat once a day, monitor his poops to make sure he's not tearing himself a new one, and make slight adjustments if necessary.

Okay, maybe ill start feeding him a few more a day. The part that worries me the most about him is that he sits still on branches for a majority of the day. Only moving to get his food, when i come to the enclosure, or when he wants to reposition himself. Besides that, he seems to sit still alot during the day. I'll attach a pic.

 

[Pitcard]

My guy does the same. Compared to veileds, Panthers seem quite relaxed. The only time my guy leaves his perch is to drink, and try to escape to the free range about once a day. As long as his eyes are open, there's nothing to worry about.

 

[LukeSchuster]

My guy does the same. Compared to veileds, Panthers seem quite relaxed. The only time my guy leaves his perch is to drink, and try to escape to the free range about once a day. As long as his eyes are open, there's nothing to worry about.

Okay great thats good to know. Do you have a drip system? i was thinking about either purchasing one or increasing the time my mister is on. I dont think he is getting enough water and i never see him drink from the leaves.

 

[Pitcard]

My drip system consists of 4 ice cubes on the cage over his leafs. I put those on in the morning with a misting, and mist in the afternoon once as well. I've caught my panthers shooting their tongue at leafs to get water, so you might not even see him move for that. If his urate is white and slightly wet that means he's getting enough water. If you see orange, that means you need to up his hydration. Offer a small medical baster syringe once or twice a week with water, that can be an easy way to make sure he gets enough.

One more note, I do agree with other members who've mentioned his basking temperature being too hot. I wouldn't go above 28 for a panther that age. Try offering a 26-28 (Celsius) basking spot with different levels of perch for him to choose from.

 

[LukeSchuster]

My drip system consists of 4 ice cubes on the cage over his leafs. I put those on in the morning with a misting, and mist in the afternoon once as well. I've caught my panthers shooting their tongue at leafs to get water, so you might not even see him move for that. If his urate is white and slightly wet that means he's getting enough water. If you see orange, that means you need to up his hydration. Offer a small medical baster syringe once or twice a week with water, that can be an easy way to make sure he gets enough.

One more note, I do agree with other members who've mentioned his basking temperature being too hot. I wouldn't go above 28 for a panther that age. Try offering a 26-28 (Celsius) basking spot with different levels of perch for him to choose from.

My infrared thermometer is reading temps between 82-92 degrees (fahrenheit) in his basking area, so maybe i was a bit off on the numbers i put earlier

 

[Goose502]

Everything sounds good/looks normal to me. You can increase his feeding, but he doesn't look skinny at all. Your setup looks pretty good, that umbrella plant will get larger, that will help over time. My panther is from Bruce as well, I picked him because he was the only 4 month old with any color. Some show lots of color early, some take up to 8 month to really pop. The sleeping colors should reveal a lot. As for him not moving a lot, that could mean he's just happy.

 

[LukeSchuster]

Everything sounds good/looks normal to me. You can increase his feeding, but he doesn't look skinny at all. Your setup looks pretty good, that umbrella plant will get larger, that will help over time. My panther is from Bruce as well, I picked him because he was the only 4 month old with any color. Some show lots of color early, some take up to 8 month to really pop. The sleeping colors should reveal a lot. As for him not moving a lot, that could mean he's just happy.

Okay great. Thanks for taking the time to look and giving me your opinion.

 

[Gbetts1986]

Okay great. Thanks for taking the time to look and giving me your opinion.

Does he always lay on the branch like that?

 

[Craigwyatt]

Normally at that size there is lots of color showing through. But sometimes they are late bloomers. I say just keep doing what your doing and before you know it his color is going to start to crack. Bruce has some really nice animals I'm sure he's going to be a stunner. I'd bet on it!!