Is my little “dude” a male or female?
- Thread starter Kalesaladlovesji
- Start date
Mendez
Chameleon Enthusiast
I have class till 5:45. I can pop on and revise everything later this evening if no one else has. @ERKleRose is a great source too.
Kalesaladlovesji
New Member
That’s what I was originally going to get until someone advised me to get the 10.0 or 12%.. I asked if it were going to be too hot. Thank you for verifying.
Kalesaladlovesji
New Member
I thought the 10.0 / 12% were going to be too hot. I had been following advice from the Chameleon Central page on fb- definitely will reconsider. I do plan on filling the new enclosure with a lot of live plants though.
cruz.m
Avid Member
Make sure it’s not the compact bulb that you have, I have this one. Make sure that you upgrade as soon as possible as well as the plants and everything else I didn’t know who is reviewing your thread but I hope someone will do it soon. https://www.pangeareptile.com/store/zoo-med-reptisun-t5-ho-terrarium-hood.html
Fchamel
Chameleon Enthusiast
Kalesaladlovesji
New Member
Thank you!!
ERKleRose
Chameleon Enthusiast
My feedback and any questions will be in red. I’ll also post helpful links and images below. Sorry if I repeat any info given:
Cage Info: I AM CURRENTLY BUILDING THE NEW ENCLOSURE!
- Veiled Cham, sex unknown, roughly 5.5 months old. Has been in my care since Dec 29th. We need a clear pic from the side view of the back of his/her back feet to properly sex him/her. For now, I‘ll call him/her they so the information is clearer on here.
- Handling - Past week, they have been really comfortable coming out of the enclosure and exploring. Never came out before then. They are probably uncomfortable in their enclosure, not wanting to get out for attention or anything.
- Feeding - I feed my Cham a mix of greens, carrots, (occasionally blueberries), meal worms, super worms, horn worms, crickets, and now I am moving to black fly larvae as well. I try not to give him too many of the super worms- I’ve heard they cause digestive issues. I feed him a mix 2-3 times a day. When he wakes up, midday, and before bed. I’ve purchased food from Fluke’s to help feed the feeders & I occasionally put carrots and other veggies in there. Feed live bugs only! Stop the mealworms (only as a very rare treat, if at all) and only use the superworms as treats! He should only be having 5 crickets (or the equivalent of) every other day (if they really are 5.5 months old). All feeders should be well gutloaded with a variety of healthy ingredients and/or a quality commercial gutload either overnight to a few hours before feeding them off or just feed the entirety of all of your feeder colonies the good gutload 24/7. Charts for gutload and feeders are below.
- Supplements - I am currently using Repticalcium (w/o D3) & Reptivite (w D3). I had been using the Exoterra multi vitamin but I heard that can cause issues if used too much (please tell me if that info is correct for veileds)! I put calcium on everything I feed & use the D3 supplements 1-2 a week. Stop the Exo Terra multivitamin ASAP! You already have a multivitamin (which is a more quality brand)! Use your Zoo Med ReptiCalcium without D3 on every feeding and your Zoo Med Reptivite with D3 once every two weeks. If you take them outside when it’s warmer out, you might have to change how much D3 is given (you’d have to get Zoo Med ReptiCalcium with D3 and Zoo Med Reptivite without D3 ) depending on how long he‘s outside. How long have you been doing the Reptivite with D3 once to twice a week? Fat soluble vitamins in there (like the D3 and preformed Vitamin A) can build up and stay in a chameleon’s system for a while. You might have to stop it or get a multivitamin with only proformed Vitamin A and no D3 for a bit. You’re going to have to ask others more experienced in vitamins about it, though.
- Watering - I use a spray bottle to mist (every 2 hours ish) and I have a dripper set up that drips into a live plant at the bottom. My Cham has no problem drinking- I might not see him drink for a day or two but he’s never completely turned away from it. How long is each misting session? It should be a minimum of 2-5+ minutes long each time for their daytime mistings. Also only mist in the morning and late afternoon/night for their daytime mistings when their enclosure is cooler if their cage humidity allow it. Set the dripper up to drip on live plant leaves near the top of their enclosure. Do you have a drainage system?
- Fecal Description - Fecal matter looks healthy- solid color & the urine (I believe) is white with clear liquid. I do not believe they have been tested for parasites although I am planning on getting the veterinary insurance to have them checked up. Go to an experienced chameleon vet and get bloodwork, x-rays, and a fecal float (bring a fresh fecal sample with you) done. Make sure to drop off 2-3+ more fresh fecal samples afterwards to make sure no parasites were missed.
- history- I purchased Jumanji from a Pet Supplies Plus and they had no idea how old they are or the gender. They’ll advertise their chams at 3-4 mo old but I’ve seen chams hatchling size there. So their age is a rough estimate. I’m horrible at correctly guessing veiled’s ages, so someone else will have to guess their age for you. How old they are changes their feeding amount and basking temps. Definitely go to a vet if they’re from Pet Supplies Plus!
Cage Info: I AM CURRENTLY BUILDING THE NEW ENCLOSURE!
- Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? I currently have Ji in a screen enclosure. It is one of the starter kit ones (I know, big no no. It had been gifted to me as a birthday present hence why I’m currently building the new enclosure) measurements: 16in L x 16in W x 30in H Get rid of all of the substrate (impaction risk), all of the reptile hammocks (not meant for chameleons), all of the Exo Terra Vines (can cause health issues), and all fake plants (impaction risk), etc, and anything else besides live plants, branches, and vines (without leaves for any fake ones) ASAP! If they are a female, they’ll need a proper lay bin ASAP, too, as a permanent part of their enclosure! You also need TONS more branches, vines, and live plants everywhere! I’ve posted 2 cage set-up links below.
- NEW ENCLOSURE WILL BE: 32in L x 24 in W x 67 in H Good, go as big as you possibly can!
- Lighting - Currently still using the Zoo Med lights that came with the kit (again I know, huge no no) I try to stay on the 12/12 cycle (12 hours of basking/light and 12 hours of night/sleep time) Get rid of the blue ASAP! They need a regular white light household incandescent bulb from the hardware store. You’ll have to play around with the wattages to get the correct temps. Getting a timer for the lights will help ensure it is exactly a 12 hour on/off cycle. Get an analog timer if you can, that way if there is a power outage, the lights will still be on the proper 12 hour on/off cycle. Do you use any lights or ceramic heat emitters at night or any heating pads or cables or anything else besides a heat bulb for during the day (or anything at night)?
- NEW LIGHTING FOR NEW ENCLOSURE: I will be getting a Linear light- either a 10.0 Reptisun or 12% Arcadia w UVB. Get this ASAP and get either an Arcadia 6% or Zoo Med 5.0! Make sure the fixture is as long as (or a foot longer than) their bigger enclosure . Also make sure the fixture is a T5 High Output! Get a Solarmeter 6.5 if you can afford it! It’ll give you precise UVI reading and tell you when to replace the linear UVB bulb (when the readings are cut in half), along with making sure there are no defective UVB bulbs. Otherwise, the proper guessed amount is that the UVB bulb should 8-9” away from their basking branch. Also, replace the linear bulb either every 6 months or every year if you don’t get the Solarmeter 6.5 (Zoo Med every 6 months and Arcadia once a year).
- Temperature - Cage floor stays around 72-75 and basking spot (top of enclosure) stays around 88-90. Lowest overnight temp is 65 as that’s as low it gets in my house. I have a temp monitor that I can move to each part of the cage to record the temp. Depending on age and gender will change basking temps, either way that basking temp is way too high! Adult females have a max basking temp of 78-80*F and adult males 80-85*F. If you could keep the nighttime temps at 65*F, that’s be preferred. Veiled chameleons need (and prefer) a good nighttime temp drop. You need a digital thermometer with a probe placed where their casque/top of their back is when they’re on their basking branch for basking temps. Is your temp monitor digital or analog? If digital, does it have a probe?
- Humidity - Humidity levels Always stay around/a little above 60. I have a live potted plant (organic soil) to help maintain the humidity & I have put a kind of plastic wrap on only the back side to keep moisture. I have a humidity gauge that is Velcro- I can detect any part of the cage. You need to fix their humidity levels ASAP, as too much heat and too much humidity (which you have both) can cause a respiratory infection! Veileds need between 30-50% humidity during the day and up to 100% at night. Get at least one digital hygrometer ASAP!
- Plants - Are you using live plants? I am using a live potted plant. It is a kind of pothos (not exactly sure what kind it didn’t have a label) You need to take out all fake plants, fake leaf bunches, and any fake vines with leaves (fake vines without leaves are fine) ASAP! Veileds will try to take a bite out of anything, which could lead to impaction with fake plants. You need properly cleaned chameleon-safe plants only! Make sure to cover all soil in the pots with rocks too big for them to eat, too! I’ve posted 2 chameleon-safe plant lists below
Attachments
ERKleRose
Chameleon Enthusiast
I couldn’t post past 1000 characters, so here’s the rest:
Here are links and images (make sure to read through all modules and listen to as many podcasts as possible from The Chameleon Academy, as they have the most up-to-date and accurate info):
https://www.chameleons.info/en/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/2007/12/keeping-female-veiled.html (if female)
http://www.muchadoaboutchameleons.com/
https://flchams.com/chameleon-safe-plant-list/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/external-resources/
https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/
https://chameleonacademy.com/veiled-chameleon-care/
https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/
https://chameleonacademy.com/setting-up-a-chameleon-cage/
http://www.muchadoaboutchameleons.com/2012/04/how-to-set-up-proper-chameleon.html
- Placement -The enclosure is located upstairs in my bedroom. Not near any fans or vents and traffic is barely an issue here. It is on a desk so at the moment it is touching where it leans into the ceiling. (I have a different, taller wall the new enclosure will be going against). The top of the cage is a little over 5 ft from the floor. So the top of the cage is against the ceiling? Move it ASAP so there is proper airflow for the light fixtures!
- Location - I am currently located in lower Michigan.
Here are links and images (make sure to read through all modules and listen to as many podcasts as possible from The Chameleon Academy, as they have the most up-to-date and accurate info):
https://www.chameleons.info/en/
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/2007/12/keeping-female-veiled.html (if female)
http://www.muchadoaboutchameleons.com/
https://flchams.com/chameleon-safe-plant-list/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/external-resources/
https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/
https://chameleonacademy.com/veiled-chameleon-care/
https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/
https://chameleonacademy.com/setting-up-a-chameleon-cage/
http://www.muchadoaboutchameleons.com/2012/04/how-to-set-up-proper-chameleon.html
Chase
Chameleon Enthusiast
@ERKleRose posted some good info, so for the sake of not beating a dead horse, I’ll leave any extra out of it.
But, this is 100% a female
But, this is 100% a female
