Lazy Chamelon

[louisvalerio]

hey i was just wondering if a lazy chameleon is okay. He eaten a lot since ive got him, ive added a bunch of plant cover, and make sure the humidity and temp is what it needs to be. I got him two days ago and ever wince ive brought him homes hes been like a dark brown. I love my chameleon and just wanna know whats up.He does look hydrated. Is this normal?

 

[Mrjamwin]

Welcome to the forums. He's probably not use to his new surroundings and it's going to take a few days for him to adjust. In the meantime, he may not eat and he may have darker colors due to some stress. Don't worry this is typical. Keep food in there and just be patient and once he adjusts he should go back to normal.

 

[kinyonga]

Please post some photos of him and his cage!

 

[louisvalerio]

This is him now

 

[louisvalerio]

Please post some photos of him and his cage!

This was him in the way home

 

[Ambilobe123]

Looks like you have some issues in your husbandry- can you copy and paste this form?


Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

 

[Ambilobe123]

Closing eyes during the day is always a bad sign...

 

[louisvalerio]

Looks like you have some issues in your husbandry- can you copy and paste this form?


Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - It is a helmeted chameleon, Male, I dont know the age but hes about 5 inches and is supposed to be 7-10 inches. Ive had it for two days
• Handling - Ive only handled him on the car ride home and my girlfriend held him when the cage was being put together
• Feeding - Ive been feeding him large crickets cause the small ones seemed to small. I usually just throw in 10-12 crickets. no feeding schedule yet. I use the cricket block from exo terra
• Supplements - I use herptivite and calcium with vit. D3. I know to use the D3 3very liek 2 weeks
• Watering - i use the big dripper for water to drink? i have an auto mist system that goes off every 4 hours for 2 minutes. He did drink water as soon as i put him in the cage?
• Fecal Description - No poops yet. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? no it hasnt
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. (i dont have any)

Cage Info:

• Cage Type -Glass exo terra. What are the dimensions?(18x18x24)
• Lighting - i Use the blue exo terra light that comes with the two dome lamp. and for my uvb Reptisun 5.0 T8 15 watt
• Temperature - the basking spot is high 80's and the floor temp is 70 degrees. Lowest overnight temp is high 60s when it should be low. So any advice on how to lower that would be amazing!
• Humidity - Humidity levels during the day are supposed to be between 30-50% which it is just about (near basking low 30s) (near floor is high 60s) How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? I use two hydrometers
• Plants - i Do use live plants im not positive whats what,I got them at the reptile show as well so just assume they're safe.
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? My cage is closer to the floor on a bench next to my dart frogs
• Location - Im in new jersey(central jersey)

 

[louisvalerio]

Closing eyes during the day is always a bad sign...

It’s not a long period of time one will be closed for like 20-30 seconds while the other ones open then both are open again. I could b a little dramatic but I just wanna know my buddys okay

 

[Beman]

T. Hoehnelii have very specific husbandry requirements.... Here is a link to correct husbandry for them. https://chameleonacademy.com/trioceros-hoehnelii/

Your T8 fixture with the 5.0 bulb will not have a high enough UVB out put for him.... You need a regular calcium without D3 to use at every feeding.

And your crickets are too large. I would use mediums for him.

Basking is too hot.

Anyways I would read through the info at the link above and listen to the podcast there for species specific info.

Here is the link to a good husbandry program as well https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/

 

[louisvalerio]

T. Hoehnelii have very specific husbandry requirements.... Here is a link to correct husbandry for them. https://chameleonacademy.com/trioceros-hoehnelii/

Your T8 fixture with the 5.0 bulb will not have a high enough UVB out put for him.... You need a regular calcium without D3 to use at every feeding.

And your crickets are too large. I would use mediums for him.

Basking is too hot.

Anyways I would read through the info at the link above and listen to the podcast there for species specific info.

Here is the link to a good husbandry program as well https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/

What would be the best uvb light for me to get him

 

[Beman]

What would be the best uvb light for me to get him

Go look at that link I gave you. It gives you specifics.... They require higher UVI levels. So it would be a T5HO fixture and a 5.0 or 6% bulb.
It shows you the distance to the top of his casque as well. 6 inches to top of casque. So the branch would need to drop down however many inches horizontally below the UVB and his head should hit 6 inches below the screen top.

Anything you would want to know will be at that first link I gave you including a podcast with more info.

 

[louisvalerio]

A few updates here is his like third poop

I’m also gonna be posting a few images of the updated cage if anything else needs to change please let me know

 

[louisvalerio]

Go look at that link I gave you. It gives you specifics.... They require higher UVI levels. So it would be a T5HO fixture and a 5.0 or 6% bulb.
It shows you the distance to the top of his casque as well. 6 inches to top of casque. So the branch would need to drop down however many inches horizontally below the UVB and his head should hit 6 inches below the screen top.

Anything you would want to know will be at that first link I gave you including a podcast with more info.

I’ve cut some branches shorter and raised the lights a little bit relocated his water into a more obvious spot for him and he eats whenever he pleases

 

[.Luke.]

Sleeping during the day is bad, I have a helmeted chameleon to aren’t they so cool

 

[Beman]

I’ve cut some branches shorter and raised the lights a little bit relocated his water into a more obvious spot for him and he eats whenever he pleases

Good, you may want to add some horizontal branches as well so he can bask. But make sure your being very specific matching your husbandry to their required needs in those links I gave you.

 

[louisvalerio]

Good, you may want to add some horizontal branches as well so he can bask. But make sure your being very specific matching your husbandry to their required needs in those links I gave you.

Got it thankyou for your help

 

[Beman]

Got it thankyou for your help

There are a few keepers of T Hoe. In the community here. But they are not online often. So take advantage of the links. Also on this page you can use the search function in the podcast area to see if Bill Strand has done other podcast on them specifically. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-academy-podcast-2021/

 

[leedragon]

hey i was just wondering if a lazy chameleon is okay. He eaten a lot since ive got him, ive added a bunch of plant cover, and make sure the humidity and temp is what it needs to be. I got him two days ago and ever wince ive brought him homes hes been like a dark brown. I love my chameleon and just wanna know whats up.He does look hydrated. Is this normal?

Sup mate.

You got a hoehnelii and the most important part isto give them low night temperatures ans cool day temperatures. Seem you about right. 16 C during the nights 27 at the basking spot during the day.

I can not give you any advice for the lights, I am not current updated on what is the good uvb light now days.

The cage seem a bit small thou and you got it beautiful arrange but it´s too expose for the animal. have a look at my gallery at my quadricornis cage. That is how it should look so they feel safe. Also you got and exoterra and that works fine for chameleons. Just dont have constant humidity as in paladarium or constant misting or waterfall due it can easily create respiratory infection.

I got a feeling the crickets are too big. trioceros take quite the smaller prey item in relation to their body compared to Yemens. Those mother fuckers can eat things almost as big as them, body size.

D3 is just once a moth. Most important thing with trioceros is proper gutloading and rotation of feeders, they can grow tired of the same insect quite quick, as oposite to Yemens. Check out sandrachameleon blogg here for good gutload recepies.

Last and quite important. Your cameleon is new so he right now needs to be alone for 2-5 days discounting misting. This is for it to settle down and dare to eat and just be a chameleon. I freak out when my mellery didn´t eat for like a week or so. I think it saw more. Letting it be for some days did the trick.

 

[louisvalerio]

Sup mate.

You got a hoehnelii and the most important part isto give them low night temperatures ans cool day temperatures. Seem you about right. 16 C during the nights 27 at the basking spot during the day.

I can not give you any advice for the lights, I am not current updated on what is the good uvb light now days.

The cage seem a bit small thou and you got it beautiful arrange but it´s too expose for the animal. have a look at my gallery at my quadricornis cage. That is how it should look so they feel safe. Also you got and exoterra and that works fine for chameleons. Just dont have constant humidity as in paladarium or constant misting or waterfall due it can easily create respiratory infection.

I got a feeling the crickets are too big. trioceros take quite the smaller prey item in relation to their body compared to Yemens. Those mother fuckers can eat things almost as big as them, body size.

D3 is just once a moth. Most important thing with trioceros is proper gutloading and rotation of feeders, they can grow tired of the same insect quite quick, as oposite to Yemens. Check out sandrachameleon blogg here for good gutload recepies.

Last and quite important. Your cameleon is new so he right now needs to be alone for 2-5 days discounting misting. This is for it to settle down and dare to eat and just be a chameleon. I freak out when my mellery didn´t eat for like a week or so. I think it saw more. Letting it be for some days did the trick.

I appreciate this response a lot i have been looking into bigger cages and have been reading a lot about how and what is right and wrong on chameleon academy for enclosures and husbandry in general. If there's any other tips you have to give me about enclosures or getting the temp to drop at night i would appreciate them a lot.

A question i have about getting a new setup is just about switching him again in the future are there any problems i should worry about other then him having to get used to another new enclosure.