Meet Marky and give me your opinion :)

[ammomani]

Hi everybody ! I'm Aleks I'm 23 years old about to graduate Dental medicine next year. After loving and wanting chameleons all my life I finally reached a point at which I can set aside time, effort and money to care for a chammy. Around March this year I went and bought me a beautiful male Veiled Chamy called Marky. When I bought it the pet store... guy... told me Marky is around 2 months old. There were about 20 chammies in the cage, same size but I picked Marky, since he was the only one who wasn't acting all crazy and jumping around and was really calm. Which I thought would translate to a calm adult... but more about that in a sec.
So here are some pics from the day I got him :
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img546/7467/sa5q.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img839/9716/w1es.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img543/4212/3mnx.jpg

After a week or so of keeping him in a plexiglass enclosure I bought him this :
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img196/8361/ybue.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img850/2351/2ahv.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img543/631/tlu8.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/a/img59/2860/nuv8.jpg
I put in a live plant(safe one) and some other climbing highways.
I kept him in there for about a month or so and one day noticed that in one of my rooms I didn't use a cabinet. So I started fiddling with it and tried to make it a terrarium. I changed the door with a bug screen which I made myself installed the bulbs, made me a plexiglass tank(for debris) and put everything in, this is the end result after about a day or two of making it and a couple of weeks of adding things.
http://postimg.org/image/h1wafc6sz/
http://postimg.org/image/5s3kke1rn/
Had to break the plexiglass tank so that the door would shut.(miscalculation on my part because I used to have it without a door, but Marky got in the habit of somehow escaping and ending up bathing on a window or something)

So gimme some feedback on what you thing of the enclosure. The little waterfall I put in is checked daily and the water is changed every day, he hasn't pooped once in it)

Another thing is that he is now around 5-6 months old and for some reason started getting aggressive. He pufs and hisses his *** off just when he sees my face. (he cant properly see me through the screen and is always calm when the door is closed) but if I reach for him or in the cage to change something he goes berserk ! And I avoid stressing him out but I keep wondering what makes him feel so scared ? He used to be very calm and didn't mind handling at all. Then one day I just heard a hiss whilst passing by the cage(didn't have a door then) and saw him trying to lunge at me . It doesn't bother me since I tested him once and he cannot actually bite, it's all for show. But still I wish someone could tell me what they think. He does calm down once he's out of the cage but still I see that he's not fully relaxed. In my opinion it's got something to do with him reaching something of a puberty or sexual maturity, not sure exactly. Anyways here are some pics of him :
http://postimg.org/image/ruyqqqhrn/
http://postimg.org/image/f2amqt65v/
http://postimg.org/image/h5l1yh5yr/
http://postimg.org/image/udkfrf3hv/
http://postimg.org/image/9afkgs2nn/
http://postimg.org/image/6dsjghwtv/

Any and all comments and criticisms are welcome !


P.s I realize that chameleons esp. Veileds are not to be handled like guinea pigs, I just which to find out what is stressing him out sooo much about my presence.

I feed him a steady diet of crickets with some super worms occasionally.+ Calcium.
I keep updating the enclosure daily, any ideas will be appreciated !
And If something is unclear I apologize English is my third language and I'm a bit buzzed .... it is Sunday after all !

 

[sandrachameleon]

congrats on the new chameleon

he looks healthy enough

I wouldn't have any lighting inside the cage. You will want to offer a wider variety of food. And do you know about gutloading?

Territorial aggression is quite normal. You may find he's less hissy if outside his cage (his territory) and if you move very slowly

It would be easier to review your set-up and care with a few more details. Would you mind answering the "how to ask for help" questions?
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[ammomani]

I don't have a particular problem, was just asking for any ideas but here it is :
Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - About 6 months old Veiled chameleon (Marky), in my care for 4-5 months.
Handling - 1/week
Feeding - There is a store 2 min away from where I live, they breed their own worms and crickets.
Supplements - Repticalcium with D3 from Zoomed feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - I use a small waterfall in the enclosure(checking every day for any poop + changing the water)
Fecal Description - Brown/Black big and hard + a about 1/3 of the size white chunk.
History - Nope, Just that the guy from whom I bought it, had many many chammies in his store, all types all sizes and from the looks of it he takes good care and knows the does/dont's.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - 60x60x120 Wooden cabinet, front is mech door.
Lighting - I've thrown out the boxes, but I've got a UVB light which I'll be changing in a month or so, and different heat lamps since the weather here is kinda crazy.
Temperature - Depends, but at this time the basking temp is around 35C and the other areas are around 25~28.
Humidity - about 60% goes to 50% during the day, I got a big live plant (Devils Ivy) and it seems to be working.
Plants - Devils Ivy and I just put in a new one in I don't know the english name but it's safe.
Placement - In a room that doesn't get any other people other than me from time to time. In the corner and the bottom of the cabinet is about a meter above the floor. The top of the enclosure is about a foot above my head.
Location - Bulgaria

Current Problem
Well nothing exactly troubling, just some fun hissing and puffing and lunging .

 

[AlaskanReptile]

He is quite a lovely specimen of chameleon. Matured nicely from when you first got him and that color is gorgeous!

Anyway, I am still new when it comes to these critters but everything I say is stuff I picked up from stalking these forums LOTS so hopefully I got my stuff right. If not the senior members will most likely come and correct and give you their insights. So hopefully my several months can be a but of help.

First off you asked about the supplement schedule. For veileds it seems that calcium WITHOUT d3 is given every feeding except for one day out of the week where you give either calcium WITH d3 or a multivitamin (alternate between both each week so you give both 2 times a month). I personally use RepCal for my calcium supplements and a Herptivite for my boy's vitamins.

The white chunk attached to his poop is called the urate which is basically just concentrated pee in a way. If its white then that's good because it means he is drinking lots! Orange however is bad so watch for that. And on a foot note, since he may have started reaching sexual maturity you may also find sperm plugs with it all as well.

Your pictures look real good but I suggest from seeing everyone else's comments over the months is adding more plants for better coverage. A pothos or umbrella plant are very popular choices. However our sight sponsor FLChams has an amazing list of safe plants that you can look at and pick from as to suit your liking. Which I will link below for you

As far as his hissing and lunging that may be like you said, he is growing up and is going through that teenage I hate you stage with territorial aggression. Should come out of his funk after awhile but if not it may just be his personality now. So you gotta be patient and work slowly with him. I don't know if it may make handling less stressful for him or not but I have used a towel with plants on it to make my boy more relaxed for handling. Also wearing colors he enjoys helps with the hissy fits (mine liked a bright green but he may have thought of me as a receptive female -luckily he tried no funny business-) really it is just a waiting game of letting nature lead the way for a bit.

Really the best advice I have to give is dont be afraid to use the search button on here and to ask any questions you have. These are nice people and are so happy to help and answer anything. As I have seen on here many times 'no question is a stupid question'. So just nose around a bit and its amazing what all you will pick up

I hope this helps and that I didn't leave anything out! Now here is the link I promised: http://flchams.com/safe_plant_list.asp

 

[Leslie11]

Marky

He looks great! Stay on this forum, as the info is invaluable. One suggestion....I would ditch the waterfall, as they can breed bacteria. Good luck; he's a winner.

 

[Chris78]

Dont worry, it thought the same thing about my Veiled, read my most recent post. I think if you get a calm, relaxed Chameleon (especially Veiled), you are lucky. My guy was great when he was a baby, one day i reached into his cage to take him out for a bit and he hissed and me and puffed up, exactly as you described, hes worse at me girlfriend!

 

[Chris78]

Oh ya, and stay with this forum, i learned alot from these people, taking care of these guys can be exhausting, these people are a great help.