My cham hasnt ate in 4 days what do i do?
- Thread starter Chester09
- Start date
JoshD49
Chameleon Enthusiast
That is a long time with no food for a cham that young. There is a chance the mealworms are backing him up and he is drinking the water to fix that. You should never use mealworms with chams since the there isn't much nutrition. You can use superworms instead but should be mostly used as a treat.
Please fill out the form below and we can get a better snapshot on if the food is the only culprit.
Chameleon Info:
Cage Info:
Please fill out the form below and we can get a better snapshot on if the food is the only culprit.
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?
Thatwizard420
Chameleon Enthusiast
Mine got really stressed out one day cuz he fell from his basking branch. He refused to climb back up and stayed hidden for 3 days down in the cage. He wasn't moving in those 3 days. I kept poking him with a stick to make sure he was alive. I was really worried, so on that 4th day, I bought roaches, crickets, caught a few locust, hornworms.... I let them all run wild inside the cage. Never seen Uncle Sneaky Castroo so excite to eat lol. In less than 5 seconds, he had already gobble down 4 roaches... Im not saying this is the remedy, I'm just telling you my experience. After that, he climbed back up, got grumpy for a whole month, and now hes the same ol Uncle Sneaky Castroo (No Relation)... When i get home from work, and I start misting, he knows its his play time, he gets out his cage, to my arm and chills on my shoulder for a good 3 mins before I take him outside to his Calliandra Californica Brush
Edit: He has a feeding cup, but never made an attempt to climb back up n eat, that's why I let the bugs run wild.
Edit: He has a feeding cup, but never made an attempt to climb back up n eat, that's why I let the bugs run wild.
Chester09
New Member
I have a veiled cham male juvenile I've had it for 1 week. I only handle when needed. I'm feed him meal worms and i try crickets I do dump the meal worms and crickets in powdered vitamins but he never eat them I do just put them in a feeder cup cause if I let loose in the cage I lose where they are. im using zoo med as a vitamin/calcium powder. I'm using a reptirain machine to just the cage every 12 hours I do some times just it myself when I see him looking for something and yes I see him drink.so the colors are odd cause he hangs in a high branch and he is basically dark green I asume its to take in more light and no he hasn't been tested since I got him at least. For the history its from the place I got my cham pet stop the lady said to grab a pair of twezer s and put a cricket in front of him but when I do it he gets scared and walks away so I don't know. The cage is screen I don't know the demsions. The lighting brand is also zoo med. For the schedule I leave it on for the morning and the afternoon and turning off at night. The temp is usually 77 to 78°F or lower. I don't know at night and I have auto therm. I'm still try to get a humidifier. I'm using plastic plants. Its slightly close to a air vent but far enough where he doesn't get hit. I'm in Florida.
Chester09
New Member
Here is a pic of the cage
Ok so we really need the form filled out in this format and we need specifics especially when it comes to the supplements you are using. The cage is extremely bare giving him no where to feel safe... The branches on the top are sitting way too close. He is at risk of a thermal burn from the lights. He should be about 7 inches away from the lights. You are going to need another lighting fixture for the UVB. A T5HO fixture with a single 5.0 UVB bulb. The coil one you are using is not recommended. You will also need to upgrade this cage to the larger size as it will be way too small for him. The water dish in the bottom needs to go. The glass in the center needs to go. You do not want glass in the enclosure in case it breaks. The mat on the bottom needs to go. You need to get a drip tray to collect the water run off. you drill holes in the bottom of the cage panel to allow it to drip through. You can use anything from a pan to a storage container to a dragonstrand drip tray. You need live plants to provide hiding places and many more horizontal branches.
No mealworms. feeders must be gutloaded and very lightly powdered. He should be eating 12-18 feeders based on his size since he looks young.
Please fill out the form by copy pasting it into your thread so we can give you proper feedback.
Chameleon Info:
Cage Info:
Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
No mealworms. feeders must be gutloaded and very lightly powdered. He should be eating 12-18 feeders based on his size since he looks young.
Please fill out the form by copy pasting it into your thread so we can give you proper feedback.
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.
just follow the info in my post on how to do it. It is going to be easier if you are accessing the forum via a computer so you can copy paste the form and put in total detail.
MrsM
Avid Member
Everything Beman said.
Start by filling out the form.
I’d bet one part is that it is stressed with nowhere to hide/ lack of foliage. From what I gather you are trying to hand feed with tongs, but your chameleon should be able to thermoregulate, hide, and hunt in its own and feel secure. With so few perches and vines, no hiding spots, and bad lighting it is poorly adjusted in your setup and you may need to overhaul it with changes to finally get him eating.
Your problem doesn’t have one easy solution, there are a lot of things you have to change.
It you use the form people will be able to help.
Start by filling out the form.
I’d bet one part is that it is stressed with nowhere to hide/ lack of foliage. From what I gather you are trying to hand feed with tongs, but your chameleon should be able to thermoregulate, hide, and hunt in its own and feel secure. With so few perches and vines, no hiding spots, and bad lighting it is poorly adjusted in your setup and you may need to overhaul it with changes to finally get him eating.
Your problem doesn’t have one easy solution, there are a lot of things you have to change.
It you use the form people will be able to help.
Matt Vanilla Gorilla
Chameleon Enthusiast
We should sign a petition to take meal worms off the market! They are bad news for chameleons!
Highway61
Chameleon Enthusiast
Chester09
New Member
Ok
Well I moved my branch down more but he keeps grabing the side of the cage to go up more I removed the water dish tommorrow I'm going to buy a bigger cage the dish lighting new feeder and live plants
Yep that was the one I got
Rlc1994
Chameleon Enthusiast
This kit needs to be upgraded to more present chameleon care practices. It’s literally laughable on what comes in this kit and they advertise it as everything you need for a chameleon pretty much. Which is completely the opposite. It’s not the consumers fault for buying these kits especially if they are new to the hobby they see chameleon kit and think oh this is all I’ll need and be good. Most new keepers I see on here end up having this kit as their setup and it just angers me because the company that sells these are pretty much causing new keepers to pretty much do a complete overhaul of their setup because of this kit.
Sorry about the rant lol. Don’t really have much to help with the matter on this thread but if you listen to @Beman @Brodybreaux25 they are very helpful and will steer you in the right direction.
JoshD49
Chameleon Enthusiast
@Rlc1994 The problem is that the big box stores probably went to Exo Terra and said they want a kit that is cheap and easy to move off shelves so that they can sell chameleons. Exo Terra also believes this lighting setup will work for chameleons so it makes it easy and cheap to throw together. My usual reptile store doesn't even sell this kit. I only see it at Petco and Petsmart or expos. These are the locations where we often hear the wrong information being handed out.
@Matt Vanilla Gorilla The problem with mealworms is that they do work for other types of reptiles and due to their size and the fact you can place them in the fridge makes people see them as good. Superworms are less known and cannot be kept in the fridge. People want cheap and easy and chams are not for them.
People commonly associate the price of the cham as the most expensive part of the equation and do not want to spend more on the needs. This is the reason I hate how cheap Veiled are sold at. People will see them as a throw away unless they do the research (like they should) before buying them.
@Matt Vanilla Gorilla The problem with mealworms is that they do work for other types of reptiles and due to their size and the fact you can place them in the fridge makes people see them as good. Superworms are less known and cannot be kept in the fridge. People want cheap and easy and chams are not for them.
People commonly associate the price of the cham as the most expensive part of the equation and do not want to spend more on the needs. This is the reason I hate how cheap Veiled are sold at. People will see them as a throw away unless they do the research (like they should) before buying them.
Matt Vanilla Gorilla
Chameleon Enthusiast
Even as a feeder for other kinds of reptiles, mealworms are a garbage food why feed only French fries when Big Mack's are available? But even better, why not have a stake? The problems with mealworms are digestibility and nutritional content. It is a lizard junk food!
JoshD49
Chameleon Enthusiast
I agree with you completely but people just want the cheap feeder. I dont even feed them to my beardie and tell people not to buy them for anything. My Aunt used to feed them to her chickens.
CamoChameleonsHuman
Chameleon Enthusiast
People with birds love them as well. I think we should just iradicate all mealworms and chameleon kits from existence.
Yeah your heat levels may not be right at basking level. You need to buy a heat gun off amazon they are like 15 bucks. Take the temp of the branch if it is 82 then it should be the perfect temp for the cham being higher in the heat. You can use the heat gun on the cham as well. But please fill out the form. We could be missing a great deal of info to give you.
In the mean time here are links with additional info and images to help you
the images can be printed out at this link. https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/images/
Read through this... https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/
Matt Vanilla Gorilla
Chameleon Enthusiast
Here you go! Amazing info! The meat and gravy! Thanks @Beman
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