My first pet chameleon (need advice)

[ragidi]

Hello. I just joined the forum so sorry if I posted in the wrong thread/group. This is a bit long.

I got a chameleon yesterday from the local pet store. It was a slightly spontaneous decision (I have been planning for a long time to get a chameleon. I just couldn't find the right place and time to do so until now)
According to the pet store worker, the chameleon is a 2 year old male.
I bought 3 packets of freeze dried grasshoppers. The worker showed me how to prepare the meal:

1) place 3 grasshoppers in a water bowl for 3 minutes (I assume it's to get them juicier?)
2) Place them in front of the chameleon or grab them with tweezers and coax it into the chameleon's mouth

He did a live demonstration but the chameleon didn't eat because, according to the worker, he ate a roach today.

I was told to feed him once every 3 days. As for water, placing a water bowl is fine.
I bought a daylight beam 50w lightbulb too. The worker also gave me a temporary plastic tank with black sand in the bottom,

When I first carried the chameleon it climbed onto my hands and went up to my head. I liked him right away!
So I took him home and I let him out of his tank. I let him sit on my head for the rest of the day. Before I went to sleep, I sprayed some water on the tank walls using a water bottle with a hole poked through its lid. I noticed he had his eyes closed most of the time, but I assumed it was because it was almost nighttime.

Today is day 2. I took him out of the cage and let him hang on my head. He climbed around a bit but then kept falling asleep ( meaning his eyes were closed most of the time) I worried so I looked up chameleon care articles (many are from this forum which is why I signed up)
I read that a common health problem was dehydration, so I took him to the bathroom sink and got the water bottle and sprayed a bit on him. He opened his mouth a little, so I took this chance to spray some into his mouth. He took it and he seemed to have gulped it down (his throat was moving). I did it again.
However, he suddenly got frenzy and tried to climb the air. He almost feel from my hand while I was trying to calm him down.

He's currently sitting on the headrest of the computer chair after climbing my arm and head.

Sorry this was too long. I really love this chameleon and I don't want to screw this up. I'm still thinking of a name for him so he's 'chameleon' for now.

I posted two photos below.

Any advice would be wonderful. Thank you in advance!

Edit: I was told he was a Brazilian chameleon. However after looking it up he seems to be a veiled chameleon. Is that true?

 

[Mikesyring]

Yeah pet stores have no clue what there doing there's many resores on this site from proper care please read

 

[MissMaisie]

I'm sorry, but that sounds like some bad advice you've got from that seller :S I recommend reading as much from this site as possible, it has all you need to know about cage/lights/feeding. First though I would remove the water bowl, chameleons drink by drippers and misting, water bowls will just become a bacteria bomb and chameleons drink droplets from leaves etc in nature. Regarding the feeding you should feed it live bugs (crickets, dubia roaches, hoppers etc), you need to gut load these bugs at least 24hours before you feed them to your chameleon and dust them with calcium. The easiest would be to go through the advice pages here as they have every detail listed! Do you have a uvb light for your new cham? At least when having learned everything you will know you can finally provide this little guy with a proper home

Edit: you sure it's a male? If it is it will have little spurs at the back of its heels.

 

[MoyaChan]

Well I wouldn't want to give you wrong advice, but... All in all what the guy petstore said... I did non of those. You should feed him live crickets or other insect, which you feed beforehand. Also he won't drink standing water, you need to get a dripper or spray him like you did.
I'd also give him more food, as much as he wants to eat,he looks a bit skinny to me, but probably that's just the pictures. He would probably want to eat daily. Also, you need a heatlamp and a UVB light.
I think you should read more into it, read the caresheet on this site, to start.
What kind of enclosure do you have? Have you seen his tongue out of his mouth? I mean using it as he eats/drink?

 

[Mikesyring]

First of all I'll start with I'm not a valid expert but u need to feed him live crickets since he's older 10 every other day u should also look up proper dusting with calcium and vitamins cal with no d3 every feeding d3 twice a month the crickets should be gut loaded your enclosure I assume is wrong since u said tank he needs a screen cage at least 2 feet by 2 feet by 4 feet high some live plants preferred you need a mister and water dropper water in a bowl is no good look up proper temps and humidity you need proper lighting look that up too I'm sure more people will post but congrats on your new guy and welcome to the forum coming here was a good step but you have a ways to go to get to the proper care and set up for him here's a pic of my enclosure to give u an idea

 

[ragidi]

Thank you for the quick replies!
I'm not currently at my own home (I'm staying at a relative's town). So I didn't buy all the equipment cuz I'm traveling by plane and the airlines are a bit strict about that.

The light bulb I got is a UVB (says so on the box) but it looks like yellow light. Should it be purple/blue?

As for feeding, we don't get lots of bugs around here (except for flies, mosquitoes, ants, and roaches). I could go bug hunting for him tho (the threat of pesticide-ridden bugs concerns me...)

I didn't place a water bowl yet. Just sprayed the walls and roof.

I will list my tank ideas here as soon as possible.

Thank you all so much!

 

[Mikesyring]

You need to buy live bugs from a pet store or order them you can't go catch them DEAD BUGS is a no no if you can't provide this than you can't feed him properly

 

[MissMaisie]

You could try buying bugs online and having them sent to you if there's no where near you that sells them. I always get my silk worms online as I've never come by them in the shop before.

 

[Mikesyring]

Make sure when you ship him home u do the proper packing to move your Cham u can't just put him in a tank he needs heat and humidity look up how to do this

 

[Mikesyring]

I'm going to say this chams are not a beginners reptile they require a lot of specialized care do the research please they are fragile creatures and require a lot be prepared

 

[ragidi]

I know it's not going to be easy. But I want to do it. I don't want to let this little guy down (that was a bit dramatic but you get me)

 

[MoyaChan]

Don't go hunting for bugs, that's no good for him, they can various problems to your cham.
And still while you're not at home, try to keep him warm as much as you can. It seems to me that he lets you touch him, so you'll be able to feel his temperature, it shouldn't be cold. Put him under a light, not too close of course so he won't get burnt, but so he gets a little bit of heat. Also if it's warm outside (dunno about the weather where you stay), you could take him outside sunbathing.

 

[MoyaChan]

Oh yeah and mist properly, or maybe give him a shower, to boost his hydration a bit. I've never done that but I read a lot of people do it here. (look for a thread in that if you choose to do that, it's also not just putting him under the shower you need to be careful on that too!).

 

[ragidi]

His skin feels cold. I thought it was normal because, well, reptile skin isn't like mammals so it doesn't radiate heat..? I guess I got that wrong.
I put him in his tank and placed him under a desklight for the moment until I can prepare proper lighting.

Also, is it normal that he sleeps alot? When he sits on my head or hands he sleeps (closes his eyes). However, he's active in his tank.

 

[Mikesyring]

No it's not
Normal that he sleeps a lot he should be fully active during his 12 hours of light please READ care sheets on this forum all the info u need to care for him properly is posted on this site

 

[Leo Chance]

Good luck with your new chameleon. I really would suggest that you spend some time on this forum. I have always thought that the only stores that give worse advice than plant stores are pet stores. Sounds like you found an incredibly dishonest sales person, sad. The advice you get from this forum might save your chameleon. If your chameleon was being fed dead grasshoppers, I would guess it hasn't eaten in awhile. If it has been given water from a bowl, you can be sure it is dehydrated, which is dangerous.

 

[Mikesyring]

Good luck with your new chameleon. I really would suggest that you spend some time on this forum. I have always thought that the only stores that give worse advice than plant stores are pet stores. Sounds like you found an incredibly dishonest sales person, sad. The advice you get from this forum might save your chameleon. If your chameleon was being fed dead grasshoppers, I would guess it hasn't eaten in awhile. If it has been given water from a bowl, you can be sure it is dehydrated, which is dangerous.

I agree please take the advice of these people taking the time to post the pet store sales guy has no idea what he is doing he just wanted to make a sale

 

[Trace]

This animal doesn’t look like the typical female Veiled Chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus) so there might a slim possibility that she is a Chamaeleo arabicus. The reason I say that is she doesn’t present the typical colouration and patterning of a Veiled but bear in mind we in North America and Europe are used to healthy, captive bred specimens so they will look a bit different. The presence of tarsal spurs on the back feet indicates a male in either species. They look like bumps on the heels. I’m not seeing those in the photo so I’m assuming she is a female but photos of the back feet/heels will help us determine gender either way.

All that said, she is definitely a wild caught lizard and as such presents many problems for the novice keeper, many of which you are seeing now – the sleeping and refusing to eat.

Here are our Chameleon Care Resources pages. They are a big help to set up a proper habitat for your new pet. https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/

I have also written a blog about wild caught chameleons that you might find helpful. Unfortunately it is written with a North American slant as in we have access to different insects and supplies than where you are located. Many reptile products are universal but there are regional differences for some so use the equivalent. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/entry/dealing-with-a-wild-caught-chameleon.776/

Good luck! If you have more specific questions, please let us know.

 

[ragidi]

Will do. I just read more cares sheets and articles here and it really helps!
My chameleon's enclosure at the pet store was well furnished: UVB light, branches, leaves. However, the were more than one in a single cage which is bad.
I'm sure I can find stuff I need from local stores. The problem is finding a trusted source of gutloaded insects.

Is it safe to place an electronic humidifier/mister inside the enclosure? Of course it'll be placed somewhere out of the chameleon's reach.

 

[ragidi]

This animal doesn’t look like the typical female Veiled Chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus) so there might a slim possibility that she is a Chamaeleo arabicus. The reason I say that is she doesn’t present the typical colouration and patterning of a Veiled but bear in mind we in North America and Europe are used to healthy, captive bred specimens so they will look a bit different. The presence of tarsal spurs on the back feet indicates a male in either species. They look like bumps on the heels. I’m not seeing those in the photo so I’m assuming she is a female but photos of the back feet/heels will help us determine gender either way.

All that said, she is definitely a wild caught lizard and as such presents many problems for the novice keeper, many of which you are seeing now – the sleeping and refusing to eat.

Here are our Chameleon Care Resources pages. They are a big help to set up a proper habitat for your new pet. https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/

I have also written a blog about wild caught chameleons that you might find helpful. Unfortunately it is written with a North American slant as in we have access to different insects and supplies than where you are located. Many reptile products are universal but there are regional differences for some so use the equivalent. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/entry/dealing-with-a-wild-caught-chameleon.776/

Good luck! If you have more specific questions, please let us know.

It's a female? How can you tell?