My Rudis had babies!!!

[dondeb562]

So my rudis pair delivered 10 babies on Tuesday. My question is, how do I keep the pin heads in the cage?!?! Should I take them ( the babies) all out and feed them in a seperate cage then put them back so I do not have pin heads all over my house? I have them in a little screen cage with a couple plants and branches. I have seen them all drinking and a couple start going for the crickets, but it seems as soon as I put the crickets in they all dissapear. Any suggestions?

 

[PNsSP]

maybe put them in a small glass cage till they eat bigger crickets? i dunno just a suggestion

pics pls =P

 

[dondeb562]

 

[Justin Carl]

Cute little buggers.
Why dont you cup feed them?
I would use 2 cups so all the babies arent feeding out of the same cup.
You can do fruit flies and pin heads like this.

 

[dondeb562]

I was thinking about that. How do you go about doing that? I have never done it before. I fear they will fall into the cup... Yes I am a very paranoid mom! lol! Same way with my humans kids! lol! So would I make a very shallow cup and hang it in the cage? I am getting fruit flies tomorrow. My reptile store was out. I was also told I could go catch afids (sp?) from the roses outside and try that too. Anyone ever tried them? I did not want todo it until I knew it was ok.
I can't get over how cute they are too!

 

[bluegoldfish]

omg they are so little n cute! congrats!

 

[PNsSP]

aww lol
im looking to get a rudis soon but theyv been so damn hard to find lately

 

[Trace]

No cup feeding!

If you are having problems with pinhead crickets escaping through the mesh of your cage, then get larger crickets. IE: 1/8" size. While rudis babies are small, they can eat that size of a cricket. Fruit flies are another good alternative feeder for small rudis. I use the larger Drosophila melanogaster over the hydei.

Another trick is to place a few slices of banana in the bottom of the cage. The crickets and FF's will naturally be attracted to the fruit and thus it will be easier for the rudis babies to eat them! It's a little mini feeding station as it were.

Congrats on the litter. Rudis are one of my favourites.
Trace

 

[Justin Carl]

Why no cup feeding?
Do the masses of crickets confuse them?

 

[Trace]

Why no cup feeding?
Do the masses of crickets confuse them?

Do chameleons young and old cup feed in the wild? Nope. I don't believe in cup feeding. Never have. Never will.

In this particular situation, FF's are going to crawl out of any bowl provided so why bother. The dangers of babies falling into the cup and not getting out is large. Tongue and bite injuries increases when hungry babies are vying for the same prey item.

Get slightly larger, but not huge bugs, and problem solved.

Trace

 

[FL Chams]

Trace,

I couldn't agree more. I don't like cup feeding at all. I think more people kill their chameleons because they want to domesticate them like a dog or a cat. Chameleons are enticed to eat by movement. Free Ranging is the only way to go in my opinion. I realize that some chameleons adapt to this, but I don't recommend this method.

 

[dondeb562]

Cool! Thanks I will try the banana thing! I have never cup fed like I said before. My chams only eat what is crawling up the screen. I was really worried about the whole cup feeding thing with the babies since they could fall in and get bitten by the food. They all hang off the roof of the cage. I have a few that have come down to bask in the branches or drink off the leaves, but for the most part they all hang upside down from the top. So I just ordered a box of 1 week old pin heads. So you suggest the 2 week old then? They look so tiny to handle those! lol! Looks like I will be growing some pin heads I guess for a week or so.
Sorry for all the questions, but thank you guys so much for your help!

 

[Justin Carl]

Yea, I know FF will get out of almost everything, but that is what the fruit is for.
I find in very unlikely that your chameleon will die from cup feeding.
I have fed 5 chameleons from 4 weeks old to a year old with cups.
I know that dosent include newborns.
Sure, I dont cup feed large crickets because they can jump out of almost anything.
Roaches and superworms go in a feeder cup.
Supers dont really like to crawl up screen, but the occasional will vernture up.
Roaches like to hide under rocks and plants, and this makes it difficult to manage how much you chameleon is eatting.
Plus, what do we supply to chameleons that is natural anyways?
Couped up chages, artificial lights, supplements, etc;
That is just my opinion.

 

[Trace]

Dondeb562;

I took a closer look at your pics... I'd add some thin sticks to the cage if you haven't already. This will help the babies climb down from the roof of the cage (which is something they will outgrow BTW) and/or the sticks will bring them closer to any FF's and crix that are climbing the screen. While I consider the rudis to be a species that can live together, creating some "stick highways" will give the babies a psychological feeling that they can escape from each other if needed. Forcing them to cluster on one plant is not natural. The cage doesn't necessarily need to be densely planted, but maybe add another small one just to create some more hidey places.

Providing access UVB goes without saying. I notice you are in California... put the cage of babies outside during the day. Nothing better than natural sunlight for growing bones. Don't let them get too hot though - 85F MAX! Frequent misting is also necessary for rudis - you've already noted that and they are only a few hours old. High humidity (80%+) is mandatory for montane chameleons. Unlike oviparous chameleons, rudis babies start to eat right away so start with the small crickets and FF's today.

Do you know anything about the parents/female? Were they WC's? CB's? I'd be interested in their history if you know it.

Good luck.
Trace

 

[dondeb562]

Oh those are from when they were first born and I was moving them from moms cage to their new cage. They have lots of branches and a few plants. They were born Tues morning. So they are 2 days old. I mist them several times a day and they do drink.
The parents are wild caught so not info on them. All my other chams are captive bred. I do not usually like getting wild caught.

 

[Nicodemayo]

Trace,

I couldn't agree more. I don't like cup feeding at all. I think more people kill their chameleons because they want to domesticate them like a dog or a cat. Chameleons are enticed to eat by movement. Free Ranging is the only way to go in my opinion. I realize that some chameleons adapt to this, but I don't recommend this method.

how are they killed? do you mean overhanding/stress factors or are you saying cup feeding will kill them?

 

[chamsrcool]

My rudis also had seven babies! but I cant find any detailed care info on them and two have died I now have them in a small tank with some fake ivy and a heat lamp on them is it important for them to be warm? I was wondering because the adults do fine at room temp.

 

[Brandy]

No HEAT!!

Rudis are montains and temps must be low (within reason) I haven't used heat with any of my rudis offspring most of the time in the summer i have to run a/c to keep them cool. if a spot is used id suggest a very low wattage and not in a tank.

as for the cup feeding issue, they can potentially damage tongues, but basically it makes them all compete for the same food injury's stress will do its tole on teeny little rudis or any other small live born cham.

 

[Brandy]

Rudis Cages

Here are some cages i reared rudis in

 

[sipos624]

I would get a large rubbermaid tub, put paper towel on the bottom, with like 2 pair of fake plastic leaves (easy to clean) then spread bug stop (i use this http://www.proexotics.com/store/product.php?productid=16230&cat=257&page=1 ) around the inside rim of the tub and have a constant supply of d.hydei in there (untill crix are a realistic food item). clean the tub once a week and spray them twice a day. Have the top open (make sure the chameleons can't climb out) and put a U.V.B. on them.